The daughter of a stage director at Covent Garden and the Metropolitan Opera, Claudia Muzio (1889–1936) was one of the most celebrated dramatic sopranos of the century. Following her early successes in Italy, South America and England, Muzio went to the United States where she joined the Metropolitan Opera in 1916. Six years later she became a member of the Chicago Opera, before returning to Italy in 1934. Dubbed the ‘Dust of song’, Muzio epitomised the heightened expressivity of verismo singing. The Edison recordings, made between 1920–25, captured ‘the divine Muzio’ in her prime, and include arias from Verdi’s Il Trovatore, La Forza del Destino and I Vespri Siciliani, Puccini’s La Bohème, Bizet’s Carmen, and operas by Leoncavallo, Mascagni and Boito. Also included in this 2-CD set are Muzio’s first recordings, made in 1911, for the Gramophone Company in Milan.