Elaine Bonazzi

Elaine Bonazzi (born 1936, Endicott, New York) is an American operatic mezzo-soprano who had an active international career from the 1950s through the 1990s. A singer with an unusually broad repertoire that encompassed both classical and contemporary works, she notably created roles in the world premieres of operas by composers Dominick Argento, David Carlson, Carlisle Floyd, Gian Carlo Menotti, Thomas Pasatieri, and Ned Rorem. In the United States she was particularly active with the New York City Opera, the Santa Fe Opera, and the Washington National Opera.

Born in Endicott, New York, Bonazzi earned a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance from the Eastman School of Music in 1951. She then pursued graduate music studies at Hunter College and the Juilliard School, and studied privately with Elda Ercole in New York City. In 1955 she was the contralto soloist in Johann Sebastian Bach's Mass in B minor with the Oratorio Society of New York at Hunter College Auditorium. In 1956 she portrayed Lady Pamela in Daniel Auber's Fra Diavolo with the Hunter College Opera. That same year she portrayed Gertrude Stein in the lauded Off-Broadway production of Virgil Thomson's The Mother of Us All at the Phoenix Theatre.