Italian Sopranos

Anna Renzi (c. 1620-1661) - The first diva in the history of opera.

Francesca Cuzzoni (1696-1778) - Considered one of the finest sopranos of the Baroque era.

Giuditta Pasta (1797-1865) - Considered the greatest sopranos of her time and one of the greatest opera singers of the 19th century.

Angelica Catalani (1780-1849) - Considered one of the greatest operatic singers of all time.

Eugenia Tadolini (1809-1872) - One of the leading sopranos of the 1830's and 1840's. Noted for creating more than twenty leading operatic roles.

Giulia Grisi (1811-1869) - One of the leading sopranos of the 19th century.

Fanny Salvini-Donatelli (c. 1815-1891) - Noted for her performances in the operas of Verdi and Donizetti.

Giuseppina Strepponi (1815-1897) - Wife of Giuseppe Verdi. One of the leading sopranos of the 19th century.

Erminia Frezzolini (1818-1884) - One of the most renown sopranos of her generation.

Adelina Patti (1843-1919) - Called the “Queen of Song”. The most famous singer of the 19th century. Called “the finest singer who ever lived” by Verdi.

Gemma Bellincioni (1864-1950) - One of the best-known opera singers of the late 19th century.

Luisa Tetrazzini (1871-1940) - One of the most popular sopranos between the 1890's and 1920's.

Lina Cavalieri (1874-1944) - Considered one of the most iconic sopranos of the early 20th century. Killed in an Allied bombing raid in World War II.

Celestina Boninsegna (1877-1947) - One of the most successfully recorded voices in the period before World War I.

Armanda degli Abbati (1879-1946) - Noted for training a generation of Estonian opera singers. Died in a Soviet prison camp after World War II.

Amelita Galli-Curci (1882-1963) - Considered one of the greatest coloratura sopranos ever recorded.

Carmen Melis (1885-1967) - Teacher of Renata Tebaldi. Considered one of the most interesting singing actresses of the early 20th century.

Claudia Muzio (1889-1936) - One of the most important sopranos of the early 20th century.

Toti Dal Monte (1893-1975) - Considered the greatest Italian coloratura soprano of her generation.

Maria Caniglia (1905-1979) - One of the leading Italian dramatic sopranos of the 1930's and 1940's.

Margherita Carosio (1908-2005) - One of the leading bel canto sopranos of her generation.

Licia Albanese (1909-2014) - One of the most admired sopranos of the mid-20th century.

Magda Olivero (1910-2014) - One of the last of the verismo sopranos.

Renata Tebaldi (1922-2004) - The leading Italian soprano of the 1950's and 1960's. Considered one of the greatest sopranos of all time.

Antonietta Stella (b. 1929) - Considered one of the finest Italian spinto sopranos of the 1950's and 1960's.

Gabriella Tucci (b. 1929) - Noted as a versatile singing-actress, able to perform a wide range of roles from bel canto to verismo.

Renata Scotto (b. 1934) - Considered one of the greatest sopranos of the 20th century.

Mirella Freni (b. 1935) - Considered one of the greatest sopranos of all time.

Maria Chiara (b. 1939) - Called “the second Tebaldi”.

Katia Ricciarelli (b. 1946) - Considered one of the greatest Verdian sopranos of her generation.

Mariella Devia (b. 1948) - Called the “Queen of bel canto”.

Daniela Dessì (1957-2016) - Considered the most versatile soprano of her generation.

Susanna Rigacci (b. 1960) - Noted as the modern voice behind the compositions of Ennio Morricone.

Anna Caterina Antonacci (b. 1961) - Considered one of the finest sopranos of her generation.

Barbara Frittoli (b. 1967) - Considered one of the leading lirico-spinto sopranos of her generation.

Giorgia Fumanti (b. 1975) - Considered one of the most talented crossover sopranos.