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BARCELONA, Spain – Montserrat Caballe, a famous opera singer for her bel canto Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, has died. She was 85.
Caballe died early Saturday at San Pau hospital in Barcelona, hospital spokesman Abraham del Moral told The Associated Press. Caballe's family requested the cause of death not being released, saying that it had been in the hospital since September, del Moral said.
Spanish media said Caballe entered the hospital last month because of a gall bladder problem.
Condolences for the world of opera and Spain's highest authorities.
King Felipe VI tweeted that Caballe was "the great lady of opera, legend of universal culture, the best of the best" and that "her personality and unqualed voice will accompany us forever." Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said "a great ambassador of our country has died. "
For tenor Jose Carreras, opera lost its "best soprano" with the passing of Caballe.
"Of all the sopranos that I have heard live, Montserrat," Carreras told Catalunya Radio.
Carreras praised her "versatility," saying "she could do everything from the purest bel canto all the way to Wagner's 'Tristan und Isolde.'"
Barcelona's Liceo opera house, where Caballe performs over 200 times, and Venice's Teatro La Fenice also published tweets lamenting her loss. Madrid's Teatro Real said it would dedicate Saturday's performance of "Faust" to the memory of Caballe, lauding the "singular beauty of her voice" and her prodigious technique.
Born in a working class family in Barcelona, Caballe unveiled her musical talents early on, singing Bach cantatas at the age of 7.
In her almost unlimited repertoire, she starred in 90 opera roles with nearly 4,000 stage performances. Italian opera singer Maria Callas is a newcomer to "Only Caballe …"
At 8, Caballe entered the Liceo 's Conservatory in Barcelona with Eugenia Kenny, Conchita Badea, and Napoleone Annovazzi among her first teachers. She won the school's Gold Medal on graduating in 1954. She went on to study opera in Milan and in 1956 joined the Basel Opera and played her first major role in the city's Staatstheater as Mimi in Puccini's "La Boheme."
Four years later, she was a senior singer with the Bremen Opera.
In 1964, Caballe gave a highly praised performance of Jules Masenet's "Manon" in Mexico City, but it was a year later in New York that a lucky break was launched on the road to international stardom.
Marilyn Horne in a performance concert in Donizetti 's "Lucrezia Borgia" at New York' s Carnegie Hall and achieved a thunderous success. It opened the doors to all major opera around the world.
She made a highly-acclaimed performance as Elisabetta of Valois in an all-star cast of Verdi's "Don Carlo" at the Arena di Verona in 1969. The concert became famous for her "the" on the final "ah" at the very end of the opera, which lasted for more than 20 bars up, driving the audience wild with delight.
Caballe was also noted recitalist, particularly of songs of her native Spain. She was particularly admired for her purity of voice, vocal shadings and exquisite pianissimos.
Caballe 's duet "Barcelona" with Freddie Mercury, of the rock band Queen, 1987, accompanied by an album of the same name. The title track later became the anthem of the 1992 Summer Olympics in the city.
Caballe performed the song live, accompanied by a recording of the late Mercury, at the 1999 UEFA Champions League final soccer in Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium. In 1997, she sang on two tracks on an album by New Age composer Vangelis.
In 2015, Caballe was convicted of tax fraud and was given a sentence of six months in prison, which she feared because of her convictions in Spain. She had failed to pay the Spanish treasury more than 500,000 euros ($ 550,000) in taxes on her earnings.
Caballe, who was born Maria de Montserrat Viviana Concepcion Caballe and Folch, dedicated herself to various charities and was a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. She also established a foundation for children in Barcelona. In 1964, she married Spanish tenor Bernabe Marti. They had two children, Bernabe Marti, Jr. and Montserrat Marti, herself a successful soprano.
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Ciaran Giles reported from Madrid.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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