Opera Singers
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Enrico Caruso (b. Errico Caruso) was born on February 25, 1873, in Naples, Italy. He was the third of seven children to a poor alcoholic father. He received little primary education and briefly studied music with conductor Vicenzo Lombardini. His early income was from singing serenades.
Caruso made his operatic debut on March 15, 1895 at a back street theatre in Naples. After a two-year stint on the South Italian circuit he auditioned for Giacomo Puccini in the summer of 1897. Puccini was looking for a leading tenor for a performance of 'La Boheme' in Livorno. Puccini was so impressed with the range and tone of the young Caruso's voice, that he reportedly mumbled in awe, "Who sent you to me? God himself?" After an unfriendly reception of his performance in Naples, Caruso vowed to never sing in Naples again, and he never did.
His first major role creations were in operas 'Il Voto', composed by Umberto Giordano, on November 10, 1897, and 'L'Arlesiana' by Francesco Cilea on November 27, 1897, at the Teatro Lirico di Milano. Next season Caruso started with a role creation in 'Fedora', composed by Umberto Giordano, performed on the same stage on November 17, 1898. His first recording contract was signed in 1902, in London, with the Gramophone and Typewriter Company for ten arias at the rate of 10 pounds per take. In May, 1902, Caruso debuted at the Covent Garden Opera in 'Rigoletto' by Giuseppe Verdi. With the help of the banker Pasquale Simonelli, he went to New York. There Caruso made his Metropolitan Opera debut in November 1903. He performed for the Met the next eighteen seasons, making 607 appearances in 37 different operatic productions.
Caruso was the first recording star in history, who sold more than a million records with his 1902 recording of 'Vesti le gubba' from 'Pagliacci' (Clowns) by 'Leoncavallo'. His voice had a combination of the full baritone-like character with the smooth and brilliant tenor qualities. His range was broadened into baritone at the expense of the higher tenor notes, Caruso never sang the high C, and often transposed in order to avoid it. He was a master of interpretation, having a rare gift of portamento and legato, and a superior command of phrasing. His legendary 1904 Victor recording of 'Una furtiva lagrima', by Gaetano Donizetti is used in many film soundtracks.
He contracted pneumonia and developed a complication in the form of pleural inflammation (plerisy), followed by abscesses in his lungs. After a series of unsuccessful surgeries Enrico Caruso died on August 2, 1921, in Naples, Italy. He was laid to rest in Naples, Italy.- Actress
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This volatile opera diva was born Sophie Cecilia Kalos in New York City to Greek émigrés on December 2, 1923. Her father set up a pharmacy and changed the family name from Kalogeropoulos to Callas. As a child Maria studied the piano. When her parents separated (she was 14 at the time), her mother returned to Athens with Maria and her sister.
The budding singer was quickly accepted into the National Conservatoire where she was taught singing lessons by Maria Trivella. She performed her first recital within the year and in 1939 won a prize for her stage debut in the Conservatoire's production of "Cavalleria Rusticana." In 1941, the soprano dramatico d'agilita made her professional debut in "Boccaccio" with the Lyric Theatre Company. While there she made a semi-name for herself with performances of "Tosca" and "Fidelio."
Impending war led her back to the United States in 1944 where she reclaimed the name of Maria Callas. She was offered a contract from the Met which she turned down because among the three roles she was offered to sing there was Butterfly and she believed that she was too obese to sing the fragile 14 year-old Butterfly, her friends considered her to be crazy turning down the Met while she was so unknown.
Maria performed elsewhere (Chicago, etc.) before returning to Europe in the post-war years where she met Giovanni Battista Meneghini, a wealthy industrialist and avid opera fan. They married in 1949 and he immediately took control of her career. She reached her zenith at La Scala (1951-1958), also recording during that time. In 1956, she finally made her debut at the Met as "Norma" with performances of "Tosca" and "Lucia" following.
Within a couple of years her temperamental outbursts and excessive demands began to rise full force, resulting in a number of dismissals and walkouts. After meeting Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis through her husband, a torrid affair erupted and her marriage ended. Maria gave up the stage in the early 1960s for the jet-set life with Onassis, but continued with occasional concerts. Despite experiencing vocal problems, she made one unforgettable comeback on stage in 1964-1965 when she toured with her personal favorites ("Norma" in Paris and "Tosca" at the Met). Weak and tired, her final curtain on stage rang down in July of 1965 in Covent Garden.
With her career over, she renounced her American citizenship and expected to marry Onassis. But their relationship was a stormy one and it eventually tapered off with Onassis instead marrying Jacqueline Kennedy in 1968. Maria was completely devastated and those around her say she never recovered. The following year she filmed an unsuccessful production of Medea (1969) and eventually set up master classes at Juilliard. In one last comeback, she attempted a European tour of recitals but her voice completely failed her. Her last public performance was on November 11, 1975.
Riddled by sadness and despair, and by now firmly addicted to sleeping pills, Maria turned reclusive in her last year and died of a heart attack in 1977 at age 53. Despite a career that flourished less than two decades, Callas must be respected as one of the more important and recognizable opera legends. She was certainly one of the most emotive and visually dramatic. What also carries her today is, of course, her grandly turbulent and tragic image -- an Édith Piaf of opera.- Actress
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Birgit Nilsson was born on 17 May 1918 in Västra Karup, Skåne län, Sweden. She was an actress, known for Army of Thieves (2021), Da 5 Bloods (2020) and Tristan und Isolde (1974). She was married to Bertil Niklasson. She died on 25 December 2005 in Västra Karup, Skåne län, Sweden.- Actor
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Jussi Björling was born on 2 February 1911 in Stora Tuna, Dalarnas län, Sweden. He was an actor, known for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), Atonement (2007) and Funny Games (2007). He was married to Anna-Lisa Berg. He died on 9 September 1960 in Siarö, Stockholms län, Sweden.- Actor
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Mario Del Monaco was born on 27 July 1915 in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. He was an actor, known for The Untouchables (1987), Wall Street (1987) and The Warrior's Way (2010). He was married to Rina Filippini. He died on 16 October 1982 in Mestre, Venice, Veneto, Italy.- Actor
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John Tomlinson was born on 22 September 1946 in Accrington, Lancashire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Das Rheingold (1992), Parsifal (1992) and Le nozze di Figaro - Die Hochzeit des Figaro (1991).- Actor
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Robert Lloyd was born on 2 March 1940 in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The Metropolitan Opera HD Live (2006), Great Performances (1971) and Parsifal (1982).- Olga Borodina was born on 29 July 1963 in Leningrad, RSFSR, USSR [now St. Petersburg, Russia]. She is an actress, known for Samson and Delilah (2008), War and Peace (1991) and Pique Dame (2002).
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Although born in Madrid, Spain, Placido Domingo spent a major portion of his life living in Mexico City where he graduated from the Mexico City Conservatory. His first operatic performance was in a staging of La Traviata in Monterrey playing Alfredo. He was then a Tenor for the Israel National Opera and subsequently moved to Europe.- Actor
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Luciano Pavarotti was a best-selling classical singer and humanitarian known for his most original and popular performances with the 'Three Tenors' and 'Pavarotti & Friends'.
He was born on October 12, 1935, in Modena, Emilia-Romagna, in Northern Italy. He was the first child and only son of two children in the family of a baker. His father, Fernando Pavarotti, was a gifted amateur tenor, who instilled a love for music and singing in young Luciano. His mother, Adele Venturi, worked at the local cigar factory. Young Pavarotti showed many talents. He first sang with his father in the Corale Rossi, a male choir in Modena, and won the first prize in an international choir competition in Wales, UK. He also played soccer as a goalkeeper for his town's junior team.
