Jessye Norman, Grammy-winning opera singer, dies aged 74

The American opera singer Jessye Norman has died at the age of 74.

Norman, who was among the small number of black sopranos to reach international fame, was the recipient of a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, a National Medal of Arts and the Legion d’honneur.

Norman was known for the range of her talent. She performed in works by not only Verdi and Wagner, but also Poulenc, Janá?ek, Bartók and other 20th-century composers, as well as pieces by contemporaries such as Duke Ellington.

Born in 1945, she began singing as a child in a gospel choir in the state of Georgia. She made her operatic debut in 1969, and went on to achieve renown in the Seventies.

She performed at the Queen’s 60th birthday celebrations in 1986, as well as the second presidential inaugurations of both Ronald Reagan (in 1985) and Bill Clinton (in 1997).

A family statement expressed pride in both Norman’s “musical achievements” and “her humanitarian endeavours, addressing matters such as hunger, homelessness, youth development, and arts and culture education”.

The Metropolitan Opera, where she first performed in 1983, said in a statement that she was “one of the great sopranos of the past half-century”.

What are your standout memories of Jessye Norman? Which of her performances were the most memorable? Tell us in the comments section below.