Cristina Lourdes Gallardo-Domâs Tudezca is a

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

, born in

Santiago, Chile Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital (political), capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated Regions of Chile, region, t ...

, who frequently performs in operas by

Puccini Giacomo Puccini (Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long lin ...

. Gallardo-Domâs made her debut as

Madama Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther ...

in 1990 at the

Municipal Theatre of Santiago The Teatro Municipal, National Opera of Chile is the most important stage theatre and opera house in Santiago, Chile. History and overview The Chilean government ceded a significant parcel of land in downtown Santiago to the municipality, in 184 ...

and, three years later, began performing in

opera house An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venues are constructed specifically for o ...

s in Europe, making her

La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

debut in 1993 in ''

La Rondine ''La rondine'' (''The Swallow'') is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Giuseppe Adami, based on a libretto by Alfred Maria Willner and . It was first performed at the Grand Théâtre de Monte Carlo (or the Théâtr ...

''. Gallardo-Domâs' many

performances include: '' Turandot'' and ''Madama Butterfly'' at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

, Vienna State Opera, and

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

; '' La bohème'' at the

, La Scala, and Paris Opéra; ''

Manon Lescaut ''The Story of the Chevalier des Grieux and Manon Lescaut'' ( ) is a novel by Antoine François Prévost. Published in 1731, it is the seventh and final volume of ''Mémoires et aventures d'un homme de qualité'' (''Memoirs and Adventures of a Ma ...

'' at the Zurich Opera and

Los Angeles Opera The Los Angeles Opera is an American opera company in Los Angeles, California. It is the fourth-largest opera company in the United States. The company's home base is the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, part of the Los Angeles Music Center. Leadersh ...

; ''

Simon Boccanegra ''Simon Boccanegra'' () is an opera with a prologue and three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play ''Simón Bocanegra'' (1843) by Antonio García Gutiérrez, whose play ''El trovador'' had been ...

'' (by Verdi) at Vienna State Opera, Bavarian State Opera, and the

Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...

in Valencia; and '' Suor Angelica'' at Amsterdam's Concertgebouw and Teatro Colón. Gallardo-Domâs is known for her Madama Butterfly and was featured in the heavily promoted new production of this work that opened the 2006/2007 season at the Metropolitan Opera and marked the beginning of Peter Gelb's tenure as General Manager of the Met. According to her websit

she was personally chosen by the director, Anthony Minghella, for this role, having successfully performed it previously at the Royal Opera. In 2010 Gallardo-Domâs created the role of Matilde Neruda in the Los Angeles world premiere of Daniel Catán's Il Postino. Gallardo-Domâs received a degree with honors in music from the in Santiago with Prof. Ahlke Scheffelt and also studied at the Juilliard School in New York. She has been recognized with top cultural honors in Chile: the

Gabriela Mistral Award The Premio Gabriela Mistral (Premio Interamericano de Cultura "Gabriela Mistral" or Gabriela Mistral Inter-American Prize for Culture) was an award made by the Organization of American States. It was created in 1979 in memory of the Nobel laureate ...

and the Gran Cruz Apostol Santiago. She has also won top prizes in singing competitions. Gallardo-Domâs lives in the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

, Spain, with her husband, a Spanish lawyer, and her two children.

External links

Official website and discography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gallardo-Domas, Cristina Living people Singers from Santiago Chilean operatic sopranos Juilliard School alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Prize-winners of the Queen Elisabeth Competition Chilean people of French descent 20th-century women opera singers 21st-century women opera singers Chilean expatriates in Spain 21st-century Chilean women singers 20th-century Chilean women singers