In 1954, at the age of 19, Pavarotti decided to make a career as a professional opera singer. He took serious study with professional tenor Arrio Pola, who discovered that Pavarotti had perfect pitch, and offered to teach him for free. After six years of studies, he had only a few performances in small towns without pay. At that time Pavarotti supported himself working as a part-time school teacher and later an insurance salesman. In 1961 he married his girlfriend, singer Adua Veroni, and the couple had three daughters.
Pavarotti made his operatic debut on April 29, 1961, as Rodolfo in La Boheme by Giacomo Puccini, at the opera house in Reggio Emilia. In the following years he relied on the professional advise from tenor Giuseppe Di Stefano, who prevented Pavarotti from appearances when his voice was not ready yet. Eventually Pavarotti stepped in for Di Stefano in 1963, at the Royal Opera House in London as 'Rodolfo' in La Boheme by Giacomo Puccini, making his international debut. That same year he met soprano Joan Sutherland and the two began one of the most legendary partnerships in vocal history; Pavarotti made his American debut opposite Sutherland in February of 1965, at the Miami Opera.
Pavarotti was blessed with a voice of rare range, beauty and clarity, which was best during the 60s, 70s and 80s. In 1966 he became the first opera tenor to hit all nine "high C's" with his full voice in the aria 'Quel destin' in 'La Fille du Regiment' (aka.. The Daughter of the Regiment) by Gaetano Donizetti. He repeated this feat in his legendary 1972 Met performance and was nicknamed "King of the High C's" in rave reviews. Pavarotti's popularity was arguably bigger than that of any other living tenor in the world. His 1993 live performance in New York's Central Park was attended by 500,000 fans while millions watched it on television. During the 1990s and 2000s Pavarotti was still showing the ability to deliver his clear ringing tone in the higher register, albeit in fewer performances.
Luciano Pavarotti was also known for his humanitarian work. He was the founder and host of the 'Pavarotti & Friends' annual charity concerts and related activities in Modena, Italy. There he sang with international stars of all styles to raise funds for several worthy UN causes. Pavarotti sang with Bono and U2 in the 1995 song Miss Sarajevo and raised $1,500,000 in his charity project 'Concert for Bosnia'. He also established and financed the Pavarotti Music Center in Bosnia, and raised funds in charity concerts for refugees from Afghanistan and Kosovo. Pavarotti made two Guinness World Records: one was for receiving the most curtain calls at 165; and the other was for the best selling classical album of 'The Three Tenors in Concert' with Plácido Domingo and José Carreras.
In March 2004 Pavarotti gave his last performance in an opera as the painter Mario Cavaradossi in Giacomo Puccini's 'Tosca' at the New York Metropolitan Opera. In 2005 Luciano Pavarotti started a 40 city farewell tour. He sang his signature aria 'Nessun Dorma' from 'Turandot' by Giacomo Puccini, at the 2006 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Turin, Italy, on February 10, 2006. Pavarotti survived an emergency surgery for pancreatic cancer. His remaining appearances for 2006 had to be canceled. However, his management anticipated that his farewell tour would resume in 2007.
Luciano Pavarotti died of kidney failure on September 6, 2007, at his home in Modena, Italy, surrounded by his family. He was laid to rest with his parents in the family tomb in Montale Rangone cemetery near Modena. His funeral ceremony was an international event attended by celebrities and over fifty thousand music lovers from all over the world.- Actor
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Josep Maria Carreras i Coll was born on December 5, 1946, in Barcelona, Spain. His father was the owner of a small chemical plant. Young Carreras showed early interest in music after seeing Mario Lanza in the film The Great Caruso (1951) at the age of 6. He gave his first public performance on the Spanish National Radio at the age of 8. At that time, he began his piano and solfeggio studies. His parents had a season subscription at the Liceo Opera, and young Carreras with his brother became regular opera goers. He studied chemistry on the insistence of his father. At the age of 17, he started taking voice lessons from Jaime Francisco Puig in Conservatorio Superior de Musica del Liceo in Barcelona. He also excelled in sports having tennis as a hobby. Jose Carreras and his wife Mercedes were married in Barcelona cathedral In May of 1971, the couple has two sons.
Carreras made his debut at the age of 18, as Flavio in Norma by Vincenzo Bellini , where his stage partner was Montserrat Caballé in the title role. The two singers made a steady duet for the next fifteen opera productions. Caballe invited Carreras to sing the part of Gennaro in Lucrezia Borgia by Gaetano Donizetti in Teatre Liceo. That role became the first major breakthrough for the young tenor. Carreras won the International Verdi Lyrical song contest in Parma in 1971. He made his London debut in 1971 with Caballe. In 1976, he was invited by Herbert von Karajan to appear at the Summer and Winter Festivals of Salzburg. Carreras made notable recordings under the baton of Herbert von Karajan, including the Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi. He made an acclaimed recording of the 'West Side Story' with Leonard Bernstein.
Jose Carreras' lyrical tenor had its finest quality during the 1970s and early 1980s. He sung the lead tenor in 24 different operas by the age of 28. He performed the total of over 60 roles during the years of intense singing career from 1964-1987, making over a thousand performances in various formats: operas, concerts, recordings and festival recitals. In the 1980s, Carreras' voice started to show some signs of strain, especially detectable when he pushed or forced his voice to harmful open notes.
In 1987, at the peak of his career, Jose Carreras collapsed in Paris while a recording performance opposite Kiri Te Kanawa in Manon Lescaut by Giacomo Puccini. He was diagnosed with leukemia and was given low chance of survival. He underwent a year-long treatment of radiation, chemotherapy and an autologus bone marrow transplant in Seattle. In 1988, Carreras returned to singing and was greeted by a crowd of 150,000 at an open air performance in Barcelona. In 1990, he made the acclaimed Three Tenors performance at the opening of the World Cup in Rome. It was originally planned as a fund-raiser for the Jose Carreras International Leukaemia Foundation. A series of "The Three Tenors" concerts during the 1990s followed by the record-breaking sales of their recordings.
Jose Carreras made a remarkable comeback after his treatment and recovery from leukemia. He maintains a busy concert schedule and his performance calendar is booked through the year 2007.- Actress
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Anna Netrebko was born on 18 September 1971 in Krasnodar, Krasnodarskiy kray, RSFSR, USSR [now Russia]. She is an actress, known for Knives Out (2019), La Bohème (2008) and The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004). She has been married to Yusif Eyvazov since 29 December 2015.- Actress
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Jessye Norman was born on 15 September 1945 in Augusta, Georgia, USA. She was an actress, known for Wild at Heart (1990), The Hours (2002) and Choke (2008). She died on 30 September 2019 in New York City, New York, USA.- Actor
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José van Dam was born on 25 August 1940 in Brussels, Belgium. He is an actor, known for Don Giovanni (1979), Babel opéra, ou la répétition de Don Juan de Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1985) and Otello (1974).- Kurt Moll was born on 11 April 1938 in Buir, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He was an actor, known for The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977), Die Zauberflöte (1991) and Die Zauberflöte (1983). He was married to Ursula. He died on 5 March 2017 in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
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Her childhood was shaped by the Spanish Civil War and the modest means of her working-class family. Her musical talent developed early and she was already singing classical cantatas at the age of seven. From 1942 she trained in singing at the Conservatorio Superior de Musica in Barcelona. She was able to study thanks to a scholarship. In 1954 she finished with the best award. The following year, Montserrat Caballé made his debut in Reus, southern Catalonia, in the leading female role in the comic opera "La serva padrona" by the Italian composer Giovanni Battista Pergolesi. She then received a three-year engagement at the theater in Basel from 1956. From 1959 to 1962 she worked at the theater in Bremen. During this time in German-speaking countries, she learned to speak the local language fluently. 1965 was the beginning of her great international career. On April 20th of this year, she briefly replaced her pregnant colleague Marilyn Horne in the opera "Lukrezia Borga" by Gaetano Donizetti, which took place as a concert performance at Carnegie Hall in New York.
