Ragnar Ulfung

Ragnar Sigurd Ulfung (born 28 February 1927) is a Norwegian operatic tenor. Described in the Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians as "a brilliant actor with an incisive voice", he was particularly known for his portrayals of Herod (Salome) and Mime (Der Ring des Nibelungen). He is also an opera director. Amongst the productions he has directed was a complete Ring cycle for the Seattle Opera.

Ulfung was born in Oslo and sang as an alto in a Norwegian boys' choir, and received his early training in singing and acting at the Oslo Conservatory. During his early 20s he continued vocal training for four years in Italy,

He made some early stage appearances in Oslo and Bergen (where he sang Faust 35 times in succession), In 1975 he appeared in Ingmar Bergman's celebrated film of Mozart's The Magic Flute in the role of Monostatos, and he also sang Tom Rakewell in Bergman's production of The Rake's Progress in Stockholm. In 1975 he appeared at Drottningholm in Le Carnaval by Lully as Monsieur Pourceaugnac.

Contemporary opera featured in his career with the 'Deaf-Mute' part in the premiere of Blomdahl's space opera Aniara in 1959 in Stockholm; in 1969 "he thrilled audiences with his portrayal of Christopher, the dreamer and traveller to hell" in the premiere of Werle's Die Reise at Hamburg State Opera, and he took the title-role in Maxwell Davies's Taverner in 1972. which was later issued on DVD. At the Royal Opera House Covent Garden he sang the title role in Don Carlos in 1963, Herod in Salome in 1970 and 1974, and roles in the Ring cycle. Ulfung was scheduled to sing Vere in Billy Budd at Covent Garden in 1964 but objections by Equity and the threat of a strike led to him being replaced by Richard Lewis for the run. He sang John Taverner in the world premiere run of Peter Maxwell Davies' opera Taverner at Covent Garden in 1972.

In 2015, Ulfung at age 88 sang Altoum in Turandot at Dalhalla with Nina Stemme and Lars Cleveman among the cast.

Often described as a 'versatile artist', or an 'acting singer' Ulfung stated that he "emphatically prefers that description to the more common 'singing actor'. He believed in researching characters such as Herod "If you have a historical person like this you can read Oscar Wilde's play to get an idea of his fear and hate, his weakness and strength simultaneously", or that he might "approach a part like the Duke of Mantua, and of course Don Carlos by reading about the historical originals; you can learn a lot about the character that way".