Montserrat Caballé
Encyclopedia
Montserrat Caballé (born 12 April 1933) is a Spanish
operatic soprano. Although she sang a wide variety of roles, she is best known as an exponent of the bel canto
repertoire, notably the works of Rossini
, Bellini
, Donizetti
and Verdi
.
, Spain
) and studied music at the Liceu Conservatory, and singing technique with Napoleone Annovazzi, Eugenia Kemény and Conchita Badía
. She graduated with a gold medal in 1954. She subsequently moved to Basel
, Switzerland, where she made her professional debut in 1956 as Mimì in La bohème
. She became part of the Basel Opera company between 1957 and 1959, singing a repertoire that included Mozart (Erste Dame in The Magic Flute
) and Strauss
(Salome
) in German, unusual for Spanish singers, but which proved useful for her next engagement at the Bremen
Opera (1959–1962). In 1962, Caballé returned to Barcelona and debuted at the Liceu
, singing the title role in Strauss's Arabella
. From the fall of 1962 through the spring of 1963 she toured Mexico, at one point singing the title role in Jules Massenet
's Manon
at the Palacio de Bellas Artes
. This was followed by several more successful appearances at the Liceu in 1963.
Caballé's international breakthrough came in 1965 when she substituted for an indisposed Marilyn Horne
in a semi-staged performance of Donizetti's Lucrezia Borgia
at New York's Carnegie Hall
, which earned her a 25-minute standing ovation. While this was her first engagement in a bel canto opera and she had to learn the role in less than one month, her performance made her famous throughout the opera world. Later that year, Caballé made her debut at Glyndebourne singing her first Marschallin in Richard Strauss
's Der Rosenkavalier
and portraying the role of Countess Almaviva in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro. In December 1965 she returned to Carnegie Hall for her second bel canto opera, singing the part of Queen Elizabeth I in Donizetti's recently rediscovered Roberto Devereux
. Caballé closed out the year with her Metropolitan Opera
debut on December 22, 1965, portraying Marguerite in Gounod's Faust
opposite John Alexander in the title role and Justino Díaz
as Méphistophélès. That performance also marked Sherrill Milnes
's debut at the Met in the role of Valentin.
In 1966 Caballé made her first appearance with the Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company
as Maddalena di Coigny in Andrea Chénier
and her Italian debut at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino
in Trovatore
(and Pirata
in 1967). She returned to Philadelphia in 1967 to sing the title roles in Tosca
and Madama Butterfly
and to the Met to sing three Verdi heroines: Leonora in Il trovatore
opposite Richard Tucker
as Manrico, Desdemona in Otello
opposite James McCracken
in the title role, and Violetta in La traviata
with Tucker and George Shirley
alternating as Alfredo. The last role in particular garnered her further acclaim among American critics and audiences. She returned to the Met the following year to portray the title role in Verdi's Luisa Miller
and in 1969 to sing the role of Liù in Giacomo Puccini
's Turandot
with Birgit Nilsson
in the title role and James King
as Calàf. She also returned to Philadelphia to sing Imogene in Il Pirata (1968) and Lucrezia Borgia (1969).
In 1969 Caballé sang Elisabetta of Valois in an all-star cast (including Domingo
and Cappuccilli
) of Don Carlo
at the Arena di Verona in a Jean Vilar production. Her high B on the final "ciel" at the end of the opera lasted more than 20 bars up to the final chord from the orchestra. In these performances she had to act on crutches because of an accident earlier that year in New York City. In the same period she also appeared in recital at the Teatro Corallo, also in Verona
.
In 1970, Caballé made her "official" debut at La Scala
in Milan as Lucrezia Borgia
, sang Leonora in Philadelphia, and returned to the Met as Amelia in a critically acclaimed production of Verdi's Un ballo in maschera
with Plácido Domingo
as Riccardo and Reri Grist
as Oscar. In 1972 she made her first appearances at Covent Garden
and the Lyric Opera of Chicago
, both in the role of Violetta. That same year she returned to the Met as Elizabeth of Valois in Verdi's Don Carlo with Franco Corelli
in the title role and sang Norma in Philadelphia. In 1973 she returned to Chicago to perform the title role in Donizetti's Maria Stuarda
opposite Viorica Cortez
, sang Violetta in Philadelphia, and appeared at the Met as Bellini's Norma
opposite Carlo Cossutta
in his Met debut as Pollione and Fiorenza Cossotto
as Adalgisa.
