Amina — La sonnambula

Nothing seemed further from Callas the tragedienne than Amina, Bellini's innocent sleepwalking village girl. That is precisely why her Sonnambula astonished: she made fragility itself into an art.

The La Scala production of March 1955, staged by Luchino Visconti and conducted by Leonard Bernstein, presented her as a figure from a romantic lithograph — a ballerina-like apparition, singing music of impossible delicacy. The production travelled with her: the performances in Cologne (1957) and at the Edinburgh Festival (1957) survive in live recordings treasured by collectors as among her most perfect singing.

In "Ah! non credea mirarti", sung over the flowers that died as quickly as love, Callas found a purity of line that silenced those who claimed she was only a dramatic voice. Amina was her proof that the greatest expression can live in the quietest music.

In the Foundation's collection

Photographs and documents of Callas's Sonnambula years are preserved in the Foundation's collection. Explore the collection · Licensing

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