Christina Nilsson

Possessed of a pure and brilliant voice (B3-F6), first three then two and a half octaves trained in the bel canto technique, and noted for her graceful appearance and stage presence, she enjoyed a twenty-year career as a top-rank international singer before her 1888 retirement. A contemporary of one of the Victorian era's most famous divas, Adelina Patti, the two were often compared by reviewers and audiences, and were sometimes believed to be rivals. Nilsson became a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music in 1869.