In 1974, Caballé sang in a number of performances: Aida
at Liceu in January, I Vespri Siciliani at the Met
in March, Parisina d'Este
at Carnegie Hall in March, three Norma
s in one week at the Bolshoi
in Moscow, with Adriana Lecouvreur
at La Scala in April, Norma in Orange
in July (her top single performance, filmed in video by Pierre Jourdain), the recording of Aida under Muti
in July, and the Duets recording with Giuseppe di Stefano
in August.
In September 1974 she underwent major surgery to remove a large benign mass from her abdomen. She recovered and was again on stage in early 1975.
In 1976 Caballé appeared at the Met once again as Norma, sang her first Aida
in that house opposite Robert Nagy as Radamès and Marilyn Horne as Amneris, portrayed the title role in Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos
, and sang Mimì in Puccini's La bohème
opposite Luciano Pavarotti
as Rodolfo.
In 1977 Caballé made her debut with the San Francisco Opera
in the title role of Puccini's Turandot. She returned to that house ten more times over the next decade in such roles as Elvira in Verdi's Ernani
and the title parts in La Gioconda
, Semiramide
, and Tosca among others.
Having lost some of her earlier brilliance and purity of voice, Caballé made up for it finding a more dramatic utterance and expressive singing in roles that demanded it. Thus, in 1978, she sang Tosca in San Francisco with Pavarotti
, Norma in Madrid, and Adriana Lecouvreur
at the Met opposite José Carreras
.
She continued to appear often at the Met during the 1980s singing in such roles as Tosca (1980, 1985) and Elizabeth of Valois (1985) and in special concerts in 1981 and 1983. Her 99th and final performance at the Met was on January 22, 1988 as Mimì in Puccini's La bohème
with Pavarotti as Rodolfo, Barbara Daniels
as Musetta, and Jonathan Summers
as Marcello.
's opera Norma
(for RCA Red Seal
in 1972, opposite Plácido Domingo
as Pollione) and later the role of Adalgisa (to Joan Sutherland
's Norma) in the 1984 Decca
recording conducted by Richard Bonynge
. Although the role of Adalgisa was originally conceived by Bellini for a soprano, it is usually now sung by a mezzo-soprano. Caballé is one among very few sopranos to have recorded the role, making her one of the most youthful-sounding Adalgisas on disc, despite the fact that she was over 50 at the time. Another soprano, Eva Mei, also recorded Adalgisa, opposite Jane Eaglen's Norma.
One of her rare excursions into the world of pop music, Caballé's duet with rock singer Freddie Mercury
of Queen
, "Barcelona", became a hit single in 1988, accompanied by an album of the same name
. The title track later became the anthem of the 1992 Summer Olympics
which was hosted by Caballé's native city, and appeared again in the pop music charts throughout Europe. Caballé also performed the song live, accompanied by a recording of the by then deceased Mercury, before the 1999 UEFA Champions League
football final in Barcelona's Camp Nou
stadium.
In 1995, she worked with Vangelis
for his album "El Greco
" dedicated to the Greek painter. It will be a regular collaboration on other titles.
In 1997, Mike Moran produced the album Friends For Life
, which includes duets with Caballé and such singers as Bruce Dickinson
, Johnny Hallyday
, Johnny Logan
, Gino Vannelli
, and Helmut Lotti
.
Caballé has dedicated herself to various charities. She is a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador
and has established a foundation for needy children in Barcelona.
In 2003, she starred in her own documentary film Caballé Beyond Music, which featured many well-known opera singers, including Plácido Domingo
, Luciano Pavarotti
, José Carreras
, and Renée Fleming
.
In 2003, Caballé was awarded the Große Bundesverdienstkreuz
(Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany).
Caballé has not completely retired from the stage. She continues to assume new roles: in 2002, Catherine of Aragon in Saint-Saëns
's Henri VIII; in 2004, the title role in Massenet
's Cléopâtre
, both at the Liceu. At the age of 74 (2007), she still maintains a busy schedule of recitals and concerts, mainly in Germany. She has appeared as The Duchess of Crakentorp in La fille du régiment
at the Vienna State Opera
in April 2007.
On July 2, 2008 Caballé was awarded a Honoris Causa doctorate by the Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo in Santander
.
Caballé married the tenor Bernabé Martí in 1964. Her daughter, Montserrat Martí (Montsita), is also a soprano. The two
occasionally perform together.
