[4] In her young age she had been involved in ballet lessons, children's choir of Czechoslovakian Radio, and learned singing and piano at school.

[3] Beňačková specializes in the music of her Slovak compatriots, particularly Eugen Suchoň, as well as Czech composers, notably Bedřich Smetana, Antonín Dvořák and Leoš Janáček.

In 1981, Czechoslovakian television starred Ms Beňačková in a definitive version of Prodaná nevěsta (The Bartered Bride) by Bedřich Smetana, which has since become a popular DVD recording available in an all-regions format (2006).

That recording teamed her with the tenor (fellow Slovak) Peter Dvorský as Jeník, and with bass Richard Novák as Kecal, and other popular singers.

In 2012, she sang the difficult role of the Comtesse de la Roche, in Die Soldaten, at the Salzburg Festival, a production now on DVD.