YVETA GRAFF

Yvetta! We miss you! I'm writing from Denver, where we have a musicology meeting, and in it is a special Czech session. I'm honored to have even in a small way shared the journey of bringing Czech materials to the attention of the larger world, something you did with brilliance, energy and skill! Lots of love. Mike

Well Yveta, you wouldn't have enjoyed all the cancelled opera performances, but as always, you would have been part of any comeback. We miss you and think of you often with fondness and admiration.

Thinking of Yveta a few years after her passing...no one has emerged to take her place in bringing Czech opera and vocal music broadly to new audiences. Her remarkable energy, charm and determination was responsible for so many productions, and the high quality of those productions. We miss her today as we did before and honor her amazingly successful life!

I just found out about Yveta's passing. She was a very sweet and wonderful person. I work for her for two years while living in California. My condolences to the family

I had no idea she had passed away! Had a lovely lunch with her the previous Spring when we visited the Bohemian Hall together. She was as vital, witty, and charming as usual. Her contribution to the cultural life of the United States was extraordinary. She played a profound role in the popularity of opera in the Czech language and no one can (or will) ever replace her. I am profoundly saddened to hear of this loss to the artistic community.

Yveta was definitely one of a kind. She was a musician who truly loved music, which is quite a rarity. I had the honor of working with her on Martinu's "Hlas lesa" for my company, Gotham Chamber Opera, and she ultimately became a donor to Gotham. We get along beautifully because I treated her like any world-famous diva. She was never boring and her joie de vivre was infectious. She was a big presence, and our world is poorer without her.

So sorry to hear of Yveta's passing. We shared wonderful moments here in Santa Barbara - love of opera. My condolences to her family.

Yveta was born for the spotlight but found her calling backstage. The music world owes her a debt it will continue to repay every time the masterpieces of Dvorak, Smetana, and especially Janacek resound beyond Czech borders. Some advocates light a candle. Yveta lit a lasting blaze. As all who knew her remember, she was a mesmerizing storyteller, with an epic tale of her own. Now others must tell it for her. She left us too soon.