Caballé has recorded extensively throughout her long career and has made many notable recordings of complete operas as well as recital albums, most notably on the RCA Red Seal
label.
Caballé is known affectionately in the opera world as La Superba, a sign that she has reached the status of diva.
Spanish people
The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
operatic soprano. Although she sang a wide variety of roles, she is best known as an exponent of the bel canto
Bel canto
Bel canto , along with a number of similar constructions , is an Italian opera term...
repertoire, notably the works of Rossini
Gioacchino Rossini
Gioachino Antonio Rossini was an Italian composer who wrote 39 operas as well as sacred music, chamber music, songs, and some instrumental and piano pieces...
, Bellini
Vincenzo Bellini
Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini was an Italian opera composer. His greatest works are I Capuleti ed i Montecchi , La sonnambula , Norma , Beatrice di Tenda , and I puritani...
, Donizetti
Gaetano Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti was an Italian composer from Bergamo, Lombardy. His best-known works are the operas L'elisir d'amore , Lucia di Lammermoor , and Don Pasquale , all in Italian, and the French operas La favorite and La fille du régiment...
and Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
.
Early life and career
Caballé was born in Barcelona (CataloniaCatalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) and studied music at the Liceu Conservatory, and singing technique with Napoleone Annovazzi, Eugenia Kemény and Conchita Badía
Conchita Badía
Concepción Badía de Agustí was a Spanish soprano and pianist. Admired for her spontaneity, expressiveness, and clear diction, she was considered one the greatest interpreters of 20th century Spanish and Latin American art song...
. She graduated with a gold medal in 1954. She subsequently moved to Basel
Basel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
, Switzerland, where she made her professional debut in 1956 as Mimì in La bohème
La bohème
La bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
. She became part of the Basel Opera company between 1957 and 1959, singing a repertoire that included Mozart (Erste Dame in The Magic Flute
The Magic Flute
The Magic Flute is an opera in two acts composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a Singspiel, a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue....
) and Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
(Salome
Salome (opera)
Salome is an opera in one act by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by the composer, based on Hedwig Lachmann’s German translation of the French play Salomé by Oscar Wilde. Strauss dedicated the opera to his friend Sir Edgar Speyer....
) in German, unusual for Spanish singers, but which proved useful for her next engagement at the Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
Opera (1959–1962). In 1962, Caballé returned to Barcelona and debuted at the Liceu
Liceu
The Gran Teatre del Liceu , or simply Liceu in Catalan and Liceo in Spanish, is an opera house on La Rambla in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain...
, singing the title role in Strauss's Arabella
Arabella
Arabella is a lyric comedy or opera in 3 acts by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, their sixth and last operatic collaboration. It was first performed on 1 July 1933, at the Dresden Sächsisches Staatstheater....
. From the fall of 1962 through the spring of 1963 she toured Mexico, at one point singing the title role in Jules Massenet
Jules Massenet
Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet was a French composer best known for his operas. His compositions were very popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and he ranks as one of the greatest melodists of his era. Soon after his death, Massenet's style went out of fashion, and many of his operas...
's Manon
Manon
Manon is an opéra comique in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel L’histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut by the Abbé Prévost...
at the Palacio de Bellas Artes
Palacio de Bellas Artes
The Palacio de Bellas Artes is the most important cultural center in Mexico City as well as the rest of the country of Mexico...
. This was followed by several more successful appearances at the Liceu in 1963.
Success and fame
Marilyn Horne
Marilyn Horne is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer. She specialized in roles requiring a large sound, beauty of tone, excellent breath support, and the ability to execute difficult coloratura passages....
in a semi-staged performance of Donizetti's Lucrezia Borgia
Lucrezia Borgia (opera)
Lucrezia Borgia is a melodramma, or opera, in a prologue and two acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto after the play by Victor Hugo, in its turn after the legend of Lucrezia Borgia. Lucrezia Borgia was first performed on 26 December 1833 at La Scala, Milan with...
at New York's Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
, which earned her a 25-minute standing ovation. While this was her first engagement in a bel canto opera and she had to learn the role in less than one month, her performance made her famous throughout the opera world. Later that year, Caballé made her debut at Glyndebourne singing her first Marschallin in Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
's Der Rosenkavalier
Der Rosenkavalier
Der Rosenkavalier is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from the novel Les amours du chevalier de Faublas by Louvet de Couvrai and Molière’s comedy Monsieur de Pourceaugnac...
and portraying the role of Countess Almaviva in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro. In December 1965 she returned to Carnegie Hall for her second bel canto opera, singing the part of Queen Elizabeth I in Donizetti's recently rediscovered Roberto Devereux
Roberto Devereux
Roberto Devereux is a tragedia lirica, or tragic opera, by Gaetano Donizetti...
