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Late Singer Merrill Expanded Opera's Audience

By Jeffrey Freymann-Weyr

Published October 25, 2004 at 11:00 PM CDT

Opera singer Robert Merrill died this weekend, at his home in New Rochelle, New York. The baritone sang with the Metropolitan Opera for over 30 years. He also helped introduce opera to a wider audience, with regular appearances on talk shows, and at Yankee Stadium, singing the national anthem. NPR's Jeffrey Freymann-Weyr has an appreciation.

Jeffrey Freymann-Weyr

Jeffrey Freymann-Weyr (pronounced "FRIME n WIRE") is a producer and editor for NPR's Arts Information unit, primarily dealing with the subjects of classical music and digital technology. Along with David Schulman, he co-produced the occasional series Musicians In Their Own Words." Their profile of Ladysmith Black Mambazos Joseph Shabalala won a Silver Award at the 2004 Third Coast International Audio Festival.