by Margalit Fox

Licia Albanese, an Italian-born soprano whose veneration by audiences worldwide was copious even by the standards of operatic adulation, died on Friday at her home in Manhattan. She was 105.

Her son, Joseph Gimma, confirmed her death. After making her debut in Europe in the 1930s, Miss Albanese (her name is pronounced LEECH-ya al-buh-NAY-zay) went on to become one of the most admired sopranos of the mid-20th century. She had a long association with the Metropolitan Opera in New York, where she sang in more than 400 productions from 1940 to 1966.

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Source: http://www.nytimes.com/