Rita Hunter

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Rita Hunter (August 15, 1933 – April 29, 2001) was a British operatic dramatic soprano,

She was born in Wallasey,Merseyside. She studied at Liverpool.

Rita Hunter will be remembered as one of the major Wagnerian sopranos of the later 20th century, especially for her performances as Brünnhilde in the Ring cycle conducted by Reginald Goodall at the English National Opera. In this production she was partnered by Alberto Remedios, who had studied singing at the same time as Hunter in Liverpool with Edwin Francis, as Siegfried, and Norman Bailey as Wotan. The recordings based on this production, with the same artists, are regarded as amongst the finest available, even though they are sung, in accordance with ENO traditions, in English.

Amongst Hunter's other teachers was Dame Eva Turner. After touring with the Carl Rosa opera company in the 1950s, she joined the chorus of Sadlers Wells Opera, and later had a variety of roles with them.

In the Glen Byam Shaw Ring production, the quality of Hunter's singing and interpretation enabled audiences to set aside her outsize stature (which conformed to all prejudices about Wagnerian sopranos), and few have matched her conviction as Brunnhilde. She made her 1972 debut at the Metropolitan Opera in Die Walkure with great success (conductor Giulini, Birgit Nilsson as Sieglinde).

She also performed, in Wagner and other operas, in Munich, Seattle, New Orleans, San Francisco, and with the Welsh National Opera. In a memorable San Francisco season, she did the roles of Norma and Sieglinde in the same week.

In 1980 she was awarded a CBE.

In 1981 she moved to Sydney and joined the Australian Opera. In 1986 she published her memoirs, Wait till the sun shines, Nellie. She died in Sydney.