Ileana Cotrubas, Beloved Opera Singer, Dies at 87

Ileana Cotrubas, a Romanian opera singer known for her pure, emotional voice, has died at the age of 87. She was one of the most respected sopranos — female opera singers — of her time. The Romanian National Opera in Bucharest announced her death on Facebook, though no other details were shared. Cotrubas was praised around the world for making audiences feel the deep sadness and joy of the characters she played.

Cotrubas grew up in a family that loved music. She was born on June 9, 1939, in Galati, a city in eastern Romania. Both of her parents were amateur opera singers, meaning they sang for fun rather than as a job. She started singing in children's choirs when she was just nine years old.

Her family moved to Bucharest in 1952, and she attended a school for musically talented children. There she studied piano, violin, conducting, acting, and singing. At first, a music school called the Ciprian Porumbescu Conservatory turned her away because they thought her voice was too small. She tried again, passed her second audition, and went on to become one of the greatest singers of her generation.

She made her stage debut in 1964, playing a frightened child in an opera called 'Pelléas et Mélisande.' After that, she won several international singing contests and earned contracts with major opera houses in Frankfurt and Vienna. By the late 1960s and early 1970s, she was performing leading roles all across Europe. In 1973, she made her American debut in Chicago, singing opposite the famous tenor Luciano Pavarotti.

One of her most exciting stories happened in 1975 in Milan, Italy. Another singer canceled a performance of 'La Bohème' at the last minute, and Pavarotti suggested the company call Cotrubas to fill in. She was in England at the time and almost said no, since she hadn't sung that role in a year. But she agreed, did her makeup on the flight, and arrived at the theater just 15 minutes before the curtain went up.

Cotrubas became especially famous for playing sad, tragic characters in operas like 'La Traviata,' 'La Bohème,' and 'Rigoletto.' A critic from The New York Times wrote in 1981 that 'it is unlikely that there is a better Violetta now on the world's stages' after watching her perform. He also called her 'a singing actress of great imagination and temperament.' Audiences and critics agreed that something special happened whenever she stepped onto a stage.

She was not only gifted at sad roles — she was also praised for funny and lively ones. She played comic characters in operas by Mozart and Donizetti. She also excelled at a style of classical singing called lieder, which means art songs in German. Her recordings include famous operas starring other legends like Plácido Domingo and conducted by top conductors of her era.

Cotrubas was also known for standing her ground with directors and conductors when she disagreed with them. In 1984, she refused to perform in the final show of 'La Bohème' at the Metropolitan Opera in New York because she disliked the conductor's choices. She once explained her point of view by saying, 'We are not puppets or marionettes. I have my own ideas.' Her strong beliefs sometimes caused conflict, but she never apologized for staying true to her values.

In the early 1980s, she had some health problems that affected her voice, but she kept performing through the rest of that decade. She announced her retirement in 1989 during a rehearsal at the Royal Opera in London. After stepping away from performing, she focused on teaching young singers. Her most well-known student was Angela Gheorghiu, another Romanian soprano who also became internationally famous.

Cotrubas married her coach and manager, Manfred Ramin, in 1972. The two wrote books together and shared strong opinions about how opera should be performed and presented. She believed audiences should study an opera's story and learn about the composer before attending a show. Mr. Ramin survives her, and the couple had no children. Cotrubas leaves behind a remarkable legacy as one of the most moving and principled opera singers of the 20th century.