Frederica von Stade

Frederica von Stade (born June 1, 1945) is an American singer. Since her debut in New York in 1970, she has performed in operas, musicals, concerts and recitals in venues throughout the world, including the Met, La Scala, the Opéra de Paris, the Vienna State Opera, the Salzburger Festspielhaus, Covent Garden, Glyndebourne and Carnegie Hall. Conductors with whom she has appeared include Abbado, Bernstein, Giulini, Karajan and Solti. She has also been a prolific and eclectic recording artist, and has made many appearances on television. A high, lyric mezzo-soprano able to sing music more usually undertaken by sopranos, she is especially associated with the bel canto and French repertoires and with contemporary American music, particularly the works of Jake Heggie. Among her signature roles are Penelope, Rosina, Charlotte, Cendrillon and Mélisande, and, in trousers, Cherubino, Hänsel and Octavian. Her divorce from her first husband, Peter Elkus, was important in the development of American matrimonial case law, helping to establish the principle that the economic value of a performer's career and celebrity status could be marital property subject to equitable distribution.