About Leyla Gencer
Leyla Gencer (Turkish pronunciation: [lejˈla ɟenˈdʒeɾ], née Çeyrekgil; 10 October 1928 – 10 May 2008) also known as La Diva Turca was a Turkish operatic soprano. Gencer was a notable bel canto soprano who spent most of her career in Italy, from the early 1950s through the mid-1980s, and had a repertoire encompassing more than seventy roles. She made very few commercial recordings; however, numerous bootleg recordings of her performances exist. She was particularly associated with the heroines of Donizetti. Throughout her career, Gencer was particularly well known for her Donizetti, including Belisario, Poliuto, Anna Bolena, Lucrezia Borgia, Maria Stuarda and Caterina Cornaro.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.