On August 18, 2023 soprano Hilda de Groote died at the age of 77 in Vienna, Austria.

Born on Oct. 14, 1945, in Ghent, Belgium, de Groote studied music with opera director Karel Locufier early in her career.

She went on to make her debut at the Royal Opera Ghent in 1961 in “Les contes d’Hoffmann” and went on to perform with the company in numerous roles. She also went on to make her house debuts at the Wiener Staatsoper and Bayerische Staatsoper as well as at numerous international festivals.

Among the operas she was known for were “Der Rosenkavalier,” “Die Fledermaus,” “Moses und Aron,” “Ariadne auf Naxos,” “Boris Godunov,” “Capriccio,” and “Carmen.” De Groote was also an avid concert performer and a teacher at the Vienna Conservatory.

In 1986, De Groote was awarded the Medal of Honor of the city of Ghent and Around 1994 she received the Medal of Knight in the Order of Leopold.

In 2010 she retired from the stage with a gala concert in Ghent.