Montserrat Caballé was enthusiastically celebrated by the audience, highly praised by the press and mentioned alongside renowned personalities such as Maria Callas and Joan Sutherland. With this event she became a star and the doors of the most important international houses opened to her. Immediately afterwards, the Metropolitan Opera contacted her with a permanent contract. There she started in the role of Marguérite in the master opera "Faust" by the French composer Charles Gounod. This was followed by a record contract with the music label RCA Records in New York City. In 1962 she met her future husband, the tenor Bernabé Marti. This year she appeared with him in the opera production of Giacomo Puccini's "Madame Butterfly" at the Teatro del Liceo in Barcelona. Two years later, the two married in the Benedictine monastery of Santa Maria de Montserrat in the mountains of the same name near Barcelona. From 1971, the soprano performed regularly at the State Opera in Hamburg. Her favorite composers include Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini, Verdi and Puccini. In addition, Caballé often worked as a concert singer.
In 1986, she was diagnosed with a benign brain tumor. She became known to a wider, more operatic audience through her legendary performance on the rock crossover title "Barcelona" on the occasion of the 1992 Olympic Games there, which she sang together with Freddie Mercury and which comes from the 1987 album of the same name. This and other engagements show the versatility of the artist Caballé. The solo title was written by Mercury. Her album "Friends For Life" was released in 1997 with the participation of Bruce Dickinson, Johnny Hallyday, Johnny Logan, Gino Vannelli and Helmut Lotti. A year later, Caballé was awarded the Bambi. The singer celebrated her comeback as an opera diva in 2002 at the Gran Teatro des Liceo in Barcelona after ten years away from the stage. In 2007 she was awarded the Echo Klassik Music Prize for her life's work. In the same year on April 1st she returned to the stage of the Vienna State Opera after 18 years. She played and sang the role of Duchesse de Crakentorp in Gaetano Donizetti's opera "La Fille du Régiment", an international production between the Vienna State Opera, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden and the Metropolitan Opera New York.
The diva's other awards include the Order of Doña Isabel La Católica as the highest title of the Spanish government, R.SH Gold for pop music from Radio Schleswig-Holstein, the Federal Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany and the French Cross of Honor for Arts and Science. Montserrat Caballé also volunteers as a United Nations ambassador. With her excellent bel canto interpretations, she is one of the greatest singers in the field and its innovators. In addition to her exceptional artistic qualities, her more than 90 opera roles and her around 4,000 performances made her popular as one of the greatest opera singers. In addition to the opera stage and musical theater, she delighted audiences with her heartwarming appearances in talk shows, galas and film documentaries.- Siegfried Jerusalem was born on 17 April 1940 in Oberhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He is an actor, known for The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977), Der Ring des Nibelungen (1980) and Götterdämmerung (1992).
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Kiri Te Kanawa studied voice in New Zealand, where she was a popular singer as a teenager. She enrolled in the London Opera Center in 1966, and had her Covent Garden debut 1 December 1971. Although her acting ability is highly regarded on the operatic stage, she has made few theatrical films.- Actor
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René Kollo was born on 20 November 1937 in Berlin, Germany. He is an actor, known for Meeting Venus (1991), Tristan und Isolde (1983) and Fidelio (1978). He was previously married to Béatrice Bouquet and Dorthe Kollo.- Actor
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Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau was born on 28 May 1925 in Berlin, Germany. He was an actor, known for Children of Men (2006), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) and The Marriage of Figaro (1976). He was married to Julia Varady, Christina Pugel-Schule, Ruth Leuwerik and Irmgard Poppen. He died on 18 May 2012 in Starnberg, Bavaria, Germany.- Actor
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Samuel Ramey was born on 28 March 1942 in Colby, Kansas, USA. He is an actor, known for Manchester by the Sea (2016), Over the Garden Wall (2014) and Boris Godunov (2013).- Actress
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She is one of the most famous dramatic sopranos in the world, and has performed at many of the world's great opera houses. She is renowned for her starring performances in the operas Turandot, Tosca, and Elektra. She has also performed the lead roles in many Wagner operas, including Tannhauser, Lohengrin, and the role of Brunnhilde in the Ring operas.- Actress
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Joan Sutherland was born on 7 November 1926 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. She was an actress, known for The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977), Spectre (2015) and Carlito's Way (1993). She was married to Richard Bonynge. She died on 10 October 2010 in Montreux, Switzerland.- Actress
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Christa Ludwig was born on 16 March 1928 in Berlin, Germany. She was an actress, known for Fatal Attraction (1987), La haine (1995) and Fidelio (1963). She was married to Paul-Emile Deiber and Walter Berry. She died on 24 April 2021 in Klosterneuburg, Austria.- Actress
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Elisabeth Schwarzkopf was born on 9 December 1915 in Jarotschin, Prussia, Germany [now Jarocin, Wielkopolskie, Poland]. She was an actress, known for Closer (2004), Der Rosenkavalier (1961) and Nacht ohne Abschied (1943). She was married to Walter Legge. She died on 3 August 2006 in Schruns, Vorarlberg, Austria.- Actress
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Janet Baker was born on 21 August 1933 in York, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Morgan (2016), Byzantium (2012) and Happiness (1998).- Nicolai Ghiaurov was born on 13 September 1929 in Velingrad, Bulgaria. He was an actor, known for You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010), Great Performances (1971) and Aida (1985). He was married to Mirella Freni and Zlatina Ghiaurov. He died on 2 June 2004 in Modena, Emilia-Romagna, Italy.
- Boris Christoff was born on 18 May 1914 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. He was an actor, known for Producers' Showcase (1954), La forza del destino (1958) and Music for You (1951). He was married to Franca de Rensis. He died on 23 June 1993 in Rome, Lazio, Italy.
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This vibrant, fine-humored coloratura was able to accomplish what most others of her ilk could or would not do -- she humanized opera and made it approachable to the masses. There were no diva-like traits in this star and the public absolutely adored her for it. Dubbed "America's Queen of Opera" in 1971 by Time magazine, Beverly Sills, the lovely blonde with the toothy smile and fireplace-warm personality, also gained notice for her rise to stardom without benefit of European training, eventually paving the way for other American-trained singers to succeed without the accustomed "Met certification". During her career she recorded 18 full-length operas as well as numerous recital discs. A Victor Herbert album she recorded won a Grammy Award in 1978. If not one of its most distinctive and charismatic voices, she certainly became opera's most accessible figurehead and with it enticed a surprisingly wide audience who would have typically turned away from the long-haired art form.
Brooklyn-born Belle Miriam Silverman arrived on May 25, 1929, to Russian-Jewish émigrés and the good humor already started at birth when she was nicknamed "Bubbles" due to bubbles emanating from her mouth as she arrived. At age 3 she made her debut on a kiddie show and won a Brooklyn "beautiful baby" contest as well. Her singing gifts were detected early on and she began to study at age 7. Performing increasingly on various radio shows well into her teen years, she made her operatic debut at age 18 singing the role of Frasquita in "Carmen" with the Philadelphia Civic Opera.
