11 Facts About Cristina Deutekom

Cristina Deutekom was a Dutch operatic dramatic coloratura soprano.

Cristina Deutekom sang with many of the leading tenors of her time, including Carlo Bergonzi, Jose Carreras, Franco Corelli, Placido Domingo, Nicolai Gedda, Alfredo Kraus, Mario del Monaco, Luciano Pavarotti, and Richard Tucker.

Cristina Deutekom studied at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam with Coby Riemersma and Felix Hupka.

Cristina Deutekom then went on to conquer the major opera houses in succession with the Queen of the Night.

Cristina Deutekom sang the great bel canto roles, specifically in Rossini's Armida, in Bellini's Norma and I puritani, and in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor.

Cristina Deutekom went on to the great dramatic Verdi roles including Abigaile in Nabucco, Lady Macbeth, Leonora in Il trovatore, Amelia in Un ballo in maschera, and Elena in I vespri siciliani.

Cristina Deutekom decided to end her stage career on the last day of 1986, after having heart problems during a performance of the opera Amaya in Bilbao.

Cristina Deutekom made a return in November 1996 at the Concertgebouw, at the age of 65 singing the Bolero from I vespri siciliani and Anna Elisa's aria "Liebe, du Himmel auf Erden" from the operetta Paganini, reportedly "bringing the house down".

For fast coloratura passages, Cristina Deutekom developed a glottal-stop technique, sometimes called glottal staccato.

Cristina Deutekom married Jacob "Jaap" Deutekom, a boxer, in 1952 and they had a daughter, Irma, born in 1955.

Cristina Deutekom died on 7 August 2014 after a fall in her home.