Born Anna Maria Felbermayer-Szekely in
Vienna to a family of craftsmen, she attended a
Handelsschule. She studied piano and voice privately, then at the
Wiener Musikakademie, with E. Rado, P. Mark-Neusser and J. Witt, graduating in 1949. She was awarded the Cebotari-Preis in Vienna, and was a winner at international competitions in
Geneva and
Verviers. She made her debut on the opera stage in 1950 at the
Vienna State Opera, which then played at the
Theater an der Wien, as a servant in Flotow's
Martha. The lyric soprano was a member of the ensemble until 1982, and appeared with the company in 54 roles in 979 performances, including Mozart's
Le nozze di Figaro, in which she appeared as Barbarina and Susanna, and many operas by
Richard Strauss. Felbermayer performed in Vienna in 1950 in Cherubini's
Les deux journées with the Niederösterreichisches Tonkünstlerorchester, conducted by H. Täubler. She worked in Mozart's
Figaro with both
Erich Kleiber, and with
Karl Böhm in 1957 at the
Salzburg Festival, where she also appeared in Mozart's
Idomeneo. In Vienna, she performed as Nanette in a 1960 new production of Lortzing's
Der Wildschütz, and as Sandmännchen and Taumännchen in Humperdinck's
Hänsel und Gretel. She appeared in many operas by Strauss, including as Echo in
Ariadne auf Naxos, as Zdenka in
Arabella, and in
Intermezzo in 1963. Felbermayer created the role of Xanthe in the posthumous premiere of his
Die Liebe der Danae conducted by
Clemens Krauss at the 1952 Salzburg Festival. She appeared at the Vienna State Opera in 1970 in his
Die ägyptische Helena, a performance that was recorded. She performed the role of Blanchefleur in a
concert performance of Kienzl's
Der Kuhreigen, and was Lucy in Weill's
Die Dreigroschenoper. Felbermayer also sang regularly at
La Scala,
La Monnaie,
Liceu, the
Graz Opera, and at the
Salzburg Festival, where she appeared from 1952 almost every year. She appeared in concert and on radio in Vienna, and in Germany and Italy. She died in Vienna. == Awards ==