In the early 1950s Beverly toured with the Charles L. Wagner Opera Company and established herself in the roles of Violetta in "La Traviata" and Micaela in "Carmen". The highlight during this time came with her role as Helen of Troy in "Mephistopheles" with the San Francisco Opera in 1953. She met future husband Peter Greenough, an associate editor, while touring with the New York City Opera in 1955 (she had auditioned unsuccessfully for the company for nearly 4 years). The couple married a year later and went on to have two children: Meredith and Peter Jr. Despite her sunny, optimistic demeanor, Beverly had her fair share of misfortune. Her daughter was born deaf and son born autistic. For the remainder of her life she became an avid spokesperson for children with particular needs.
Her buildup on the opera scene was surprisingly gradual. Over the years she developed a strong repertoire of leading roles in the works of Mozart, Handel, Offenbach, Donizetti, Rossini and Verdi. Stardom came with the role of Cleopatra in Handel's "Julius Caesar" in 1966 at Lincoln Center, and she confirmed it with subsequent roles in "Le Coq d'Or, "Mamon", "Lucia di Lammermoor" "The Siege of Corinth" and "Il Trittico".
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s she made herself available to the public in lighter forums at such open venues as the Hollywood Bowl. She willingly shared both the stage and small screen with such unlikely co-stars as Carol Burnett ("Sills and Burnett at the Met"), Danny Kaye, John Denver, Tony Bennett, Johnny Carson and even the Muppets. She won four Emmys for her interview show "Lifestyles with Beverly Sills" in the late 70s. On the operatic side, some of her televised performances included that of "The Barber of Seville", "La Traviata" and "Manon".
Beverly's lyric soprano began to falter at around age 50 in the late 1970s. She bid her audiences adieu in a 1980 performance of "Die Fledermaus" with Joan Sutherland for the San Diego Opera. Later that decade she was the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1980 and was paid tribute at the 1985 Kennedy Center Honors for her lifetime of contribution to the arts.
In later years Beverly worked behind the scenes after taking over the mismanaged City Opera Company and turning things around as its general director. She retired successfully from that leadership post in 1989 and five years later became chairman of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Retiring in 2002, she took over the chair for the Metropoliatan Opera itself until 2005 due to family obligations and health issues. Her husband Peter died in September of 2006; ten months later Beverly would follow.
(Obviously) a non-smoker all her life, Beverly nevertheless developed lung cancer. Her father had died of the same disease back in 1947. She died on July 2, 2007 at her Manhattan residence. Her two children and one grandchild survive.- Régine Crespin was born on 23 February 1927 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France. She was an actress, known for The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977), L'or du diable (1989) and La grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein (1980). She was married to Lou Bruder. She died on 4 July 2007 in Paris, France.
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Tatiana Troyanos was born on 12 September 1938 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for Vice (2018), The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977) and Great Performances (1971). She died on 21 August 1993 in New York City, New York, USA.- Actress
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Victoria de los Ángeles was born on 1 November 1923 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. She was an actress, known for Rat Race (2001), Speed 2: Cruise Control (1997) and Atonement (2007). She was married to Enrique Magriñá Mir. She died on 15 January 2005 in Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.- Actor
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Francisco Araiza was born on 4 October 1950 in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico. He is an actor, known for L'Orfeo (1978), Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (1980) and Die Zauberflöte (1991).- Actor
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Wolfgang Windgassen was born on 26 June 1914 in Annemasse, Haute Savoie, Switzerland. He was an actor, known for Army of Thieves (2021), Parole de flic (1985) and Die Fledermaus (1972). He was married to Lore Wissmann. He died on 8 September 1974 in Stuttgart, Germany.- Actor
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Outspoken and somewhat controversial, but highly acclaimed, Canadian tenor with a huge voice and a repertoire ranging from German, to English, to Italian and to French opera and song. He is the most highly acclaimed "Peter Grimes" of the last forty years. He is known not only for his beautiful and expressive voice, but for an intense ability to dig deep into whatever role he is singing in opera. His strong convictions have sometimes compelled him to highly controversial stands, such as a refusal, based on his religious and moral beliefs, to sing the title role in Wagner's "Tannhauser". His ability to bring a character to vivid life has been compared to Laurence Olivier's ability in the world of straight drama. Among his most famous roles are Peter Grimes, Tristan in "Tristan und Isolde", Siegmund in "Die Walkure", Otello in Verdi's "Otello", Florestan in "Fidelio", and Canio in "Pagliacci".- Actor
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Georges Thill was born on 14 December 1897 in Paris, France. He was an actor, known for Chansons de Paris (1934), Black and White in Color (1976) and Louise (1939). He died on 17 October 1984 in Draguignan, Var, France.- Actor
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Born in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1890, Lauritz Melchior was a prominent opera singer who was a latecomer to the silver screen. From the 1920s through the 1940s, he was a leading opera singer across Europe. From 1924-1939, he excelled in Wagnerian roles in Covent Garden at the Royal Opera House in London. He also sang with the Chicago Opera and the San Francisco Opera, both from 1934-1945. During his long career, he sang in most of the concert halls of Europe and the Americas.
But, Melchior was most famously known for his performances as a member of the Metropolitan Opera of New York from 1926-1950. He was a recording artist as well, and he appeared and sang on television and radio. Late in his career, he appeared in five Hollywood films. His wide voice range from baritone to tenor made him ideal for musicals of the early mid-20th century that combined operatic songs with popular tunes.
Melchior had a good command of the English language and an adroit sense of humor. So, he was well suited and well liked in the American films, and TV and radio shows in which he sang and acted late in his career. He became a U.S. citizen in 1947 and died at age 82 on March 18, 1973, in Santa Monica, California.- Actor
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George London was born on 5 May 1919 in Montréal, Québec, Canada. He was an actor and writer, known for All Things Fair (1995), Tosca (1961) and Des Broadways liebstes Kind (1969). He was married to Nora ?. He died on 23 March 1985 in Armonk, New York, USA.- Actress
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Mirella Freni was born on 27 February 1935 in Modena, Italy. She was an actress, known for Fatal Attraction (1987), Copycat (1995) and Awakenings (1990). She was married to Nicolai Ghiaurov and Leone Magiera. She died on 9 February 2020 in Modena, Emilia-Romagna, Italy.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Ruggero Raimondi was born on 3 October 1941 in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. He is an actor, known for Carmen (1984), Boris Godounov (1989) and Don Giovanni (1979).- Actress
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Frederica von Stade was born on 1 June 1945 in Somerville, New Jersey, USA. She is an actress, known for The Marriage of Figaro (1974), Les noces de Figaro (1980) and La Cenerentola (1982).- Actress
- Music Department
- Producer
Renée Fleming was born on 14 February 1959 in Indiana, Pennsylvania, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Now You See Me 2 (2016), Closer (2004) and The Shape of Water (2017). She has been married to Tim Jessell since 3 September 2011. She was previously married to Richard Lee Ross.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Ileana Cotrubas was born on 9 June 1939 in Galati, Romania. She is an actress, known for The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977), La Bohème (1982) and Les contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann) (1981).- Katia Ricciarelli was born on 18 January 1946 in Rovigo, Veneto, Italy. She is an actress, known for La seconda notte di nozze (2005), Otello (1986) and Carmen (1980). She was previously married to Pippo Baudo.
