Italian Soprano Elena Mauti-Nunziata has died at the age of 77.

Born August 28, 1946, in Palma Campania, Naples, Mauti-Nunziata attended the Teatro Lirico Sperimentale in Palermo where Gina Cigna taught her.

She made her unofficial debut in Sicily as Musetta in “La Bohème” and obtained recognition when she did Bellini’s “I Puritani” in Palermo.

In 1977, she had her big break out portraying the role of Violetta in “La Traviata” in Madrid.

From there she would become recognized for her Italian roles as Nedda in “Pagliacci,” Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly,” “Manon Lescaut,” “Tosca,” and “La Rondine” and Verdi’s “Il Trovatore” and “La Forza del Destino.”

She went on to perform at the Teatro alla Scala, Royal Opera House, Paris Opera, Hamburg State Opera, and Teatro Regio di Torino, among others.

From 1977 until 1979, Mauti-Nunziata appeared in 26 performances of the Metropolitan Opera productions of “La Bohème,” La Traviata,” and “Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci.” In the 1990s she performed again in the Teatro Regio di Torino in the role of “Francesca da Rimini.”

In the late 1990s, while still in good vocal health, Mauti Nunziata retired from the opera scene with a farewell concert in Brescia.

For further information here is an interview with the late soprano.