Sylvia Stahlman

Sylvia Stahlman (March 5, 1929 - August 19, 1998) was an American soprano, particularly associated with lighter coloratura roles.

Career

Stahlman was born in Nashville, Tennessee, and studied at the Juilliard School in New York City. She began her career singing in Broadway musicals.

She left for Europe to begin a career in opera, performing first under the name Giulia Bardi. She made her debut at La Monnaie in Brussels, as Elvira in "I puritani", in 1951, and remained with that theatre until 1954. She also sang in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, and Vienna, and appeared at the Glyndebourne Festival in 1959, as Ilia in "Idomeneo".

In America, she appeared at the New York City Opera in 1956, as Blonde in "The Abduction from the Seraglio", also appearing at the San Francisco Opera and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. She took part in 1964, in the American premiere of "Daphne", at the Santa Fe Opera.

Excelling in coloratura and soubrette roles, she can be heard on recordings, as Lisa in "La sonnambula", opposite Joan Sutherland, and as Oscar in "Un ballo in maschera", opposite Birgit Nilsson, Carlo Bergonzi, and Cornell MacNeil, under Georg Solti.

Stahlman died in St Petersburg, Florida, aged 69.

ources

* "Grove Music Online", Cori Ellison, Oxford University Press, 2008.