Della Jones

Della Jones, a Welsh mezzo-soprano born in Neath on 13 April 1946, belongs to the generation of British singers who brought the operatic repertoire of the mid- and late twentieth century to wider attention. She trained in London and Geneva, where she made her debut in 1970 as Fyodor in Boris Godunov.

From that first performance she widened her repertoire with Olga in Eugene Onegin and the Schoolboy in Lulu. In 1977 she joined the English National Opera, where she tackled roles as varied as Cherubino, Dorabella, Rosina, Cenerentola and Isabella in L'italiana in Algeri, and where she created the role of Dolly in Hamilton's Anna Karenina, first performed in 1981. With the Scottish Opera she sang Hänsel and Donna Elvira, and with the Welsh National Opera, Berlioz's Dido, Herodias and Handel's Ariodante.

Her Covent Garden debut took place in 1983 as the Cat in L'enfant et les sortilèges. Her repertoire also included Purcell's Dido, Zerlina, Agrippina and Gluck's Armide, performed at Versailles in 1992. Her recordings span several operas and oratorios by Handel, as well as titles by Mozart and Maxwell Davies.

Critics have praised her wide vocal range, notable coloratura and strong dramatic ability, qualities that explain the variety of her career across British and European theatres.