Lourdes Ambriz | |
|---|---|
 Ambriz in 2016 | |
| Born | (1958-07-20)20 July 1958 Mexico City, Mexico |
| Died | 28 August 2025(2025-08-28) (aged 67) Mexico City, Mexico |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1982–2024 |
Lourdes Ambriz Márquez (20 July 1958 – 28 August 2025) was a Mexican operatic soprano and opera manager. She was a leading singer of the nationalÓpera de Bellas Artes de México, and was the company's deputy artistic director from 2015 to 2017. Her work in opera spanned four decades, with a repertoire ranging from classical to contemporary, portraying manyMozart roles. She performed as a guest on stages in Europe and the Americas.
Her stage debut in Mexico took place in 1982, as Olympia in Offenbach'sThe Tales of Hoffmann. Ambriz made her European debut in Spain almost a decade later, creating the title role inArrieta'sMarina in 1991. She became more widely known for her singing role asBelle in the original Spanish-language Disney filmBeauty and the Beast.
Throughout her career, Ambriz was dedicated to performing and recording works byMexican composers. She later also worked as a professor atPanamerican University[1] and helped assistpublic outreach efforts to expose new audiences in Mexico to opera for the first time.
Lourdes Ambriz was born in Mexico City on 20 July 1958.[2][a] She took part in the 1980 Concurso Nacional de Canto Carlo Morell, achieving 4th place.[4] She first appeared in June 1980 in a concert version of Verdi'sDon Carlos with theOrquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Mexico, as Tebaldo and Voice from Heaven alongsideRoberto Bañuelas [es],Malcolm Smith , andEva Dobrowska.[4] She performed beginner's roles such as the First Boy in Mozart'sDie Zauberflöte and the Page in Verdi'sRigoletto.[4]
She made her professional stage debut with the National Opera Company of theInstituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura (INBAL) in 1982 with the role of Olympia in Offenbach'sThe Tales of Hoffmann, conducted byEnrique Diemecke.[4] Her voice was described as crystal.[2] She performed as Gretel in Humperdinck'sHänsel und Gretel, Suor Genovieffa in Puccini'sSuor Angelica, Nannetta in Verdi'sFalstaff , and Oscar in Verdi'sUn ballo in maschera.[4] In 1985, she portrayed Najade in the Mexican premiere ofAriadne auf Naxos by R. Strauss, conducted byEduardo Mata. She performed the title role of Gounod'sRoméo et Juliette in 1987, as part of the Festival Cultural Sinaloa at the Teatro Pablo ofVillavicencio, Colombia. She appeared as Zerlina in Mozart'sDon Giovanni for the opening of the 1991/92 season at the Palacio de Bellas Artes. She performed as a guest at theTeatro Degollado in Guadalajara as both Despina in Mozart'sCosì fan tutte and as Musetta in Puccini'sLa Bohème. She repeated Zerlina at the 1997Festival Internacional Cervantino in Guanajuato.[4]
She also appeared as Euridice in Gluck'sOrfeo ed Euridice and as El trujamán in de Falla'sEl retablo de maese Pedro.[4] Her roles included Pamina inDie Zauberflöte, Susanna in Mozart'sLe nozze di Figaro, Servilia in Mozart'sLa clemenza di Tito, Leila in Bizet'sLes pêcheurs de perles, Micaëla in Bizet'sCarmen, Gilda in Verdi'sRigoletto, Lauretta in Puccini'sGianni Schicchi , and Miss Jessel in Britten'sThe Turn of the Screw. Her partners on stage includedFrancisco Araiza,Alfredo Daza [de],Justino Díaz,Plácido Domingo,Fernando de la Mora,Ramón Vargas , andRolando Villazón.[4]
Ambriz performed with a number of the orchestras in Mexico and also sang with theSaint Paul Chamber Orchestra, theDallas Symphony, theSan Francisco Symphony, the National Centre for the Arts Orchestra of Canada, theSimón Bolívar Orchestra of Venezuela and the GermanDeutsche Kammerakademie.[5]
