Tenor Eduardo Villa has died after years of fighting Esophageal Cancer.

Born in 1953, Villa studied at the University of Southern California as well as with Martial Singher, Horst Günter, and Margaret Harshaw.

He had his big break when he won the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in 1982 and performed with the Basel Opera Theater from 1983 to 1987. In 1986 he made his Paris Opera debut and from 1987 to 1991 he performed as an ensemble member of the Bayerische Staatsoper.

Following his ensemble work he became a freelance performer and sang with the Opera Hamilton (Canada), Atlanta Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Frankfurt Opera, Arizona Opera, and Connecticut Opera in Hartford.

In 2002 he made his Met debut and went on to perform 25  times in ten different roles. Among the operas with the company were “Don Carlo,” “Aida,” Cavalleria Rusitcana,” “Carmen,” “Luisa Miller,” “Ernani” “Tosca” and “La Gioconda.” His final performance with the company came in 2008 in the title role of “Ernani.”