Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (9 December 1915 – 3 August 2006)

I hardly know what to say now that Elisabeth Schwarzkopf has died. She was for me simply the personification of opera, the person who brought me to it and taught me that in art the deepest emotions come from opera.

Two of her recordings made the Gramophone 100 all time greatest recordings list: Strauss "Four Last Songs" and Der Rosenkavalier. I have written about her often, but this is probably the best.