. Caballé closed out the year with her Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
debut on December 22, 1965, portraying Marguerite in Gounod's Faust
Faust (opera)
Faust is a drame lyrique in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carré's play Faust et Marguerite, in turn loosely based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, Part 1...
opposite John Alexander in the title role and Justino Díaz
Justino Díaz
Justino Díaz is an internationally renowned bass-baritone opera singer. In 1963, Díaz won an annual contest held at the Metropolitan Opera of New York, becoming the "first" Puerto Rican to obtain such an honor and as a consequence, made his Metropolitan debut on October 1963 in Verdi's Rigoletto...
as Méphistophélès. That performance also marked Sherrill Milnes
Sherrill Milnes
Sherrill Milnes is an American operatic baritone most famous for his Verdi roles. From 1965 until 1997 he was associated with the Metropolitan Opera....
's debut at the Met in the role of Valentin.
In 1966 Caballé made her first appearance with the Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company
Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company
The Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company was an American opera company located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that was active between 1958 and 1974. The company was led by a number of Artistic Directors during its history, beginning with Aurelio Fabiani. Other notable Artistic Directors include Julius...
as Maddalena di Coigny in Andrea Chénier
Andrea Chénier
Andrea Chénier is a verismo opera in four acts by the composer Umberto Giordano, set to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica. It is based loosely on the life of the French poet, André Chénier , who was executed during the French Revolution....
and her Italian debut at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino
Maggio Musicale Fiorentino
Maggio Musicale Fiorentino is an annual opera festival which was founded in April 1933 by conductor Vittorio Gui with the aim of presenting contemporary and forgotten operas in visually dramatic productions. It was the first music festival in Italy. The first opera presented was Verdi's early...
in Trovatore
Il trovatore
Il trovatore is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play El Trovador by Antonio García Gutiérrez. Cammarano died in mid-1852 before completing the libretto...
(and Pirata
Il pirata
Il pirata is an opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani from a French translation of the tragic play Bertram, or The Castle of St Aldobrando by Charles Maturin...
in 1967). She returned to Philadelphia in 1967 to sing the title roles in Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
and Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
and to the Met to sing three Verdi heroines: Leonora in Il trovatore
Il trovatore
Il trovatore is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play El Trovador by Antonio García Gutiérrez. Cammarano died in mid-1852 before completing the libretto...
opposite Richard Tucker
Richard Tucker
Richard Tucker was an American operatic tenor.-Early life:Tucker was born Rivn Ticker in Brooklyn, New York, into a family of Romanian immigrants from Bessarabia. His father, Shmul Ticker, and mother Fanya-Tsipa Ticker had already adopted the surname "Tucker" by the time their son entered first...
as Manrico, Desdemona in Otello
Otello
Otello is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play Othello. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, and was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on February 5, 1887....
opposite James McCracken
James McCracken
James McCracken was an American operatic tenor. At the time of his death The New York Times stated that McCracken was "the most successful dramatic tenor yet produced by the United States and a pillar of the Metropolitan Opera during the 1960s and 1970s."-Biography:Born in Gary, Indiana,...
in the title role, and Violetta in La traviata
La traviata
La traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
with Tucker and George Shirley
George Shirley
George Irving Shirley is a renowned tenor opera singer.He is a National Patron of Delta Omicron, an international professional music fraternity.-External links:*** by Bruce Duffie...
alternating as Alfredo. The last role in particular garnered her further acclaim among American critics and audiences. She returned to the Met the following year to portray the title role in Verdi's Luisa Miller
Luisa Miller
Luisa Miller is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play Kabale und Liebe by Friedrich von Schiller. The first performance was given at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples on December 8, 1849...
and in 1969 to sing the role of Liù in Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
's Turandot
Turandot
Turandot is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni.Though Puccini's first interest in the subject was based on his reading of Friedrich Schiller's adaptation of the play, his work is most nearly based on the earlier text Turandot...
with Birgit Nilsson
Birgit Nilsson
right|thumb|Nilsson in 1948.Birgit Nilsson was a celebrated Swedish dramatic soprano who specialized in operatic and symphonic works...
in the title role and James King
James King (tenor)
James King was widely regarded as the finest American heldentenor of the post-war period.-Biography:Born in Dodge City, Kansas, King studied music at Louisiana State University and earned a master's degree in 1952 from Kansas City University. He started singing as a baritone, but noticed in 1955...
as Calàf. She also returned to Philadelphia to sing Imogene in Il Pirata (1968) and Lucrezia Borgia (1969).
