However, the 'middle period' operas of Verdi remain her greatest triumph: Aida, the Leonoras of Il trovatore and La forza del destino, and Amelia in Un ballo in maschera. She was noted for her roles in operas by Mozart and Puccini as well as Cleopatra in Handel's Giulio Cesare and Poppea in Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea. Ī lirico spinto (Italian for 'pushed lyric') soprano, her musical interpretations were subtle but often overshadowed her acting. She made her farewell opera performance at the Met in 1985 in Aida. One of these works was Barber's Antony and Cleopatra, which she starred in for its world premiere. Continuing her career there, she starred in a multitude of operas for 20 years, securing her place among the leading performers of her time.

She then performed at the world's major opera houses with Aida, before a successful debut at the Metropolitan Opera (Met) in 1961 as Leonora in Verdi's Il trovatore. Her 1955 performance in a televised performance of Puccini's Tosca and appearances at the San Francisco Opera as Poulenc's Dialogues des Carmélites and Aida brought her to international attention.

Numerous concert performances followed, such as a recital at the Library of Congress with composer Samuel Barber on piano.

Having heard the performance, Virgil Thomson engaged her in Four Saints in Three Acts and she then toured-starring alongside her husband William Warfield-in a successful revival of Gerswhin's Porgy and Bess. Born in Laurel, Mississippi, Price attended Central State University and then Juilliard, where she had her operatic debut as Mistress Ford in Verdi's Falstaff.

Opera news sidney powell