Ubiquitous on record from the 1950s to the 21st century, Stockholm-born Nicolai
Gedda was praised for the eloquence and purity of his bel canto voice in a
career that lasted well into his seventies. Known for his technical mastery and
fluid lightness, he appeared 367 times at the New York Metropolitan Opera and
sang in some of the world's great opera houses including London's Royal Opera
House, Covent Garden, and La Scala in Milan.
Raised in Germany after his unwed mother, Clary, married Russian-born singer
Michail Ustinoff, who became choirmaster at a church in Leipzig, Gedda...