Jessye Norman, opera singer, dead at 74

Oct. 1 (UPI) -- Jessye Norman, an international opera singer, has died at the age of 74.

Norman died on Monday at the Mount Sinai St. Luke's Hospital in New York, a spokesperson for her family, Gwendolyn Quinn confirmed to NPR along with a representative from The Jessye Norman School of the Arts.

The cause of death was septic shock and multi-organ failure, complications from a spinal cord injury she endured in 2015.

Norman is best known for her portrayal of Richard Strauss' opera Ariadne auf Naxos. She has won four Grammy awards and was honored with a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2006.

Norman founded the Jessye Norman School of the Arts in 2002 and received the National Medal of Arts from former President Barack Obama in 2010.

She is survived by her brother James Norman and sister Elaine Sturkey.

"We are equally proud of her humanitarian endeavors addressing matters such as hunger, homelessness, youth development and arts and culture education," her siblings said in a statement.