norman performed with german and italian opera companies, often appearing as a princess or other noble figure. norman was exceptional at portraying a commanding and noble bearing. this ability was partly due to her uncommon height and size but was more a result of her unique, rich, and powerful voice. norman's range was remarkably wide, encompassing all female voice registers from contralto to high dramatic soprano. in 1970 she made her italian début in florence, in handel's "deborah". in 1971, norman made her début at the maggio musicale in florence appearing as sélika in meyerbeer's "l'africaine". that year she also sang the role of countess almaviva in mozart's "le nozze di figaro", alongside dietrich fischer-dieskau as the count. at the berlin festival, and recorded the role with the bbc orchestra conducted by colin davis. the recording was a finalist for the montreux international record award competition and brought norman much exposure to music listeners in europe and the united states.