Harwood, Elizabeth (Jean)
Harwood, Elizabeth (Jean)
Harwood, Elizabeth (Jean), English soprano; b. Barton Seagrave, May 27, 1938; d. Ingatestone, June 21, 1990. She studied at the Royal Manchester Coll. of Music (1955–60). In 1960 she won the Kathleen Ferrier Memorial Prize and in 1963 the Verdi Prize of Busseto. She made her operatic debut in 1960 as the 2nd boy in Die Zauberflöte at the Glyndebourne Festival, and returned there to sing Fiordiligi, Countess Almaviva, and the Marschallin. In 1961 she became a member of the Sadler’s Wells Opera in London, where she appeared as Susanna, Zerbinetta, and Massenet’s Manon. In 1967 she made her first appearance at London’s Covent Garden as Fiakermilli, and returned there to sing such roles as Marzelline, Gilda, Norina, and Donna Elvira; she also sang at Glasgow’s Scottish Opera (1967–74). In 1970 she sang for the first time at the Salzburg Festival and in 1972 at Milan’s La Scala. On Oct. 15, 1975, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut in N.Y. as Fiordiligi, remaining on the roster for that season; she returned for the 1977-78 season. In 1986 she made a tour of Australia. Among her other roles were Constanze, Lucia, Musetta, Sophie, and Hanna Glawari.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire