Slovak soprano Edita Gruberova died on 18 September in Zurich at the age of 74. The singer had undergone knee surgery in June. This had prevented her from attending the ICMA gala in Vaduz, where she was to have been honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award. The ICMA jury said: « One of the last true great opera divas, Edita Gruberova has triumphed on stages all over the world for over fifty years, showing the absolute perfection of her singing, the purity of her pitch and total adherence to the dramatic reasons of the characters in the Italian bel canto repertoire, in which she is undisputed queen – but we shouldn’t forget the wit and the irony she has always displayed in German and Viennese operetta. A model of long-lasting career and dedication, Edita Gruberova is a model for any young singer wishing to follow her example. »
Born in Bratislava on December 23, 1946, she studied at the Bratislava Conservatory until 1968. After that sachnelle started a great career. She made her debut at the Vienna State Opera in 1970 in Mozart’s Magic Flute as the Queen of the Night. After her debut at the Vienna State Opera, she pursued a world career for decades. For several decades Gruberova was at home in the world’s most important opera houses. Her extraordinary voice repeatedly motivated artistic directors to include operas with particularly difficult vocal roles in the program especially for her. Gruberova retired from the stage in 2019.
