Grace Bumbry was the first black Venus in Bayreuth's "Tannhäuser" In addition to Eboli and Amneris in Verdi's "Aida", she sang Puccini's Tosca, Strauss' Salome. She was trained as a mezzo-soprano, including in Boston, but her voice pushed her way up into the soprano region.
In 1997 she announced her departure from the stage – only to celebrate her spectacular comeback in Paris in 2010.