- Actor
- Music Department
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Carlo Bergonzi was born on 13 July 1924 in Vidalenzo, Polesine Parmense, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. He was an actor, known for Moonstruck (1987), Son of Rambow (2007) and No Reservations (2007). He was married to Adele Aimi. He died on 25 July 2014 in Milan, Italy.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Alfredo Kraus was born on 24 November 1927 in Las Palmas, Canary Islands, Spain. He was an actor, known for The Family Man (2000), Analyze This (1999) and Gayarre (1959). He was married to Rosa ?. He died on 10 September 1999 in Madrid, Spain.- Actress
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The esteemed German soprano, Gundula Janowitz, studied with Herbert Thoumlney at the Graz Conservatory.
In 1959 Gundula Janowitz made her formal operatic debut as Barbarina at the Vienna State Opera, and later became one of its leading members. She later sang at the Bayreuth Festivals between 1960-1963 and the Salzburg Festival from 1963. Between 1963 and 1966 she was a member of the Frankfurt am Main Opera, and then joined the Deutsche Oper in West Berlin. She appeared at the Glyndebourne Festival in 1964, and sang at Herbert von Karajan's Salzburg Easter Festivals in the years 1967-1968. She made her metropolitan Opera debut in New York as Sieglinde in November 1967. She was chosen to sing the role of Mozart's Countess at the re-opening of the Paris Opéra in 1973. Subsequently she made her debut at London's Covent Garden as Donna Anna in 1976. She was made an Austrian Kammersängerin in 1970.
In 1990-1991 Gundula Janowitz was director of the Graz-Steiremark Theater. Her other notable roles included Fiordiligi, Agathe, Aida, Elisabeth, Desdemona, and Ariadne. She was also well known as a concert and Lieder artist.- Actor
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Cesare Siepi was born on 14 February 1923 in Milan, Italy. He was an actor, known for Mozart's Don Giovanni (1955), NBC Television Opera Theatre (1949) and Civilisation (1969). He was married to Louellen Sibley. He died on 5 July 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.- Actress
- Music Department
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Renata Tebaldi was and is surely one of the best Spinto soprano voices that any century has ever heard. She made her operatic debut, through bombed streets in 1944 in Mefistofele, as Elena. Then was hand picked for the reopening of La Scala, 46 by Toscanini. It was there that the legendary "Voice of an Angel" started. He put Tebaldi upon a podium, well above the choir, and said "I want your voice to sound as though an angel is coming from Heaven." That is how it all started.
Her career began to grow at the same time as Maria Callas, though, actually, if one delves into their respective careers, they were so different, performing only three or four roles at the same time. In 1950 Tebaldi was selected by both esteemed conductors, Toscanini and De Sabata, for their versions of the Verdi Requium. These recordings exist today, and one can see how her vocal splendor was soon to become an international phenomenon. Her operatic debut in the United States, was AIDA in '50 in SF. She was booked just opon hearing a few of her recordings.
Tebaldi was so lucky, as she began her career just as the recording industry was beginning to record complete operas on LP. Decca/London quickly signed this promising new talent, and she continued to record for the label until 1974. She often recorded her repertoire twice, one in mono, then in Stereo, as her vocal and dramatic prowess only increased with time. Her legendary Decca recordings are mostly still in print, Aida, La Boheme, Madama Butterfly, La Fanciulla del West, Otello (in which she was unsurpassed as Desdemona), Andrea Chenier, Adrianna, La Wally, La Gioconda, Manon Lescaut, and Tosca. These are all available, on many labels, as live recordings as well.
Tebaldi's operatic career took one's breath away, just looking at the theatres she performed in, The Met, War Memorial, Covent Garden, San Carlos, Paris, Russia, Chicago Lyric, to name only a very few.
Her complete operas on video only give testament to her greatness, her absolutely gorgeous voice. Tosca '61 Stuttgart is now on DVD, along with her Andrea Chenier, with the wonderful and her recording partner, Mario del Monaco, Japan '61, Forza del Destino '58 with Corelli and Bastianini is also on DVD.
Her voice has been praised by Beverly Sills, Martina Arroyo, Joan Sutherland, and the great Caballe, who saw her as a youngster, and wanted to be like her. Also the many tenors who worked with her, Del Monaco, Di Stefano, Bjorling, Morell, and Richard Tucker, always praised her in every way possible. So did Franco Corelli, whom, both tall and good-looking, often left audiences spellbound, with their looks and singing.
To this day, she still is in great health, and loves to hear from her fans. She does consider them as family, as she feels she sacrificed a family for a career, way before it was acceptable for a woman to do so. But her fan base only grows. All you have to do is put on just one track of a Tebaldi CD, or record, to know why.- Actor
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Beniamino Gigli was born in Recanati, Italy, on March 20, 1890, into a poor family. He possessed a fine singing voice and, after struggling to make a living for many years, he eventually made his operatic debut as a tenor on October 15, 1914, appearing in "La Giaconda" in Rovigo, Italy. Over the following years his reputation and stature grew. His first recordings were issued in 1918, and he was invited to sing at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York in 1920, where the greatest singers of the time performed. He appeared there every year for the next 12 seasons until 1932; he got into a wage dispute with the management and, even though it was in the middle of the Great Depression, he quit and left to return to Europe. During the 1920s and 1930s he was often called the World's Greatest Tenor and Enrico Caruso's successor. He began touring and performing all around the world, on the way becoming an especial favorite of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini and their cliques. His autobiography, like many, can touch around subjects that are very sensitive to its author, and his was somewhat reticent regarding his ties to Hitler and Mussolini, but overall it showed him to be human and as capable of making mistakes as anyone else.
He had a short film career, much to his surprise, but he did reach new audiences. For a while after the war he was labeled a traitor by many Italians because of the Hitler-Mussolini connection, but eventually he cleared his name and resumed his career to critical success. However, when he felt his powers were starting to wane he decided to retire; his last performance was in Washington, DC, on May 25, 1955, after a professional career of nearly 41 years. He returned to Recanati and died at 67 years old in Rome on November 30, 1957.- Actor
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Fritz Wunderlich was born on 26 September 1930 in Kusel, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. He was an actor, known for Marathon Man (1976), Der Barbier von Sevilla (1959) and Opernführer (1965). He was married to Eva Wunderlich. He died on 17 September 1966 in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.- Sena Jurinac was born on 24 October 1921 in Travnik, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Yugoslavia [now Travnik, Bosnia and Herzegovina]. She was an actress, known for On Such a Night (1956), Hänsel und Gretel (1981) and Der Rosenkavalier (1961). She was married to Josef Lederle and Sesto Bruscantini. She died on 22 November 2011 in Augsburg, Bavaria, Germany.
- Actress
- Soundtrack
Elisabeth Grümmer was born on 31 March 1911 in Niederjeutz, Alsace-Lorraine, Germany [now Yutz, Thionville, Moselle, France]. She was an actress, known for Mozart's Don Giovanni (1955), Don Giovanni (1961) and Civilisation (1969). She was married to Detlef Grümmer. She died on 6 November 1986 in Warendorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.- Actress
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Marilyn Horne was born on 16 January 1934 in Bradford, Pennsylvania, USA. She is an actress, known for Strange Days (1995), Carmen Jones (1954) and Orlando furioso (1990). She was previously married to Henry Lewis and Nicola Zaccaria.- Martha Mödl was born on 22 March 1912 in Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany. She was an actress, known for The Merry Wives of Windsor (1950), Omnibus (1952) and Arabella (1977). She died on 17 December 2001 in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
- Actor
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Piero Cappuccilli was born on 9 November 1926 in Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy. He was an actor, known for Macbeth (1976), How Much Do You Love Me? (2005) and Ginger and Cinnamon (2003). He was married to Graziella Capuccilli. He died on 12 July 2005 in Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy.- Actor
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Nicolai Harry Gustav Gedda (Nikolaj Ustinov) was born on July 11, 1925, in Stockholm, Sweden. He was adopted by his Russian-Swedish aunt, named Olga Gedda, and her Russian husband, named Mikhail Ustinov; who came to Sweden after the Russian Civil War and sang with an émigré Don Cossac choir and also was a cantor in a Russian Orthodox Church.