In 1969 Caballé sang Elisabetta of Valois in an all-star cast (including Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
and Cappuccilli
Piero Cappuccilli
Piero Cappuccilli was an Italian operatic baritone, particularly associated with Verdi roles, especiallyMacbeth and Simon Boccanegra; he was renowned for his extraordinary breath control and smooth legato, and is widely regarded as one of the finest Italian baritones of the second half of the 20th...
) of Don Carlo
Don Carlos
Don Carlos is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French language libretto by Camille du Locle and Joseph Méry, based on the dramatic play Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien by Friedrich Schiller...
at the Arena di Verona in a Jean Vilar production. Her high B on the final "ciel" at the end of the opera lasted more than 20 bars up to the final chord from the orchestra. In these performances she had to act on crutches because of an accident earlier that year in New York City. In the same period she also appeared in recital at the Teatro Corallo, also in Verona
Verona
Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
.
In 1970, Caballé made her "official" debut at La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
in Milan as Lucrezia Borgia
Lucrezia Borgia (opera)
Lucrezia Borgia is a melodramma, or opera, in a prologue and two acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto after the play by Victor Hugo, in its turn after the legend of Lucrezia Borgia. Lucrezia Borgia was first performed on 26 December 1833 at La Scala, Milan with...
, sang Leonora in Philadelphia, and returned to the Met as Amelia in a critically acclaimed production of Verdi's Un ballo in maschera
Un ballo in maschera
Un ballo in maschera , is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi with text by Antonio Somma. The libretto is loosely based on an 1833 play, Gustave III, by French playwright Eugène Scribe who wrote about the historical assassination of King Gustav III of Sweden...
with Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
as Riccardo and Reri Grist
Reri Grist
Reri Grist is an American coloratura soprano, one of the pioneer African-American singers to enjoy a major international career in opera.-Biography:...
as Oscar. In 1972 she made her first appearances at Covent Garden
Royal Opera, London
The Royal Opera is an opera company based in central London, resident at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Along with the English National Opera, it is one of the two principal opera companies in London. Founded in 1946 as the Covent Garden Opera Company, it was known by that title until 1968...
and the Lyric Opera of Chicago
Lyric Opera of Chicago
Lyric Opera of Chicago is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. It was founded in Chicago in 1952, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox, Nicolà Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, with a season that included Maria Callas's American debut in Norma...
, both in the role of Violetta. That same year she returned to the Met as Elizabeth of Valois in Verdi's Don Carlo with Franco Corelli
Franco Corelli
Franco Corelli was a famous Italian tenor who had a major international opera career between 1951 and 1976. Associated in particular with the spinto and dramatic tenor roles of the Italian repertory, he was celebrated universally for his powerhouse voice, electrifying top notes, clear timbre, a...
in the title role and sang Norma in Philadelphia. In 1973 she returned to Chicago to perform the title role in Donizetti's Maria Stuarda
Maria Stuarda
Maria Stuarda is a tragic opera, , in two acts, by Gaetano Donizetti, to a libretto by Giuseppe Bardari, based on Friedrich Schiller's 1800 play Maria Stuart....
opposite Viorica Cortez
Viorica Cortez
Viorica Cortez is a noted Romanian-born mezzo-soprano, later French by naturalisation. Starting her operatic and concert career in the mid-1960s, she went on to become one of the most prominent female performers of the '70s and '80s...
, sang Violetta in Philadelphia, and appeared at the Met as Bellini's Norma
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
opposite Carlo Cossutta
Carlo Cossutta
Carlo Cossutta was a prominent Italian dramatic tenor who had a major international opera career that spanned from the mid 1950s through the late 1990s. He began and ended his career at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires where he sang regularly from 1958 through 1998...
in his Met debut as Pollione and Fiorenza Cossotto
Fiorenza Cossotto
Fiorenza Cossotto is an Italian mezzo soprano. She is considered by many to be one of the great mezzo-sopranos of the 20th century.-Life and career:...
as Adalgisa.
