Martina Arroyo

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Martina Arroyo (February 2, 1936 – October 13, 2026) was an American operatic soprano who had a major international opera career from the 1960s through the 1980s. She was part of the first generation of black opera singers to achieve wide success. Arroyo first rose to prominence in Europe, performing in the world premiere of Karlheinz Stockhausen's Momente in 1962 and as a regular leading soprano at the Zurich Opera between 1963 and 1965. She was then one of the Metropolitan Opera's leading sopranos between 1965 and 1978. During those years at the Metropolitan Opera, she was also a regular presence at the world's opera houses, performing on the stages of La Scala, Covent Garden, the Opéra National de Paris, the Teatro Colón, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Vienna State Opera, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and the San Francisco Opera. She is best known for her performances of the Italian spinto repertoire, and in particular, her portrayals of Verdi and Puccini heroines, but she also appeared...

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