Spanish operatic soprano

Montserrat Caballé

Intro
Spanish operatic soprano
Record Labels
Awards Received
Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres‎
Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Knight of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
Princess of Asturias Award for the Arts
Gold Medal of Merit in the Fine Arts (Spain)
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
Grand Cross of the Civil Order of Alfonso X the Wise
Gramophone Award for Lifetime Achievement
Gold Medal of the Generalitat of Catalonia
Order of the Badge of Honour
Order of Friendship
Order of Princess Olga, 1st class
honorary doctor of the D. Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia

María de Montserrat Viviana Concepción Caballé i Folch (UK: /kəˈbæljeɪ, ˌkæbælˈjeɪ/, Catalan: [munsəˈrat kəβəˈʎe i ˈfolk]; 12 April 1933 – 6 October 2018) was a Spanish operatic soprano. She sang a wide variety of roles, but is best known as an exponent of the works of Verdi and of the bel canto repertoire, notably the works of Rossini, Bellini, and Donizetti. She was noticed internationally when she stepped in for a performance of Donizetti's Lucrezia Borgia at Carnegie Hall in 1965, and then appeared at leading opera houses. Her voice was described as pure but powerful, with superb control of vocal shadings and exquisite pianissimo.

Caballé became popular to non-classical music audiences in 1987, when she recorded, at the request of the International Olympic Committee, "Barcelona", a duet with Freddie Mercury, which became an official theme song for the 1992 Olympic Games. She received several international awards and also Grammy Awards for a number of her recordings.