His first voice and music teacher was his father. He took his adopted son to the Cossac choir rehearsals and to a Russian Orthodox Church services in Leipzig, where they lived from 1928-1934. The family had to flee from the tide of Nazism under Adolf Hitler. Back in Stockholm he continued singing with his father in the Russian church. Gedda initially worked as a bank teller at a local Stockholm bank, where a wealthy client overheard him speaking of his dream of becoming a professional opera singer. The sponsor paid for his studies with tenor Karl Martin Oehmann at the Stockholm Conservatory.
Gedda made his debut in April 1952 at the Stockholm Opera in the role of Chapelou in Adam's 'Postillon de Longjumeau'. After a success in Stockhiln, he was auditioned by Herbert von Karajan. He was so impressed that he took Gedda along to Italy, promoting him both in concerts and opera performances. In 1953 he was contracted by La Scala to sing Don Ottavio in "Don Giovanni" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In 1954 he made his Paris Opera debut in Oberon by Carl Maria von Weber. A few months later he sang the title role in Faust by Charles Gounod. Since then Gedda had a permanent engagement with the Paris opera for several years and established himself as the leading interpreter of the French repertoire.
In 1957, Gedda made his debut at the Pittsburg Opera with the title role in 'Faust'. In November of 1957 he made his Metropolitan Opera debut with the same role. In 1958, Gedda created the role of Anatol in the premiere of 'Vanessa'. The role was specially written for him by Samuel Barber. Gedda sang with the Met for the next 26 seasons and performed 28 roles there. He also continued his voice training in New York with the international teacher Paola Novikoa. She taught Gedda a healthy technique, contributing to his long and successful career. His latest recordings were made in 2003.
Gedda's mastery of nine languages enables him to singing with total freedom the entire standard operatic repertoire. He sings with natural beauty on Italian, English, Latin, Hebrew, French, German, Pan-Scandinavian, and his native Russian and Swedish. Nicolai Gedda is arguably the most versatile of tenors in the second half of the 20th Century. Luciano Pavarotti said of him, "there is no tenor with a greater ease in the upper register than Gedda." He is equally strong in opera and song. He made over 200 recordings over the course of his career. In the autobiography 'My Life and Art' (1999), written in collaboration with his third wife, Aino Sellermark Gedda, he revealed his devotion to art and his indifference to fame.
Nicolai Gedda is living in retirement in Switzerland.- Actress
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Born in Stranstuen, Hamar, Norway, Norwegian soprano Kisten Flagstad's father was a conductor, and her mother was a singing coach and pianist as well as her first teacher. Flagstad continued her studies in Oslo with Ellen Schyte-Jacobsen and in Stockholm with Dr. Gillis Bratt. While still a student, she made her début at the National Theater in Oslo in 1913 as Nuri in D'Albert's Tiefland. For the next 18 years she sang exclusively in Scandinavia, performing in opera, operetta and musical comedy. Flagstad's first Isolde in Oslo in 1932 led to Bayreuth engagements in minor parts in 1933 and to roles as Sieglinde and Gutrune in 1934. Later in 1934, Flagstad turned her sights on North America and auditioned at the Metropolitan Opera to succeed the reigning Wagnerian soprano Frida Leider. Her unheralded Met début as Sieglinde, broadcast nationwide on February 2, 1935, created a sensation. Four days later, she sang Isolde, and later that month, performed Brünhilde in Die Walküre and Die Götterdämmerung for the first time. Almost overnight she was regarded as the pre-eminent Wagnerian soprano of her generation. Later that season, Flagstad also sang Elsa, Elisabeth, and her first Kundry. Fidelio (1936) was her only non-Wagnerian role at the Met before the war. She sang the same repertory in San Francisco in 1935-38 and in Chicago in 1937.
In 1936 and 1937 she performed the roles of Isolde, Brünhilde and Senta at Covent Garden under Sir Thomas Beecham, Fritz Reiner and Wilhelm Furtwängler, arousing as much enthusiasm there as in New York. In 1941 Flagstad returned to Nazi-occupied Norway to join her second husband, whose collaboration with the Nazis led to his arrest after World War II. Although her own wartime record was free from controversy, her return to Norway during the war and a certain political naïvété in her nature created much ill-feeling towards her, particularly in the USA.
During four consecutive Covent Garden seasons, from 1948 to 1951, Flagstad repeated all her regular Wagnerian roles, including Kundry and Sieglinde. She returned to San Francisco in 1948 but was not invited back to the Metropolitan Opera until Sir Rudolph Bing became manager. In the 1950-1951 season, although she was well into her 50s, she showed herself still in remarkable form as Isolde, Brünnhilde and Fidelio. Flagstad's final role at the Metropolitan Opera was as Alceste in Gluck's opera. Her final operatic performances were as Purcell's Dido at the Mermaid Theatre in London in 1953. Flagstad continued to record and sing concerts, and was director of the Norwegian National Opera from 1958-1960.
The enduring purity, beauty and power of Flagstad's tone probably owed much, not only to natural gifts and sound training, but to the enforced repose of the war years and the fact that she had undertaken no heavy roles until middle life. She was regarded as an impeccable musician in matters of rhythm and intonation. While she was not the most dramatic or magnetic of Wagnerian heroines, no one within living memory surpassed her sheer beauty and consistency of line and tone. Of her many records, the complete Tristan und Isolde with Furtwängler undoubtedly offers the finest memorial to her interpretive art in its maturity. Her pre-war recordings, however, showcase her voice in its freshest brilliance and clarity.- Actress
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Lotte Lehmann was born on 27 February 1888 in Perleberg, Germany. She was an actress, known for Big City (1948), Wäsche - Waschen - Wohlergehen (1932) and The Day of the Locust (1975). She was married to Otto Krause-Jakobowitz. She died on 26 August 1976 in Santa Barbara, California, USA.- Actress
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Leontyne Price was born on 10 February 1927 in Laurel, Mississippi, USA. She is an actress, known for Romeo + Juliet (1996), The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977) and NBC Television Opera Theatre (1949). She was previously married to William Warfield.- Actor
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Walter Berry was born on 8 April 1929 in Vienna, Austria. He was an actor, known for Natural Born Killers (1994), The Souvenir (2019) and Don Juan (1955). He was married to Christa Ludwig and Elisabeth Flechl. He died on 27 October 2000 in Vienna, Austria.- Actress
- Producer
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Angela Gheorghiu was born on 7 September 1965 in Adjud, Romania. She is an actress and producer, known for 2046 (2004), Adriana Lecouvreur (2011) and Tosca (2001). She has been married to Roberto Alagna since May 1996. She was previously married to Andrei Gheorghiu.- Actress
- Producer
- Composer
Cecilia Bartoli was born on 4 June 1966 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. She is an actress and producer, known for Mr. Nobody (2009), Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014) and A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999). She has been married to Oliver Widmer since 7 February 2011.- Actress
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Leonie Rysanek was born on 14 November 1926 in Vienna, Austria. She was an actress, known for Salome (1990), Elektra (1981) and The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977). She was married to Ernst-Ludwig Gausmann and Rudolf Grossmann. She died on 7 March 1998 in Vienna, Austria.- Actress
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Astrid Varnay was born on 25 April 1918 in Stockholm, Sweden. She was an actress, known for Elektra (1981), Salome (1975) and The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977). She was married to Hermann Weigert. She died on 4 September 2006 in Munich, Germany.- Actress
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Anne Sofie von Otter was born on 9 May 1955 in Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden. She is an actress, known for Closer (2004), Florence Foster Jenkins (2016) and Der Rosenkavalier (1994). She was previously married to Benny Fredriksson.- Actress
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The dark and smoldering American soprano Anna Moffo was born in Wayne Pennsylvania, on June 27, 1932, and, following graduation at Radnor High School, studied at Philadelphia's Curtis Institute of Music and in Rome, Italy on a Fulbright scholarship at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia. At one time she was actually considering joining a nunnery but her love for music won out. Her successful combination of glamorous beauty and exciting singing style made her one of opera's most popular draws in the late 1950s and 1960s.
