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Russian diva Anna Netrebko officially became an Austrian citizen Tuesday in Salzburg, a few days after giving a glorious performance at the city's famous Music Festival.
The Austrian council of ministers decided last week to give the 34-year-old soprano Austrian citizenship without requiring her to pass a test like most common mortals, because of her "particular merits."
The brunette opera singer will also be allowed to retain her Russian citizenship, unlike other foreigners who must renounce their former nationality when they become Austrian.
Netrebko is a real pop star in Austria, a country where classical music is ever-present, even in the pages of tabloid newspapers.
In Salzburg, she just made her mark in a television version of Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro," a year after performing with Mexican tenor Rolando Villazon in a glamourous production of Verdi's "La Traviata." Alongside Villazon and Spain's tenor extraordinaire Placido Domingo, she also sang before thousands of football fans before this year's World Cup final in Berlin.
At a ceremony Tuesday with the governor of Salzburg province Gabi Burgstaller and Festival director Peter Ruzicka, theatre director Otto Schenk praised Netrebko's voice, her acting and her personality.
The Russian star follows in the footsteps of musical greats like Ludwig van Beethoven and Johannes Brahms, both German composers who later became Austrian, Schenk added.
"I am very happy, and I hope I will be a good Austrian," Netrebko said.
Following attacks in the Russian press calling her a defector and traitor earlier this year, the international opera star said she wanted an Austrian passport to be able to travel more easily.
Born in 1971 in Krasnodar to an engineer mother and geologist father, Netrebko studied at Saint Petersburg Conservatory.
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AFPEntertainment-Austria-opera-music-Russia
AFP 011730 GMT 08 06
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