Soprano Anja Harteros' breakthrough came when she won the Cardiff Singer of the World competition in 1999. The first German to take the prize, she snared the added bonus of being heard by jury member Peter Jonas, the director of the Bavarian State Opera, who hired her to sing in an upcoming production of Weber's Der Freischütz. For the first part of her career, Harteros specialized in Mozartian roles, but she has increasingly tended to perform roles from the later 19th century, including those in operas by both Verdi and Wagner. She has a large repertory of more than 25 roles and also sings choral works. Harteros has a long list of recording credits that includes a 2007 solo release, Bella Voce, and a 2015 recording of Verdi's Aida. In 2021, she appeared in a new recording of orchestral songs by Wagner, Berg, and Mahler.