born March 6, 1944, Gisborne, North Island, N.Z.
New Zealand-born (half-Maori) soprano.
After winning various singing competitions at home, she went to London for further study in 1966 and made her Covent Garden debut in 1970. Soon moving into leading roles, she became especially admired as the Countess in The Marriage of Figaro . In 1974 she made a triumphal debut at the Metropolitan Opera, substituting at the last moment in Giuseppe Verdi 's Otello . A glamorous and regally imperturbable presence with a rich voice, she was chosen to sing at the 1981 wedding of Prince Charles, and she has made many recordings.