A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; Italian:[ˌmɛddzosoˈpraːno]; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above (i.e. A3–A5 in scientific pitch notation, where middle C = C4; 220–880 Hz). In the lower and upper extremes, some mezzo-sopranos may extend down to the F below middle C (F3, 175 Hz) and as high as "high C" (C6, 1047 Hz). The mezzo-soprano voice type is generally divided into the coloratura, lyric, and dramatic.
Teresa Berganza VargasOAXS was a Spanish mezzo-soprano. She is most closely associated with roles such as Rossini's Rosina and La Cenerentola, and later Bizet's Carmen, admired for her technical virtuosity, musical intelligence, and beguiling stage presence.
Grace Melzia Bumbry was an American opera singer, considered one of the leading mezzo-sopranos of her generation, who also ventured to soprano roles. She belonged to a pioneering generation of African-American classical singers, led by Marian Anderson. She was recognized internationally when Wieland Wagner cast her for the 1961 Bayreuth Festival as Venus in Tannhäuser, the first black singer to appear at the festival.
Lorraine Hunt Lieberson was an American mezzo-soprano. She was noted for her performances of both Baroque era and contemporary works. Her career path to becoming a singer was unconventional – formerly a professional violist, Lieberson did not shift her full-time focus to singing until she was in her thirties.
Nell Rankin was an American operatic mezzo-soprano. Though a successful opera singer internationally, she spent most of her career at the Metropolitan Opera, where she worked from 1951 to 1976. She was particularly admired for her portrayals of Amneris in Verdi's Aida and the title role in Bizet's Carmen. Opera News said, "Her full, generous tone and bold phrasing, especially in the Italian repertory, were unique among American mezzos of her generation.
Régine Crespin was a French singer who had a major international career in opera and on the concert stage between 1950 and 1989. She started her career singing roles in the dramatic soprano and spinto soprano repertoire, drawing particular acclaim singing Wagner and Strauss heroines. She went on to sing a wider repertoire that embraced Italian, French, German, and Russian opera from a variety of musical periods. In the early 1970s Crespin began experiencing vocal difficulties for the first time and ultimately began performing roles from the mezzo-soprano repertoire. Throughout her career she was widely admired for the elegance, warmth and subtlety of her singing, especially in the French and German operatic repertories.
Angelika Kirchschlager is an Austrian mezzo-soprano opera and lieder singer.
Adrianne Pieczonka, OC is a Canadian operatic soprano singer.
Irina Petrovna Bogacheva was a Russian mezzo-soprano at the Mariinsky Theatre and a professor of voice at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. Trained in Leningrad and at La Scala in Milan, she performed leading roles of the Russian and Italian repertoire at major international opera houses. Dmitri Shostakovich composed his Six Poems by Marina Tsvetayeva for her.
Jennifer Larmore is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer, particularly noted for her performances in coloratura and bel canto roles which she has performed in the world's major opera houses. She has been a professor at the Music College of Seoul National University since March 2021.
Ermonela Jaho is an Albanian operatic soprano. She was described in The Economist as "the world’s most acclaimed soprano". The Financial Times said "Ermonela Jaho throws heart and soul into her singing... Don't even try to resist".
Dragana del Monaco is a Serbian mezzo-soprano opera singer.
Caitlin Hulcup is an Australian mezzo-soprano, who has performed both in Australia and internationally, particularly in Europe.
Laura Alonso Padín, known as Laura Alonso, is a Spanish operatic soprano. She began her career in 1999 when she became a member of the Aalto Theatre in Essen, Germany. She has appeared as a guest artist with major theatres and musical ensembles internationally.
Kay Griffel is an American operatic spinto soprano.
Katarina Esmé Marie Karnéus is a Swedish mezzo-soprano opera singer, winner of the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition, active on many of the opera world's major stages such as the Metropolitan Opera and the Paris Opera, and named Hovsångerska by the King of Sweden in 2018.
Cristina Pasaroiu is a Romanian operatic soprano who has performed leading roles at major European opera houses, with a focus on French repertoire such as Bizet's Micaëla, Massenet's Manon and Gounod's Juliette.
Isabelle Druet is a French operatic coloratura mezzo-soprano who has performed internationally. She began her career as an actress and co-founded a theatre company, La Carotte. She has performed in concert and recorded with the ensemble Le Poème Harmonique. On stage, she has performed at opera houses in Paris, Nancy, Lyon and Düsseldorf, among others.
Sigrid Kehl is a German operatic soprano and mezzo-soprano.
Fatma Said is an Egyptian soprano living in London.
