Mario Sereni, who has died aged 87, was an Italian baritone and mainstay of the Metropolitan Opera, New York, for more than a quarter of a century.

Although he had an outstanding voice – smooth, powerful and unforced – his career was overshadowed by the great baritones of his time, such as Ettore Bastianini, Piero Cappuccilli and Leonard Warren. Some blamed bad luck or poor management; others felt that had he been more of a "diva" Sereni might have been better noticed.

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Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/