Singer Maria Malibran was of Spanish descent and lived from 1808 to 1836. During her lifetime she was extremely popular. She was born as the daughter of Spanish composer and singer Manuel del Populo Garcia in Paris on March 24th 1808. Her younger sister was singer and composer
Pauline Viardot-Garcia. Already during her childhood Maria Malibran performed in public in Naples and made her debut at the age of eighteen in London in the role of Rosina in “The Barber of Seville”. Numerous reviews report about her artistry, her wide vocal range, and her immaculate bel canto technique. She mastered a rich repertoire of soprano and alto roles, which had often written expressly for her. When she died at the age of only twenty-eight in consequence of a riding accident, Maria Malibran was considered the best-paid opera singer in Europe. It is reported that Maria Malibran played the piano excellently as well as the harp.
