Elias, Rosalind

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Elias, Rosalind

Elias, Rosalind, American mezzo-soprano; b. Lowell, Mass., March 13, 1930. She began her training at the New England Cons, of Music in Boston, and during her student days there, she sang Poppaea in L’incoronazione di Popped and appeared with the Boston Sym. Orch. She then studied at the Berkshire Music Center in Tangle wood. After singing with the New England Opera Co. (1948–52), she completed her training in Italy with Luigi Ricci and Nazareno de Angelis. Following engagements at Milan’s La Scala and Naples’s Teatro San Carlos, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut in N.Y. as Grimgerde in Die Walküre on Feb. 23, 1954; she created roles there in Barber’s Vanessa (Erika, 1958) and Antony and Cleopatra (Charmian, 1966), remaining on its roster for over 30 years. She also made guest appearances in Europe and toured as a concert artist. Among her other roles were Dorabella, Rosina, Cherubino, Giordano’s Bersi, Carmen, and Octavian.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire