Opera Singer. A soprano of massive repertory, she is perhaps best remembered for her Wagnerian interpretations as well as for her portrayal of Bellini's "Norma". Born Elisabeth Maria Lehmann, she was the child of two opera singer parents and was drawn to the stage early; after training in Prague, she made her 1865 operatic bow there with a small role in Mozart's "The Magic Flute". She eventually graduated to the same work's Pamina before making her 1869 Berlin operatic debut as Marguerite de Valois in Giacomo Meyerbeer's "Les Huguenots". After becoming quite popular in Berlin over the next several years, she was first heard at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus as Woglinde, Helmwige, and the Woodbird in 1876's first complete staging of "The Ring". Designated Kammersangerin (KS) in 1876, Lilli made her 1880 London bow at Her Majesty's Theatre as Violetta in Verdi's "La Traviata", while also earning praise as Philine from Ambrose Thomas' "Mignon"; she first appeared in Vienna in 1882 and bowed at Covent Garden in 1884 as the title lead of Wagner's "Tristan und Isolde", also portraying Elisabeth from the same composer's "Tannhauser" that same season. She made her 1885 Metropolitan Opera debut as the title 'cigarette girl' of Bizet's "Carmen", during her first season also singing Brunnhilde in "Die Walkure", Marguerite from Gounod's "Faust", and Sulamith of Karl Goldmark's "The Queen of Sheba". Over the next few years Lilli was heard in a variety of parts, though her principal contribution was in bringing Wagner to New York audiences; after singing the 1889 first American staging of the full "Ring" she returned to Berlin and continued to be seen there as well as at Covent Garden, Bayreuth, and elswhere as all of the Wagnerian soprano leads, Donna Anna from Mozart's "Don Giovanni, and the title Druid Priestess of Vincenzo Bellini's "Norma". Heard in opera as late as late as 1909 in Vienna, she made a number of Salzburg Festival appearances and gave recitals until around 1920; over her career she sang roughly 170 roles from about 120 operas. A respected voice teacher from around 1890 on, she numbered distinguished sopranos Olive Fremstad and Geraldine Farrar among her students and also published a well received text with the prosaic title of "How to Sing". When in her late 50s, Lilli cut a number of records which, while not capturing her voice in its prime, are nevertheless valued as historic documents. She lived out her days in Berlin.