As per the brief biography printed under her portrait "Ina Souez, the new star soprano, was born in Windsor, Colorado, America. In 1928, on the advice of Gatti Casazza, she went to Italy to study voice production with Signor Rodolfo Mele. She has appeared for several seasons at Covent Garden in principal roles, and at the Glyndebourne Mozart Festival (where she is permanently engaged). She has also appeared in Denmark, Germany, and Paris, and has been declared by the leading critics of Europe as the greatest Mozart soprano living. Her Bellini and Verdi have been declared unsurpassable. In Puccini she also excels, and in Ravel and Bizet is considered unequaled."
Ina Souez (1903-1992) was born Ina Rains to a family of Cherokee heritage in Windsor, Colorado. Upon embarking on her career she took her grandmother's last name "Souez". Ina Souez (1903-1992) first studied with the Canadian contralto Florence Hinman and made her debut as Mimi in Ivrea in 1928. At Florence Hinman's urging, she went to Italy in 1931 to study with Sofia del Campo. She starred in roles in Milan and these were soon followed by appearances in London, Paris and Rome. She first sang at Glyndebourne on the second night of the Festival's inauguration in 1934 and went on to become the festival's prima donna. She made her home in London and was the first to commercially record performances of "Don Giovanni" ad "Cosi fan Tutte". Returning to the US at the outbreak of WWII, she enlisted in the Women's Army Corps and subsequently signed up with the Spike Jones band often playing the comedian as members of the band would remove pigeons from her hat while she sang. Retiring after 10 years, she went on to teach voice in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Very good .
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