Lourdes Ambriz has passed away at 64.
The Mexican soprano was the singing voice of Belle in Disney’s 1991 Spanish version of “Beauty and the Beast.”
The National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature (INBAL) announced the heartbreaking news on its social media last month.
“The National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature deeply regrets the passing of soprano Lourdes Ambriz, a key figure in Mexican lyric poetry renowned for her extensive repertoire spanning opera, oratorio, chamber, Renaissance, and contemporary music,” the translated Facebook post read.
“With an international career spanning more than four decades, she performed on stages in Europe, the Americas, Africa, and the Middle East. She was a member of the artistic group Cantantes Solistas de Bellas Artes and received the 2023 Bellas Artes Medal in Music, the highest distinction awarded by this institution in recognition of her career and contributions to music.”
“We express our deepest condolences to her family, colleagues, and the artistic community for this irreparable loss,” it concluded.
Ambriz died on August 28, with local media reporting she passed due to cancer; however, her official cause of death is not immediately known.
The late performer was also a soloist with the Dallas and San Francisco orchestras, the Arditti Quartet, the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Canada, the Deutsche Kammerakademie, the Simón Bolívar Orchestra of Venezuela and the Prague Opera.
Ambriz taught singing at the School of Fine Arts at the Universidad Panamericana, and in 2014, she became Artistic Deputy Director of the Compañía Nacional de Ópera.
Ambriz also served as the Artistic Director of the Bellas Artes Opera from 2015 to 2017.
The star was born in Mexico City on July 20, 1958.
She landed her first professional gig in 1982 with the Compañía Nacional de Ópera del Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes (INBA).
Ambriz made her on stage debut as Olympia in Jacques Offenbach’s “The Tales of Hoffmann.”
After portraying the singing voice of Belle in 1991’s “Beauty and the Beast,” the role gained her popularity across Latin America.
That same year, Ambriz debuted as Marina in Spain at the Málaga Opera. Two years later, she represented Mexico at the 1993 Europalia Festival in Brussels. She also toured with the music ensemble Ars Nova.
In 2010 Ambriz performed as Eupaforice in Carl Heinrich Graun’s “Montezuma.” The opera debuted in Germany, then Scotland, Spain, and Mexico.
Her career also earned her many high accolades.
Along with the 2023 Bellas Artes Medal, Ambriz took home the National Youth Award in 1987, the Mozart Medal in 2006, and the Alfonso Ortiz Tirado Medal in 2023.