Soprano Ileana Cotrubas, one of Romania’s leading opera singers, passed away on August 20 at the age of 87. From the 1960s through the 1980s, she established a unique presence through the flexibility of her voice and her precise portrayal of characters, enjoying an international career as one of the defining lyric sopranos of the late 20th century.
She was born in Galați, in eastern Romania. Raised in a family where her father was a tenor in an amateur choir, she joined a children’s radio choir at the age of nine. She later studied at the Bucharest Conservatory and made her debut at the Bucharest Opera House in 1964, singing the role of Yniold in Debussy’s 《Pelléas et Mélisande》.
In 1965, she won the opera, art song, and oratorio category at the ‘s-Hertogenbosch Vocal Competition in the Netherlands, followed by a victory in the vocal category at the Munich International Music Competition the next year. Subsequently, she achieved great success singing the role of Pamina in Mozart’s 《The Magic Flute》 at the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels, a breakthrough that launched her international career.
She served as a resident singer at the Frankfurt Opera from 1968 to 1971 and made her UK debut in 1969 at the Glyndebourne Festival Opera, singing the role of Mélisande in Debussy’s 《Pelléas et Mélisande》. In 1970, she signed a three-year contract with the Vienna State Opera, and in 1971, she made her debut at the Royal Opera singing the role of Tatyana in Tchaikovsky’s 《Eugene Onegin》.
She achieved international renown in 1975 when she was hastily engaged to replace Mirella Freni in a production of Puccini’s 《La Bohème》 at La Scala in Milan. Rushing from her home in Kent, England, to Milan—and arriving just fifteen minutes before the curtain rose—she pulled off a nail-biting feat and scored a resounding success in the role of Mimì.
In 1977, she made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, singing the role of Mimì alongside José Carreras and Renata Scotto. She has since appeared in numerous productions, including as Gilda in Verdi’s 《Rigoletto》 and Violetta in Verdi’s 《La Traviata》.
She possesses a wide-ranging repertoire; her Mozart roles include Pamina, Susanna, Zerlina, Ilia, and Konstanze, and she is also known for roles such as Mélisande, Micaëla, Manon, Adina, Mimì, and Tatiana.
At the same time, she is known for being demanding of directors and fellow performers; she has withdrawn from productions—such as 《Eugene Onegin》 at the Vienna State Opera in 1973 and Donizetti’s 《Don Pasquale》 at the Metropolitan Opera in 1980—because she could not agree with the director’s artistic vision.
She also made numerous recordings. Highly acclaimed releases include 《La Traviata》 with Plácido Domingo and Sherrill Milnes under the baton of Carlos Kleiber; 《Rigoletto》 with Domingo, Piero Cappuccilli, and Nicolai Ghiaurov under Carlo Maria Giulini; Bizet’s 《Carmen》 with Teresa Berganza and Domingo under Claudio Abbado; and Massenet’s 《Manon》 with Alfredo Kraus and José van Dam under Michel Plasson.
She retired from the opera stage in November 1990, with her final performance as Mimì in 《La Bohème》 at the Vienna State Opera. Subsequently, she dedicated herself to mentoring the next generation—including artists such as Angela Gheorghiu—through activities like conducting masterclasses.
PHOTO：Opera Națională București
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