Turkish opera diva Leyla Gencer dies at 79

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2008

ISTANBUL (AFP) — Turkish soprano Leyla Gencer, one of the greatest opera singers of the 20th century, has died of heart failure in Italy at the age of 79, a Turkish arts foundation announced Saturday.

Born in Istanbul in October 1928, Gencer won international recognition after her debut in 1957 at La Scala theatre in Milan as Madame Lidoine in the world premiere of Poulenc's "Les Dialogues des Carmelites".

Known as "La Diva Turca," she performed at La Scala and other leading world theatres until 1985, accumulating a repertoire of more than 70 roles, notably the great heroines of Donizetti.

She was the artistic director of La Scala Singing Academy when she passed away Friday in her home in Milan.

"With Leyla Gencer, last queen, an era in the history...