In 1974, Caballé sang in a number of performances: Aida
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
at Liceu in January, I Vespri Siciliani at the Met
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
in March, Parisina d'Este
Parisina (opera)
Parisina is an opera , in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto after Byron's 1816 poem Parisina...
at Carnegie Hall in March, three Norma
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
s in one week at the Bolshoi
Bolshoi
Bolshoi may refer to:*Bolshoi Theatre, a major ballet and opera theatre in Moscow, Russia**Bolshoi Ballet, resident ballet company at the Bolshoi Theatre**Moscow State Academy of Choreography, commonly known as The Bolshoi Ballet Academy...
in Moscow, with Adriana Lecouvreur
Adriana Lecouvreur
Adriana Lecouvreur is an opera in four acts by Francesco Cilea to an Italian libretto by Arturo Colautti, based on the play by Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé...
at La Scala in April, Norma in Orange
Orange, Vaucluse
Orange is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.It has a primarily agricultural economy...
in July (her top single performance, filmed in video by Pierre Jourdain), the recording of Aida under Muti
Riccardo Muti
Riccardo Muti, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI is an Italian conductor and music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.-Childhood and education:...
in July, and the Duets recording with Giuseppe di Stefano
Giuseppe Di Stefano
Giuseppe Di Stefano was an Italian operatic tenor who sang professionally from the late 1940s until the early 1990s. He was known as the "Golden voice" or "The most beautiful voice", as the true successor of Beniamino Gigli...
in August.
In September 1974 she underwent major surgery to remove a large benign mass from her abdomen. She recovered and was again on stage in early 1975.
In 1976 Caballé appeared at the Met once again as Norma, sang her first Aida
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
in that house opposite Robert Nagy as Radamès and Marilyn Horne as Amneris, portrayed the title role in Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos
Ariadne auf Naxos
Ariadne auf Naxos is an opera by Richard Strauss with a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Bringing together slapstick comedy and consuming beautiful music, the opera's theme is the competition between high and low art for the public's attention.- First version :The opera was originally...
, and sang Mimì in Puccini's La bohème
La bohème
La bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
opposite Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti
right|thumb|Luciano Pavarotti performing at the opening of the Constantine Palace in [[Strelna]], 31 May 2003. The concert was part of the celebrations for the 300th anniversary of [[St...
as Rodolfo.
In 1977 Caballé made her debut with the San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera is an American opera company, based in San Francisco, California.It was founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola and is the second largest opera company in North America...
in the title role of Puccini's Turandot. She returned to that house ten more times over the next decade in such roles as Elvira in Verdi's Ernani
Ernani
Ernani is an operatic dramma lirico in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play Hernani by Victor Hugo. The first production took place at La Fenice Theatre, Venice on 9 March 1844...
and the title parts in La Gioconda
La Gioconda (opera)
La Gioconda is an opera in four acts by Amilcare Ponchielli set to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Angelo, tyran de Padoue, a play in prose by Victor Hugo, dating from 1835...
, Semiramide
Semiramide
Semiramide is an opera in two acts by Gioachino Rossini.The libretto by Gaetano Rossi is based on Voltaire's tragedy Semiramis, which in turn was based on the legend of Semiramis of Babylon...
, and Tosca among others.
Having lost some of her earlier brilliance and purity of voice, Caballé made up for it finding a more dramatic utterance and expressive singing in roles that demanded it. Thus, in 1978, she sang Tosca in San Francisco with Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti
right|thumb|Luciano Pavarotti performing at the opening of the Constantine Palace in [[Strelna]], 31 May 2003. The concert was part of the celebrations for the 300th anniversary of [[St...
, Norma in Madrid, and Adriana Lecouvreur
Adriana Lecouvreur
Adriana Lecouvreur is an opera in four acts by Francesco Cilea to an Italian libretto by Arturo Colautti, based on the play by Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé...
at the Met opposite José Carreras
José Carreras
Josep Maria Carreras i Coll , better known as José Carreras , is a Spanish Catalan tenor particularly known for his performances in the operas of Verdi and Puccini...
.
