Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Luisa Tetrazzini (June 29, 1871 April 28, 1940) was an Italian coloratura soprano of great international fame. Tetrazzini's voice was remarkable for its phenomenal flexibility, thrust, steadiness and thrilling tone. She enjoyed a highly successful operatic and concert career in Europe and America from the 1890s through to the 1920s, but her final years were marred by poverty and ill-health. Tetrazzini was born in Florence, the daughter of a military tailor. Reportedly, she began singing at the age of three. Her first voice teacher was her elder sister, Eva Tetrazzini (1862 1938), who also was a successful singer. Tetrazzini later studied at the Istituto Musicale in Florence. According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera (second edition, 1980), she made her operatic debut in Florence in 1890.