born Sept. 15, 1945, Augusta, Ga., U.S.
U.S. soprano.
She won the Munich International Music Competition in 1968 and debuted in Berlin as Elisabeth in Tannhäuser (1969). She appeared at La Scala , Milan, in 1972 and made recital debuts in London and New York City the next year. Having garnered extraordinary praise for years, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut in Les Troyens in 1983, confirming her reputation as perhaps the greatest soprano of her generation. An imposing stage presence with a vibrant and flexible voice, her operatic and concert repertoire encompasses an exceptionally wide range.