SA soprano dies at 94

Legendary soprano, opera singer and soloist May Abrahamse, 94, from Belgravia, died a day before her 95th birthday.

- NABEELAH MOHEDEEN

The musician, originally from District Six, and later Belgravia, had battled with dementia since 2012, which was when she moved in with her daughter in Belgravia.

She had three sisters and was the last to pass away. She had two daughters, four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

May Abrahamse attended Zonnebloem Girls Primary School and Zonnebloem Secondary School until Grade 9, when she left to work as a domestic worker in the same house where her mother worked as a cook.

A few months later, she bumped into a friend who encouraged her to do more with her life, and she applied at the Cape Times newspaper, in the printing section, where she worked for years.