Wijntje Cornelia van Zanten, born in Dordrecht, August 2, 1855 and died in The Hague, January 10, 1946 was a Dutch opera singer, singing teacher and author.
Van Zanten, who sang both mezzosoprano and alto, also wrote her name as Cornélie or Cornelie and was known among friends as Corry or Kee.
She studied at the conservatory of Cologne, among others, and then continued her studies in Milan under Francesco Lamperti. In September 1875 she made her debut in Turin, singing the role of Leonora in Donizetti's opera La Favorita. In 1879 she left Italy for Germany, where she sang at the opera of Breslau, Kassel and Hamburg. During her German period she also composed a number of songs, including Mijn Moedertaal ("My Mother Tongue") in 1881.
In 1885 she was invited to join the American Opera Company at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. Soon after, she joined the National Opera Company for a lengthy tour of North America in the 1886-1887 season.
Van Zanten ended her singing career in 1895 and accepted a position as senior professor of solo singing at the Amsterdam conservatory, coaching many well-known Dutch singers such as Jos Tijssen, Julia Culp and Tilly Koene.
Joris Vroegop, T2A