Moffo took her first professional bow in 1955 as Norine in Donizetti's "Don Pasquale" in Spoleto, and later that year scored highly as Cio-Cio-San in Puccini's "Madama Butterfly" in an Italian TV production directed by Mario Lanfranchi, whom she married in 1957. Strenthening her reputation in Saltzburg and Vienna, Moffo made her U.S. debut at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in 1957 as Mimi in Puccini's "La Boheme." Her first time on the Metropolitan stage came with the role of Violetta in Verdi's "La Traviata." Over the years her bel canto repertoire would include Micaela in "Carmen," Gilda in "Rigoletto" and Liu in "Turandot." Arguably, the zenith of her Met career coincided with her appearance in the title role of Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor" opposite Carlo Bergonzi's Edgardo in January of 1965. In the 1960s, Moffo also began appearing occasionally in Italian films, including feisty roles in the Napoleonic war epic The Battle of Austerlitz (1960) with Rossano Brazzi; the comedy La serva padrona (1964), directed by husband Lanfranchi; Menage all'italiana (1965) [Menage, Italian Style] co-starring Ugo Tognazzi; and the comedy Il divorzio (1970) [The Divorce]. She also filmed her Violette in La Traviata (1967) and Lucia di Lammermoor (1971), both directed by Lanfranchi.
The multiple Grammy-nominated Moffo's singing career was finished when just in her 40s. Taking on too much too soon (she in one year took on 12 new roles), her voice burnt out quickly. Her last regular performance at the Met was received poorly as Violetta in 1976, her voice having fallen into a serious state of disrepair. She did return briefly for a one-time duet with baritone Robert Merrill in the company's centennial gala. Her marriage to Lanfranchi ended in divorce in 1972, but her second marriage to NBC broadcast executive/RCA chairman Robert Sarnoff in 1974 proved more durable and lasted until his death in 1997. Her later years were dogged by illness. Battling breast cancer for almost a decade, Moffo died of a stroke at age 73 on March 10, 2006, in New York City. She had no children of her own but was survived by three stepchildren.- Actor
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Martti Talvela was born on 4 February 1935 in Hiitola, Finland. He was an actor, known for Quartet (2012), Boris Godunov (1975) and Fidelio (1970). He was married to Anna Kaariainen. He died on 22 July 1989 in Juva, Finland.- Actress
- Music Department
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Natalie Dessay was born on 19 April 1965 in Lyon, Rhône, France. She is an actress, known for Joyeux Noel (2005), Orphée aux enfers (1997) and Jules César (2011). She has been married to Laurent Naouri since 1994.- Jess Thomas was born on 4 August 1927 in Hot Springs, South Dakota, USA. He was an actor, known for Ariadne auf Naxos (1965), Wagner (1983) and Die Frau ohne Schatten (1963). He died on 11 October 1993 in San Francisco, California, USA.
- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Art Department
Thomas Hampson was born on 28 June 1955 in Elkhart, Indiana, USA. He is an actor, known for Mozart 22 (2006), What Other Couples Do (2013) and Macbeth (2002).- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Music Department
Rolando Villazón was born on 22 February 1972 in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico. He is an actor, known for Joyeux Noel (2005), La Bohème (2008) and Live from Lincoln Center (1976).- Actress
- Soundtrack
Anna Tomowa-Sintow was born in 1941. She is an actress, known for The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977), Der Rosenkavalier (1984) and Don Giovanni (1987).- Actress
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Marjana Lipovsek was born on 3 December 1946 in Ljubljana, Slovenia, Yugoslavia [now Slovenia]. She is an actress, known for Elektra (2005), Tristan & Isolde (1998) and Jakob the Liar (1999). She is married to Alfred Burgstaller.- Actress
- Music Department
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Magdalena Kozená was born on 26 May 1973 in Brno, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. She is an actress, known for Orphée et Eurydice (2000), Babylon Berlin (2017) and Mozart 22 (2006). She has been married to Simon Rattle since 2008. They have three children. She was previously married to Vincent Le Texier.- Actor
- Additional Crew
Beno Blachut was born on 14 June 1913 in Ostrava-Vítkovice, Cechy Austria-Hungary [now Czech Republic]. He was an actor, known for Krakatit (1961), Dalibor (1956) and Sternenhoch (2019). He died on 10 January 1985 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic].- Actress
- Soundtrack
Dagmar Pecková was born on 4 April 1961 in Medlesice u Chrudimi, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. She is an actress, known for NPS Klassiek: Sentimenti (2004), The Rake's Progress (2008) and Katia Kabanowa (1998).- Actress
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Elisabeth Söderström was born on 7 May 1927 in Stockholm, Sweden. She was an actress, known for Svenske ryttaren (1949), Beethoven's Fidelio (1980) and Poppeas kröning (1978). She was married to Sverker Olow. She died on 20 November 2009 in Stockholm, Sweden.- Actress
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Lucia Popp was born on 12 November 1939 in Uhorska Ves, Slovakia. She was an actress, known for Bicentennial Man (1999), Philadelphia (1993) and The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000). She was married to Peter Seiffert and Gyorgy Fischer. She died on 15 November 1993 in Munich, Bavaria.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Barbara Bonney was born on 14 April 1956 in Montclair, New Jersey, USA. She is an actress, known for Goal II: Living the Dream (2007), The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977) and Les Boréades (2003).- Actor
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Eberhard Wächter was born on 9 July 1929 in Vienna, Austria. He was an actor, known for Der Graf von Luxemburg (1972), Die Fledermaus (1972) and Die Fledermaus (1986). He died on 29 March 1992 in Vienna, Austria.- Actor
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Hermann Prey was born on 11 July 1929 in Berlin, Germany. He was an actor, known for Die Fledermaus (1983), The Marriage of Figaro (1976) and Hänsel und Gretel (1981). He was married to Barbara Pniok. He died on 22 July 1998 in Krailling, Bavaria, Germany.- Actress
- Art Department
- Additional Crew
Barbara Hendricks was born on 20 November 1948 in Stephens, Arkansas, USA. She is an actress, known for La Bohème (1988), Little Women (1994) and Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995).- Actress
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Yvonne Minton was born on 4 December 1938 in Sydney, Australia. She is an actress, known for Lulu (1985), Hardware (1990) and Yevgeny Onyegin (1994).- Actress
- Soundtrack
Agnes Baltsa was born on 19 November 1944 in Lefkas, Greece. She is an actress, known for Jumanji (1995), The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977) and Les contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann) (1981). She has been married to Günter Missenhardt since 1974.- Actor
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Gabriel Bacquier was born on 17 May 1924 in Béziers, Hérault, France. He was an actor, known for Manon of the Spring (1986), Falstaff (1979) and The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977). He was married to Sylvie Oussenko. He died on 13 May 2020 in Lestre, Normandy, France.- Actor
- Writer
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Roberto Alagna was born on 7 June 1963 in Clichy-sous-Bois, France. He is an actor and writer, known for A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999), Tosca (2001) and W.E. (2011). He has been married to Angela Gheorghiu since May 1996. He was previously married to Florence Lancien.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Mireille Delunsch was born on 2 November 1962 in Mulhouse, Haut-Rhin, France. She is an actress, known for L'incoronazione di Poppea (2000), Don Giovanni (2003) and La Traviata (2003).- Actor
- Music Department
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Laurent Naouri was born in 1964 in Paris, France. He is an actor, known for The Metropolitan Opera HD Live (2006), Orphée aux enfers (1997) and Carmen (2002). He has been married to Natalie Dessay since 1994. They have two children.- Actor
- Soundtrack
Alain Vanzo was born on 2 April 1928 in Monte Carlo, Monaco. He was an actor, known for Bouquet de joie (1956), La vie de bohème (1960) and Le miroir à trois faces: La dame aux camélias (1965). He died on 27 January 2002 in Paris, France.- Actress
- Soundtrack
Mady Mesplé was born on 7 March 1931 in Toulouse, France. She was an actress, known for The American President (1995), Someone to Watch Over Me (1987) and Le château des Carpathes (1976). She died on 30 May 2020 in Toulouse, Haute-Garonne, France.- Dmitri Hvorostovsky was born on 16 October 1962 in Krasnoyarsk, Russian SFSR, USSR [now Russia]. He was an actor, known for The Metropolitan Opera HD Live (2006), La Traviata (2004) and The Queen of Spades (1999). He was married to Florence Illi and Svetlana Khvorostovskaya. He died on 22 November 2017 in London, England, UK.
