Strauss’ Salome, adapted from the play by Oscar Wilde, premiered on December 9th, 1905. The opera shocked audiences due to its themes which blend the violent and erotic within a Christian biblical setting. It c entres around the death of John the Baptist and is famous for its ‘Dance of the Seven Veils’. Laila Andersson-Palme was born in 1941 and moved to Stockholm in 1960. She was immediately accepted in the solo class at t he Royal College of Music and began to perform in small roles at the Opera. Her voice developed in a dramatic direction. Following a hugely s uccessful career often singing Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner, in v arious roles, in 1985 she was appointed Court singer in 1985 and was elected in 1997 as member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music.