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Maria Callas
Maria Callas | |
|---|---|
 Callas in 1958 | |
| Born | Maria Anna Cecilia Sofia Kalogeropoulos December 2, 1923 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | September 16, 1977 (aged 53) Paris, France |
| Education | Athens Conservatoire, George Washington Educational Campus |
| Occupation | opera singer |
| Spouse |
Giovanni Battista Meneghini
(m. 1949; div. 1959) |
| Partner | Aristotle Onassis (1959–1968) |
| Awards | Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award |
Maria Callas[a] Commendatore OMRI[1] (born Maria Anna Cecilia Sofia Kalogeropoulos;[b] December 2, 1923 – September 16, 1977) was an American and Greek soprano[2] and one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Many critics praised her bel canto technique, wide-ranging voice and dramatic interpretations. Her repertoire ranged from classical opera seria to the bel canto operas of Donizetti, Bellini, and Rossini, and further to the works of Verdi and Puccini, and in her early career to the music dramas of Wagner. Her musical and dramatic talents led to her being hailed as La Divina ("The Divine One").
Born in Manhattan and raised in Astoria, Queens, New York City, to Greek immigrant parents, she was raised by an overbearing mother who had wanted a son. Maria received her musical education in Greece at age 13 and later established her career in Italy. Forced to deal with the exigencies of 1940s wartime poverty and with near-sightedness that left her nearly blind on stage, she endured struggles and scandal over the course of her career. She underwent a mid-career weight loss, which might have contributed to her vocal decline and the premature end of her career.
The press exulted in publicizing Callas's temperamental behavior, the alleged Callas-Tebaldi rivalry, and her love affair with Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis. Although her dramatic life and personal tragedy have often overshadowed Callas the artist in the popular press, her artistic achievements were such that Leonard Bernstein called her "the Bible of opera",[3] and her influence so enduring that, in 2006, Opera News wrote of her: "Nearly thirty years after her death, she's still the definition of the diva as artist—and still one of classical music's best-selling vocalists."[4]
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- ^ Jellinek 1986, p. 186.
- ^ "Maria Callas Abandons US Citizenship", Charleston Daily Mail, April 6, 1966, via NewspaperArchive (subscription required)
- ^ "PBS tribute to Callas on the Anniversary of her Death", introduction by Leonard Bernstein, 1983.
- ^ Driscoll, F. Paul; Kellow, Brian (August 2006). "The 25 Most Powerful Names in U.S. Opera". Opera News. 71 (H2). Archived from the original on December 16, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
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