Obituary: Giulietta Simionato

Italian mezzo-soprano and bel canto star who sang at La Scala Milan with Callas

Giulietta Simionato, opera singer.

Born: 12 May, 1910, in Forli, Italy.

Died: 6 May 2010, in Rome, aged 99.

GIULIETTA Simionato, a leading Italian mezzo-soprano sang most often in Europe, appearing at La Scala in Milan from 1936 until her retirement in 1966. Throughout her career, she often shared the bill with the renowned soprano Maria Callas, a close friend, and was also close with Renata Tebaldi.

A specialist in the bel canto repertory, which includes the work of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, she was praised for her firm, agile voice; her smooth phrasing and a vocal range so wide it encompassed the register of a soprano while retaining the meaty lower notes of a mezzo. She was also known for a commanding stage presence that belied her petite stature.

In the United States, Simionato was most closely associated with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, at which she made her American debut, as Adalgisa in Bellini's Norma in 1954. In her six seasons there, her roles included Cherubino in Mozart's Marriage of Figaro, Azucena in Verdi's Il Trovatore and the title role in Bizet's Carmen.

In New York, she sang 28 performances with the Metropolitan Opera between 1959 and 1965. She made her debut there as Azucena, opposite Antonietta Stella, Carlo Bergonzi and Leonard Warren. The New York Times said of her performance: "The Italian mezzo-soprano brings a rich, secure and cultivated voice to the Met. Her range is formidable; the high tones have accuracy and brilliance, and the low are firm and vibrant. She sings with stirring ardour and moves with intelligence."

Giulietta Simionato was born in 1910 in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and spent her early years in Sardinia. Her family moved to Rovigo, near Venice when she was eight, and it was then that her singing skills were noticed, and she started her training.

She won a bel canto competition in Florence in 1933, and in 1936 joined La Scala, where she sang supporting roles. In 1947, after singing the title role in Ambroise Thomas's Mignon to great acclaim in Genoa, she shot to stardom.

She can be heard on many recordings, and seen in the documentary films Tosca's Kiss and Opera Fanatic.

Simionato was married three times, and her last husband, the industrialist Florio De Angeli, died in 1996.

She died in Rome a week before her 100th birthday.