Biography:

Ana María Beruete Iriarte ( Madrid , January 23, 1927 – Madrid, February 4, 2025, Picassent) 1 was a Spanish mezzo-soprano lyrical singer 2 who achieved significant success in the 1950s . In 2006 , she created the foundation that bears her name, with the aim of promoting the dissemination of unpublished works of both Spanish and international music. 3

Path

She grew up in a family where music was an important part of her life, as two of her brothers were singers, two others were instrumentalists, and her mother was a pianist. She began her elementary education at the German School in Madrid and her singing studies at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid with José Luis Lloret, Lola Rodríguez Aragón and Ramona Nieto. After completing her studies, she moved to Vienna to perfect her style in the disciplines of oratorio, opera, and lied with Radó, Reichert, and Werba . Later, in Milan , she received classes from Elvira de Hidalgo , Mercedes Llopart , and Carmen Melis, and in Paris from Pierre Bernac .

She began performing lyric soprano roles in Puccini operas such as Madama Butterfly . Her professional debut was at the age of eighteen, on 4 December 1945, at the Teatro Apolo in Valencia with El soñador by Salvador Giner Vidal , which had not been performed since its premiere in 1901, alongside baritone Juan Gual and bass Aníbal Vela . The great success came two months later, with her outstanding interpretation of Amneris in the opera Aida at the Teatro Principal in the same city. On this occasion, she shared the stage with María Clara Alcalá, Cristóbal Altube, Pablo Vidal and Aníbal Vela . Her performance was highly applauded, especially during the duet in the third act and the trial scene. Later, she played the roles of Charlotte in Werther , Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana and debuted the lead role of Carmen , works with which she also achieved great success in Bilbao . She also had a notable participation in the opera Tosca , alongside Esteban Leoz. In 1946, she made her debut in Madrid with the role of Leonora in the opera La Favorita alongside tenor Mario Filippeschi, which drew great applause. Her interpretation of Cecilia, from the opera Las Golondrinas , alongside baritone Raimundo Torres (Puck) and soprano Celia Langa (Lina) was well received by critics who praised her voice, presence, naturalness, temperament and precision. Later, she participated in several concerts with the Madrid Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of Ataúlfo Argenta . In 1949, she premiered the zarzuela La Duquesa del Candil , by composer Jesús García Leoz , at the Teatro Madrid , accompanied by Matilde Vázquez , Manuel Ausensi and Manuel Gas .

In 1951 she took part in the Madrid performances of zarzuela at the Teatro Español , a series of events that included three concerts and three performances of works of the genre chico. In these performances, she played the roles of Casta in La Verbena de la Paloma , Manuela in Agua, Azucarillos y Aguardiente and Mari-Pepa in La Revoltosa . That same year , she inaugurated the First Festival of Music and Dance of Granada with the National Orchestra of Spain under the direction of Ataulfo ​​Argenta and then toured France, Belgium and Switzerland. In addition, she performed at the Royal Festival Hall with the London Philharmonic Orchestra . In the field of contemporary opera, she participated in the world premiere of Don Perlimplín , an opera by the composer Vittorio Rieti based on the work of Federico García Lorca , presented at the Siglo  XX Festival in Paris. Over the next few years, she sang The Fable of Orpheus in Vienna , accompanied by ancient instruments, as well as Igor Stravinsky ‘s Cantata and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 .

In those years she was considered the youngest mezzo-soprano in the world and in 1956, the director José Tamayo chose her to play the role of Beltrana in the zarzuela Doña Francisquita with which the centenary was commemorated and the Teatro de la Zarzuela was reopened , alternating the role with Inés Rivadeneira , while the role of Francisquita was played by Ana María Olaria and Lina Huarte and that of Fernando was played by the tenors Alfredo Kraus , Carlos Munguía and Agustín Godoy. 8 Shortly after, this zarzuela was performed, with the libretto translated into German, at the Volksoper in Vienna where Iriarte again played Beltrana being the only Spanish singer in the cast. During the following four years, she toured the main capitals of France, with the operas Carmen and Sanson and Dalila , consolidating herself as a prominent figure in the operatic and zarzuela repertoire. His recordings of zarzuelas, many of them conducted by Ataúlfo Argenta, are highly valued and considered a reference. 2

In 1960, two years after the death of Ataúlfo Argenta, Iriarte made the decision to retire from the stage for family reasons. Her last performance, when she was thirty-two, took place at the Municipal Theatre of Burdeos , singing the title role of Carmen . Despite her retirement, Iriarte did not abandon the world of singing. In the following years , she dedicated herself to teaching vocal technique and interpretation at her private school, from which singers such as María José Montiel , Ewa Hyla and José García Quijada have emerged. She taught interpretation courses at the Francisco Viñas International Singing Competition and a course on Spanish Lyric Art and Zarzuela at the University of Portland .

In addition to her teaching work, Iriarte created the Ana Maria Iriarte Foundation with the aim of promoting the dissemination of unpublished works of both Spanish and international music. Through this Foundation, she has promoted important musical events and has encouraged the development of young artists through the Ana María Iriarte 2 International Zarzuela Competition , the first edition of which, in 2010, was held in Gijón and had as winners the tenor Andeka Gorrotxategui and the soprano Teresa Vázquez. From the second edition, which was held in 2012, the competition moved to Madrid, to the Escuela Superior de Canto. On this occasion, the first prize went to the tenor Alejandro González del Cerro, the second to the soprano Miren Urbieta and the third to the tenor Javier Alonso. The third edition had as its winner the first prize the soprano Mónica Campaña; of the second, to the tenor Eduardo Aladren and of the third, to the bass Francisco Crespo. 13​ In the fourth and last edition, the first prize went to the tenor Carlos Fidalgo, the second to the soprano Ximena Agurto and the third to the tenor David Barrera. 14

On September 19, 2008, the world premiere of the opera La Celestina took place at the Teatro de la Zarzuela. Joaquín Nin-Culmell composed it based on the drama of Calixto and Melibea written by Fernando de Rojas and was unable to premiere it during his lifetime. It was produced by the Ana María Iriarte Foundation with the collaboration of the Sociedad Estatal de Conmemoraciones Estatales and the theater itself. 15 ​16 ​17​ The artistic direction was in the hands of Iriarte. 18

Acknowledgements

Throughout her career, she received several awards, including the Lucrecia Arana National Singing Prize from the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid. In 1952 she won the National Theatre Prize and that same year she won the Grand Prix du Disque in Paris for her recording, with Ataúlfo Argenta, of El Amor Brujo . In 2013 , she was awarded the Prize of the Society of Performing Artists of Spain (AIE) . On October 15, 2010, the Tertulia Musical Tomás Marco del Casino de Madrid paid tribute to her with the participation of students, friends and colleagues.

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