Montserrat Caballé

Montserrat Caballé's career, which began with a legendary lucky break, would eventually make her one of Spain's greatest sopranos -- equaled in status and reputation only by fellow Barcelonian Victoria de los Angeles. Her full birth name was Maria de Montserrat Viviana Concepción Caballé i Folch. She was named after the famous Catalan monastery of Montserrat. It is said that her parents feared that they would lose her and vowed that if she were born alive and well they would christen her with the monastery's name. She learned singing at her convent school; at the age of eight...