- Sergei Leiferkus was born on 4 April 1946 in Leningrad [now St Petersburg], Russia. He is an actor, known for The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977), Otello (1992) and Pique Dame (2002).
- Yevgeni Nesterenko was born on 8 January 1938 in Moscow, Russia. He was an actor, known for Russia (1986), Boris Godunov (1987) and Don Carlo (1978). He was married to Ekaterina Dmitrievna. He died on 20 March 2021 in Vienna, Austria.
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Feodor Chaliapin Sr. was born on February 13, 1873, in Omet Tawi, near Kazan, Russia. His childhood was full of suffering, hunger, and humiliation. From the age of 10-16, he was working jobs at river ports, restaurants, and tried acting on stage with various Russian provincial troupes. In 1890, Chaliapin was hired to sing in a choir at the Semenov-Samarsky private theatre in Ufa. There he began singing solo parts. In 1891, he toured Russia with the Dergach Opera. In 1892, he settled in Tiflis (Tbilisi), because he found a good teacher, Usatov, who gave Chaliapin free professional opera training for one year. He also sang at the St. Aleksandr Nevsky Cathedral in Tbilisi during the years 1892-1893.
In 1893, Chaliapin began his career at the Tbilisi Opera. On February 4, 1894, he had his final 'Benefith' night. It was a triumphal performance attended by the elite of the city of Tbilisi, where Chaliapin gave a total of 72 Opera performances. In 1894, he moved to Moscow upon recommendation of his teacher Usatov. While working at the Mamontov Opera and the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Chaliapin also had regular repertoire performances at the Imperial Mariinsky Opera in St. Petersburg. In 1901 he made his debut at La Scala in the role of Mefistofele in Faust by Jules Massenet under the baton of Arturo Toscanini. His most famous roles were Boris Godunov in the eponymous opera by Modest Mussorgsky, and Ivan the Terrible in the Maid of Pskov by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.
In 1896, Mamontov introduced Chaliapin to a young Italian ballerina Iola Tornagi, who came to Moscow for a stage career. She quit dancing and devoted herself to family life with Chaliapin. He was very happy in this marriage. They settled in Moscow and had six children. Their first boy died at the age of 4, causing Chaliapin a nervous breakdown. His son Boris Chaliapin became a famous painter. His son Feodor Chaliapin Jr. became a famous film actor. Their mother Iola Tornagi was living in Soviet Russia until 1959, when Nikita Khrushchev brought the "Thaw". Iola Tornagi was allowed to leave and reunited with her son 'Feodor Chaliapin Jr,' in Rome, Italy.
In 1906, Chaliapin started a civil union with Maria Valentinovna Petzhold in St. Petersburg, Russia. She had three daughters with Chaliapin in addition to 2 other children from her previous family. He could not legalize his second family, because his first wife would not give him a divorce. Chaliapin even applied to the Emperor Tsar Nicholas II with a request of registering his 3 daughters under his last name. His request was not satisfied. Chaliapin was torn between his two families for many years, living with one in Moscow, and with another in St. Petersburg. Finally with Maria Petzhold and their 3 daughters he left Russia for good.
Emigration from Russia in 1922, was painful. Soviet government stripped Chaliapin of all his titles and honors. He settled in Paris, France. There he performed at the Paris Opera, as well as at numerous private concerts for Sergei Diaghilev. His acting and singing was sensational. He made many sound recordings between the 1900 and 1938, of which the 1913 recordings of the Russian folk songs 'Vdol po Piterskoi' and 'The Song of the Volga Boatmen' are best known. The only sound film which shows his acting style is 'Don Quixote' (1933). Chaliapin worked for impresario Sol Hurok and sang for 8 seasons at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, where he had an immense success.
Chaliapin collaborated with Maxim Gorky, who wrote and edited his memoirs, which he published in 1933. Chaliapin revolutionized opera by bringing serious acting in combination with great singing. Chaliapin Sr. was the undisputed best basso in the first half of the 20th century. In the late 1930's he suffered from leukemia and kidney ailment. Feodor Chaliapin Sr. died on April 12, 1938, in Paris, France. He was laid to rest is the Novodevichy Monastery Cemetery in Moscow.- Larissa Diadkova was born on 9 March 1952 in Zelenodolsk, Tatar ASSR, RSFSR, USSR [now Republic of Tatarstan, Russia]. She is an actress, known for The Metropolitan Opera HD Live (2006), Ruslan and Lyudmila (1996) and Rusalka (2002).
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Nellie Melba was born on 19 May 1861 in Richmond, Victoria, Australia. She was married to Charles Frederick Nisbett Armstrong. She died on 23 February 1931 in Darlinghurst, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.- Actress
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Danielle de Niese was born on 11 April 1979 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. She is an actress, known for Kingdom of Heaven (2005), Hannibal (2001) and Julius Caesar (2006).- Actress
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Renata Scotto was born on 24 February 1934 in Savona, Liguria, Italy. She was an actress, known for La Gioconda (1979), The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977) and The January Man (1989). She was married to Lorenzo Anselmi. She died on 16 August 2023 in Savona, Liguria, Italy.- Actress
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Brigitte Fassbaender was born on 3 July 1939 in Berlin, Germany. She is an actress, known for Da 5 Bloods (2020), Hänsel und Gretel (1981) and Der Rosenkavalier (1979).