Thaindian News

By Ranjan Bhaduri
Nov 6, (THAINDIAN NEWS) Talented American Opera singer and a soprano known for her vocal range, Shirley Verrett passed away recently at the age of 79. She mesmerized the listeners with her magical voice for more than 4 decades. She reached the peak of her career during the 1970s and 1980s. She was not doing very well of late and heart problem was haunting her for quite some time. He had to fight the racial bias and the consequences of a biracial marriage as she wrote in her autobiography. She came in to the musical scene for the first time in the year 1957. In the early part of her carer she excelled as a mezzo and later became a Soprano.

Her debut in London’s Royal Opera and Metropolitan Opera in the 1960s made her famous. The critics loved her immense vocal range and versatility. She lived in Ann Arbor and used to teach at the University of Michigan from 1996. Her colleague and friend George Shirley said that “She was one of America’s greatest opera singers. She was an extension of the Marian Anderson figure — dignified, gracious and possessed of an outstanding voice and interpretive sense.”

In the later stage of her career she took to Soprano roles. Her family mourned her death and her daughter Francesca LoMonaco said that she died in her sleep. In her childhood she received encouragement from her parents who approved of her vocal skills but did not want her to pursue a career in opera. She made her debut in Broadway in the year 1994 and also got rave reviews from the critics.