Astrid Varnay, 88. Opera singer.
- 17 Sep 06, 12:44 AM
During the last two crazy weeks (Blair, iPods, NHS shenannigans) I've been trying to find time to write about Astrid Varnay, who died aged 88 on 4 September. She was a soprano who sang Wagner. At the start of the second world war she had a "Ruby Keeler moment" when, in 1941, she was called on to stand in at short notice as the female lead in Die Walkure at New York's Metropolitan Opera. As in all good "understudy makes good" stories, it just happened to be the performance that was being broadcast live to the nation. The next day Pearl Harbor happened! Thereafter she became, arguably, the greatest female opera singer in the world...
