|
Born Alice Joséphine
Pons near Cannes, France in 1898, Lily Pons
was a French-American coloratura soprano. She successfully made her
operatic debut in the role of Léo Delibes' Lakmé at Mulhouse in
1928 and went on to sing several coloratura roles in French provincial
opera houses. Pons had a small voice but in her early days,
flawless technique and very secure top notes. She was the first
soprano who effortlessly reached the high E in Delibes' Lakmé.
On January 3, 1931, the French woman, unknown in the U.S., made an
unheralded Met debut as Lucia in Donizetti's Lucia di
Lammermoor. Against all odds, her performance received tremendous
acclaim. She became a star overnight and would remain a principal
soprano at the Met for thirty years. In 1940, she became a naturalized
citizen of the United States. During World War II, she toured the
battlefields of North Africa and East Asia. Her country of birth
awarded her the Croix de Lorraine and the Légion d'Honneur. She died
of pancreatic cancer in Dallas, Texas at the age of 77. |
