英語名人堂：瑪麗亞·卡拉斯
8歲便開始學(xué)習(xí)鋼琴,二十世紀(jì)最偉大的歌劇女王。1923年出生于紐約，1937年隨母回國(guó)，就學(xué)于雅典音樂學(xué)院。1941年在雅典歌劇院正式登臺(tái)，1947年在意大利維羅納演出歌劇《拉焦孔達(dá)》一舉成名。此后兩年在威尼斯演唱綺瑟、杜朗多、布琳希爾德等戲劇性女高音的角色。1950年進(jìn)入米蘭拉斯卡拉劇院，演出了《阿依達(dá)》。1965年在英國(guó)演出最后一場(chǎng)《托斯卡》后，退出舞臺(tái)。1973年東山再起，與著名男高音朱塞佩·德·迪斯泰法諾聯(lián)合舉行獨(dú)唱音樂會(huì)。她一生扮演過43個(gè)角色，共上演500多場(chǎng)次，50年代是她演唱生涯的最鼎盛時(shí)期，在倫敦科文特加登歌劇院(1952)、芝加哥(1954)、紐約大都會(huì)(1956)等歌劇院演唱，獲得無數(shù)世界聲譽(yù)。1977年9月16日卒于巴黎。
Maria Callas was an American-born Greek opera singer, often regarded as the greatest ever soprano. She combined a wonderfully versatile voice with a natural ability for drama. She made opera popular with millions of people and her recordings are studied by budding opera singers today. Callas’ own life has been rich enough to be the subject of an opera.
Callas was born in New York and raised in Greece. Her mother recognized Maria’s singing talents early on. Callas said: "I was made to sing when I was only five, and I hated it." In 1937, a singing tutor in Athens described her voice as being “an amazing phenomenon” that should “shine with all its brilliance”. She studied and sang for ten hours a day.
Callas made her professional debut in Athens in 1942. A critic stated Callas was "an extremely dynamic artist possessing the rarest dramatic and musical gifts". Callas’ career took off in 1946 when she went to Italy. She got increasingly rave reviews. One famous soprano said Callas “opened a new door for…all the singers in the world”. She got the nickname ‘Divina’, the divine one.
In 1965, Callas ended her stage career in London’s Royal Opera House. She was adored by operaenthusiasts worldwide. A famous conductor spoke of her amazing talent: "If the public could understand, as we do, how deeply and utterly musical Callas is, they would bestunned." Callas spent her final years living in isolation in Paris.