She continued to appear often at the Met during the 1980s singing in such roles as Tosca (1980, 1985) and Elizabeth of Valois (1985) and in special concerts in 1981 and 1983. Her 99th and final performance at the Met was on January 22, 1988 as Mimì in Puccini's La bohème
La bohème
La bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
with Pavarotti as Rodolfo, Barbara Daniels
Barbara Daniels
Barbara Daniels is an English cricketer and former member of the England women's cricket team . She was born in 1964 and played 9 test matches and 55 one day internationals. She helped England win the World Cup in 1993....
as Musetta, and Jonathan Summers
Jonathan Summers
Jonathan Summers is an Australian operatic baritone. He notably sang the role of Captain Balstrode in the 1980 recording of Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes which won a Grammy award for Best Opera recording.- Early life :...
as Marcello.
The later years
Uniquely, Caballé recorded both the title role in BelliniVincenzo Bellini
Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini was an Italian opera composer. His greatest works are I Capuleti ed i Montecchi , La sonnambula , Norma , Beatrice di Tenda , and I puritani...
's opera Norma
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
(for RCA Red Seal
RCA Red Seal Records
RCA Red Seal Records is a classical music label and is now part of Sony Masterworks.The Red Seal label was begun in 1902 by the Gramophone Company in the United Kingdom and was quickly picked up by its United States affiliate, the Victor Talking Machine Company, and its president, Eldridge R. Johnson...
in 1972, opposite Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
as Pollione) and later the role of Adalgisa (to Joan Sutherland
Joan Sutherland
Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....
's Norma) in the 1984 Decca
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
recording conducted by Richard Bonynge
Richard Bonynge
Richard Alan Bonynge, AO, CBE is an Australian conductor and pianist.Bonynge was born in Sydney and educated at Sydney Boys High School before studying piano at the Royal College of Music in London. He gave up his music scholarship, continuing his private piano studies, and became a coach for...
. Although the role of Adalgisa was originally conceived by Bellini for a soprano, it is usually now sung by a mezzo-soprano. Caballé is one among very few sopranos to have recorded the role, making her one of the most youthful-sounding Adalgisas on disc, despite the fact that she was over 50 at the time. Another soprano, Eva Mei, also recorded Adalgisa, opposite Jane Eaglen's Norma.
One of her rare excursions into the world of pop music, Caballé's duet with rock singer Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury was a British musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. As a performer, he was known for his flamboyant stage persona and powerful vocals over a four-octave range...
of Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
, "Barcelona", became a hit single in 1988, accompanied by an album of the same name
Barcelona (album)
Barcelona is an album recorded by Freddie Mercury, the front-man of the popular British rock band Queen, and operatic soprano Montserrat Caballé. The album was recorded in 1987 and 1988, and released in 1988...
. The title track later became the anthem of the 1992 Summer Olympics
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...
which was hosted by Caballé's native city, and appeared again in the pop music charts throughout Europe. Caballé also performed the song live, accompanied by a recording of the by then deceased Mercury, before the 1999 UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
football final in Barcelona's Camp Nou
Camp Nou
Camp Nou , sometimes called "the Nou Camp" in English, is a football stadium in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The stadium, located in the west of the city, has been the home of FC Barcelona since its construction in 1957....
stadium.
In 1995, she worked with Vangelis
Vangelis
Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou is a Greek composer of electronic, progressive, ambient, jazz, pop rock and orchestral music, under the artist name Vangelis...
for his album "El Greco
El Greco
El Greco was a painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El Greco" was a nickname, a reference to his ethnic Greek origin, and the artist normally signed his paintings with his full birth name in Greek letters, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος .El Greco was born on Crete, which was at...
" dedicated to the Greek painter. It will be a regular collaboration on other titles.
In 1997, Mike Moran produced the album Friends For Life
Friends For Life (Montserrat Caballé album)
Friends for Life is the title of a 1997 album by Spanish opera singer Montserrat Caballé.-Track listing:# Bohemian Rhapsody, with Bruce Dickinson [5:50]# March With Me, with Vangelis [3:49]...
, which includes duets with Caballé and such singers as Bruce Dickinson
Bruce Dickinson
Paul Bruce Dickinson is an English singer, songwriter, airline pilot, fencer, broadcaster, author, screenwriter, actor and marketing director, best known as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden....
, Johnny Hallyday
Johnny Hallyday
Johnny Hallyday is a French singer and actor. An icon in the French-speaking world since the beginning of his career, he was considered by some to have been the French Elvis Presley. He was married for 15 years to one of the most popular French female singers: Sylvie Vartan...
, Johnny Logan
Johnny Logan (singer)
Johnny Logan , is an Australian-born Irish singer and composer. He is regarded as "Mister Eurovision", having participated in the Eurovision Song Contest many times since the 1970s, and, since 1992, has been the most successful artist in Eurovision history.Logan has won the international contest on...
