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Christa Ludwig was one of the most admired mezzos of her generation, with a wide repertoire of both lieder and opera. She brought a fine sense of musicianship as well as drama to her performances. Her roles ranged from Dorabella in Cosi fan Tutte to Brangane in Tnrista und Isolde to Clytemnestra in Elektra, and she also created the role of Claire in Einem's Besuch der alten Dame. Her technique and upper register were solid enough to let her sing the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier and the Dyer's Wife in Die Frau ohne Schatten, parts almost exclusively sung by sopranos, though she did retreat from plans to sing Isolde and Brunhilde. She was also a noted lieder performance, especially of Mahler. Her parents were both singers (tenor Anton Ludwig, who later became a stage director and mezzo Eugenie Ludwig Besalla), and her first vocal studies were with her mother, who also taught her piano, flute, and cello. Her first performances were in 1954, at the age of seventeen, singing operatic a...