The Opera Babes are an English crossover classical music duo, consisting of Karen England, mezzo-soprano, and Rebecca Knight, soprano.
The duo came to wide attention when they sang "Un bel dì vedremo" (from the opera Madame Butterfly) on television sports programmes, beginning in 2002.
[1] Knight explained the group's strategy to BBC News as follows: "[W]e have tried to maintain the classical integrity while making these things more appealing to a wider audience.
"We were originally discovered busking ... so I would have thought it was obvious that we loved performing live, yet Sony weren't interested", said Karen England.
[6] The Opera Babes' second album, Renaissance, another classical and "crossover" collection, was released in 2006 on the independent label, Instant Karma UK.
"[8] The Opera Babes' 2006 "Renaissance" concert toured songs from both of their albums performed with multi-media special effects and visuals, as well as dancers costumed by designer Elizabeth Emanuel.
[4] In 2012, the group released its third album, Silent Noon, named after the song by Ralph Vaughan Williams, on the Warner Classics label.