In 1990 she toured Spain with the group of soloists from Mexico directed byEduardo Mata. The same year she dubbed the songs from Disney'sBeauty and the Beast (1991) as the singing voice[b] of the characterBelle.[6] The following year she made her operatic debut in Europe singing the title role ofEmilio Arrieta'sMarina [es] at the Málaga Opera.[2] In 1992 she toured twelve European countries. In 1993 she was invited to represent Mexico at theEuropalia festival in Brussels.[2] Also in 1993, she toured South America. In 1995, she toured the United States with the early music group Ars Nova.[7]
In 2003 she portrayed Woglinde in the Mexican premiere of Wagner'sDas Rheingold, adding in 2003 and 2006 the role of Ortlinde inDie Walküre.[4]
In 2010 Ambriz sang the role of Eupaforice in the staging of Graun's operaMontezuma, which debuted in Germany. It was presented there by the Teatro de Ciertos Habitantes Company under the musical direction of Gabriel Garrido and the stage direction of Claudio Valdés Kuri.[4] Her performance as Eupaforice in the Spanish premiere at the Teatro Real in Madrid was widely acclaimed, with Roberto Herrscher calling Ambriz the "best singer" in the entire production, "a soprano of superb talents".[8] She premiered the operasAura byMario Lavista,Víctor Rasgado'sEl coyote y el conejo andPaso del Norte,Dunaxii by Roberto Morales,Malinalli by Manuel Henríquez Romero andThe Seventh Seed byHilda Paredes.[2][9]
In 2014 she became deputy artistic director of the Compañía Nacional de Ópera. From 2015 to 2017 she was artistic director of the Ópera de Bellas Artes de México.[2]
In 2021 she would provide the voice of the Siren in the seriesFrankelda's Book of Spooks, produced by her nephews Roy and Arturo Ambriz. She reprised the role in its 2025 film prequelI Am Frankelda.
Ambriz died on 28 August 2025 in a Mexico City hospital, aged 67.[2] Media reported the cause as cancer.[10] The Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes y Literatura publicly confirmed her death on its social channels.[11]
Ambriz won twice in the Carlo Morelli Competition, first in 1980, followed by the second in 1981. She received the National Youth Award and the diploma of the Mexican Union of Theater and Music Chroniclers in 1987.[2] Ambriz was awarded theMozart Medal by theAustrian Embassy in Mexico in 2006.[2][12] She received the Alfonso Ortiz Tirado Medal in 2023,[13] followed by the Bellas Artes Medal in 2024, one of the highest honors in the arts in Mexico.[14]
Upon her death, Mexican flautistHoracio Franco described Ambriz as one of the greatest opera singers inMexico's history, next toÁngela Peralta,Fanny Anitúa, andIrma González.[15] Ambriz was also known as an accomplished actress, with journalist Raúl Díaz reviewing her acting skills favorably after seeing her perform in Mozart'sBastien und Bastienne.[16] Notable roles include Olympia inThe Tales of Hoffmann, Susanna in Mozart'sLe nozze di Figaro, Gilda in Verdi'sRigoletto, Pamina in Mozart'sDie Zauberflöte, Juliette in Gounod'sRoméo et Juliette, and Gretel in Humperdick'sHansel and Gretel.[17]
Ambriz was devoted to performing and recording the music ofMexican composers throughout her long career.[18] Her performance onMisa Mexicana (2009), an album ofliturgical music by Mexican composerJesús Echevarría, is rooted in the Europeanbaroque tradition, but also fuses together with and evokes traditionalMexican styles of music such ashuapango andson mexicano.[19] Music criticJuan Arturo Brennan estimates that Ambriz recorded and promoted works from at least 19[c] composers in Mexico.[18]
Ambriz was involved in public outreach to the broader music community in Mexico, especially to new opera listeners. She wrote a minimalistopera adaptation ofThe Elixir of Love byGaetano Donizetti as part of the "Tell Me an Opera!" (¡Cuéntame una Ópera!) project, a national tour exposing audiences throughout her country to opera for the first time.[20]
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