Diana Damrau (; born 31 May 1971) is a German soprano who achieved international fame for her performances, primarily in opera, but also in concert and lieder. She has been successful in coloratura soprano roles since her early career, and gradually proceeded into heavier roles 19th-century Italian bel canto repertoire. Her signature roles include the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute, Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor, and Violetta in La traviata. Educated at the Hochschule für Musik Würzburg, she had been engaged at the opera companies in Würzburg, Mannheim, and Frankfurt. Since beginning her freelance career in 2002, she has been performing on leading stages frequently, such as the Bavarian State Opera, Vienna State Opera, and Metropolitan Opera, where she appeared in consecutive 12 seasons since her debut in 2005/06. She also leads concert performances with French bass-baritone Nicholas Testé, whom she married in 2010. Damrau has recorded dozens of opera and lieder recital albums since signing to EMI/Virgin Classics (absorbed into Warner/Erato Records in 2013). She was invested as Bavarian Kammersängerin and has been awarded the Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art and the Bavarian Order of Merit. Early life Damrau was born in Günzburg, Bavaria on 31 May 1971. She was inspired to become an opera singer after watching Zeffirelli's 1983 film of La traviata, which featured Plácido Domingo and Teresa Stratas. She began her operatic studies with at the Hochschule für Musik Würzburg. During her studies, she developed an edema on a vocal cord. After consulting with several doctors, she decided to undergo an alternative therapy without surgery. The treatment lasted about one and a half years. After graduating from music conservatory she worked in Salzburg with Hanna Ludwig. Career Early career, debuts, coloratura soprano roles Damrau made her operatic debut in 1995 as Barbarina in The Marriage of Figaro at the Mainfranken Theater Würzburg. In the next two years, she was engaged at the same theatre, featuring as Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, and then as the Queen of the Night in Mozart's The Magic Flute, her debut in that role, and in the world premiere of Salieri's Cublai, gran kan de' Tartari (1998). Next, she performed with the Mannheim National Theatre and Oper Frankfurt for two years each. She made her Bavarian State Opera debut in 1999 with Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, and her Vienna