CATHY BERBERIAN (Attleboro, Massachusetts, 4.7.1928 – Rome, 6.3.1983), born of Armenian parents, studied classics while learning to dance. She went on to study literature at New York University and stagecraft at Columbia University. After winning a Fulbright Foundation scholarship, she moved to Europe, perfecting her musical studies in Milan with Giorgina Del Vigo, in Paris with M. Freund and furthering her dance training in New York under the direction of La Mari. She was an intense concert performer, initially focusing on the classical repertoire. Early on she showed a willingness to experiment with the most diverse techniques of modern and contemporary vocal music. Her talents as a performer, combined with her vocal abilities, were a source of inspiration for the most important composers of the twentieth century who often dedicated their creations to her: Bussotti, Maderna, Pousseur, Milhaud, Stravinsky and, of course, Luciano Berio, whose wife she was from 1950 to 1966. She was mainly active in two areas: on the one hand, her theatrical, recording and concert activity – involving, among other things, the rediscovery of early music, especially the work of Monteverdi – and, on the other, her frequent appearances in real ‘concert shows’, most often with the collaboration of other famous musicians, including Berio, Bruno Maderna and Bruno Canino. She also tried her hand at composition: in 1966 she created ‘Stripsody’, a divertissement for solo voice commissioned by Bremen Radio and published by Peters. She was also a teacher, offering workshops and courses in Cologne, Vancouver, Toronto, Wiesbaden, Milan, Freiburg, Liege, Basel, etc. She has published numerous articles and essays in specialized journals. She has received several prestigious awards, including the Grammy Award (1971, 1973 and 1974) and the Grand Prix du Disque.