Della Casa, Lisa (1919–)

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Della Casa, Lisa (1919–)

Swiss lyric soprano. Born in Burgdorf near Berne, Switzerland, Feb 2, 1919; studied with Margaret Haeser in Berne and Zurich; m. Dragan Debeljevic, 1947.

Debuted as Cio-Cio San in Solothurn-Biel (1941) and as Zedenka in Salzburg (1947); made debut in UK at Glyndebourne (1951); was a member of the Vienna State Opera (1947–73); sang at Metropolitan Opera in NY for 15 seasons (1953–68); often sang Mozart, performing and recording Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, the Countess in Figaro, and Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte; also specialized in Richard Strauss, performing Zedenka in Arabella, Ariadne in Capriccio, Octavian, Sophie, and Marshallin in Der Rosenkavalier, and virtually owned the title role of Arabella, making complete recordings for Decca (1957) and Deutsche Grammophon (1963).

See also Women in World History.