Jessye Norman was an American soprano whose versatile performances ranged from Baroque repertoire such as in Purcell's `Dido and Aeneas', through Italian classics such as Verdi's `Aida', to Wagner's `Tannhäuser' and Stravinsky's `Oedipus Rex'. Her commanding stage presence and ability to project drama through her voice made her one of the best-known sopranos with an impressive repertoire of operatic and concert performances and recordings throughout her career.

Norman was born into a musical family. Her mother and grandmother were both pianists, and she began singing in church with her father. She won a scholarship to Howard University, Washington DC to study voice with Pierre Bernac and Elizabeth Mannion amongst others. Graduating in 1967, she then went on to study at the Peabody Conservatory, Baltimore, and the University of Michigan. She showed a gift for opera from a young age, but her early career was based in Europe as this was where she was first recognised for her talent. She won the Munich International Music Competition in 1968 and made her opera debut at The Deutsche Oper Berlin as Elisabeth in Richard Wagner's `Tannhäuser'.

Her early operatic career continued in Europe with performances in the title role of Giuseppe Verdi's 'Aida' at La Scala opera house in 1972, and as Cassandra in Hector Berlioz's 'Les Troyens' at Covent Garden in the same year. In 1973 she returned to Covent Garden and reprised her role of Elisabeth in their production of `Tannhäuser'.

Norman made her American stage debut as Jocasta in Igor Stravinsky's 'Oedipus Rex' and in the title role of Henry Purcell's 'Dido and Aeneas' in 1982 with the Opera Company of Philadelphia. She made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York in 1983, reprising her role of Cassandra. In 1989, she sang in a historic performance for the Metropolitan Opera of their first ever single-character production, in Arnold Schoenberg's 'Erwartung'. Her other operatic roles have included the title role in Richard Strauss's 'Ariadne Auf Naxos', Madame Lindoine in Francis Poulenc's 'Dialogues des Carmelites', Emilia Marty in Leos Janácek's 'The Makropolus Affair' and Judith in Béla Bartók's 'Bluebeard's Castle'. In addition to these stage roles, Norman has made numerous operatic recordings including works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Joseph Haydn, Guiseppe Verdi, Richard Strauss and Jacques Offenbach.

Norman also had a wide repertoire as a recitalist, with a particular flair for the interpretation of lieder. Her more popular recordings are those of Arnold Schoenberg's 'Gurrelieder', Richard Strauss's 'Vier Letzte Lieder' and Gustav Mahler's 'Kindertotenlieder', 'Wesendonck Lieder' and 'Das Lied von der Erde'. She has appeared in concerts and recorded CDs of jazz and traditional music including spirituals in addition to recordings and performances of sacred music such as Franz Schubert's 'Ave Maria', César Franck's 'Panis Angelicus' and Stephen Adams's 'The Holy City' amongst others.

Sadly, Jessye Norman died on 30th September 2019, aged 74.

Jessye Norman

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