STOCKHOLM -- Swedish soprano Elisabeth Soderstrom, an international opera star, has died, her husband Sverker Olow says.

Olow says Soderstrom died in Stockholm early Friday morning of complications from a stroke.

Soderstrom, who was 82, made her debut in 1947 at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre, singing in one of Mozart's lesser-known works.

From 1949 to 1980 she performed at the Royal Swedish Opera, while frequently appearing at some of the largest opera houses in the world. She also recorded frequently.

Between 1959 and 1964 Soderstrom was contracted by the Metropolitan Opera in New York. She returned in 1983-87.

Between 1993 and 1996 she was director of the Drottningholm Palace Theatre, where she had made her debut almost 50 years earlier.