, Gino Vannelli
Gino Vannelli
Gino Vannelli is an Italian-Canadian singer, songwriter, musician and composer.-Early years:Born in Montreal, Quebec, Vannelli is one of three sons born to Russ and Delia Vannelli. Russ, his father, was a big band musician. As a child, Gino's greatest passion was music, and he began playing...
, and Helmut Lotti
Helmut Lotti
Helmut Lotti , is a Flemish Belgian tenor and singer-songwriter. Lotti performs in several styles and languages: Once an Elvis impersonator, he has sung African and Latino hit records, and he crossed over into classical music in the 1990s.-Life and music:The son of Luc Lotigiers and Rita Lagrou,...
.
Caballé has dedicated herself to various charities. She is a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador
UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador
UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors are celebrity advocates of UNESCO who use their talent or fame to spread the UNESCO ideals, especially attracting media attention...
and has established a foundation for needy children in Barcelona.
In 2003, she starred in her own documentary film Caballé Beyond Music, which featured many well-known opera singers, including Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
, Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti
right|thumb|Luciano Pavarotti performing at the opening of the Constantine Palace in [[Strelna]], 31 May 2003. The concert was part of the celebrations for the 300th anniversary of [[St...
, José Carreras
José Carreras
Josep Maria Carreras i Coll , better known as José Carreras , is a Spanish Catalan tenor particularly known for his performances in the operas of Verdi and Puccini...
, and Renée Fleming
Renée Fleming
Renée Fleming is an American soprano specializing in opera and lieder. Fleming has a full lyric soprano voice.Fleming has performed coloratura, lyric, and lighter spinto soprano repertoires. She has sung roles in Italian, German, French, Czech, and Russian, aside from her native English. She also...
.
In 2003, Caballé was awarded the Große Bundesverdienstkreuz
Bundesverdienstkreuz
The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany is the only general state decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has existed since 7 September 1951, and between 3,000 and 5,200 awards are given every year across all classes...
(Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany).
Caballé has not completely retired from the stage. She continues to assume new roles: in 2002, Catherine of Aragon in Saint-Saëns
Camille Saint-Saëns
Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist. He is known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Cello Concerto No. 1, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, and his Symphony...
's Henri VIII; in 2004, the title role in Massenet
Jules Massenet
Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet was a French composer best known for his operas. His compositions were very popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and he ranks as one of the greatest melodists of his era. Soon after his death, Massenet's style went out of fashion, and many of his operas...
's Cléopâtre
Cléopâtre
Cléopâtre is an opera in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Louis Payen. It was first performed in at the Opéra Monte-Carlo on February 23, 1914, nearly two years after Massenet's death....
, both at the Liceu. At the age of 74 (2007), she still maintains a busy schedule of recitals and concerts, mainly in Germany. She has appeared as The Duchess of Crakentorp in La fille du régiment
La fille du régiment
La fille du régiment is an opéra comique in two acts by Gaetano Donizetti. It was written while the composer was living in Paris, with a French libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Jean-François Bayard.La figlia del reggimento, a slightly different Italian-language version , was...
at the Vienna State Opera
Vienna State Opera
The Vienna State Opera is an opera house – and opera company – with a history dating back to the mid-19th century. It is located in the centre of Vienna, Austria. It was originally called the Vienna Court Opera . In 1920, with the replacement of the Habsburg Monarchy by the First Austrian...
in April 2007.
On July 2, 2008 Caballé was awarded a Honoris Causa doctorate by the Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo in Santander
Santander, Cantabria
The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community and historical region of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain. Located east of Gijón and west of Bilbao, the city has a population of 183,446 .-History:...
.
Caballé married the tenor Bernabé Martí in 1964. Her daughter, Montserrat Martí (Montsita), is also a soprano. The two
occasionally perform together.
Caballé has recorded extensively throughout her long career and has made many notable recordings of complete operas as well as recital albums, most notably on the RCA Red Seal
RCA Red Seal Records
RCA Red Seal Records is a classical music label and is now part of Sony Masterworks.The Red Seal label was begun in 1902 by the Gramophone Company in the United Kingdom and was quickly picked up by its United States affiliate, the Victor Talking Machine Company, and its president, Eldridge R. Johnson...
label.
Caballé is known affectionately in the opera world as La Superba, a sign that she has reached the status of diva.