Opera singer Teresa Mai (centre) takes her Grammy award for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album on Sunday in Las Vegas. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

Mai is the first Vietnamese-American singer ever to win a Grammy award. She sang with Hila Plitmann on the album “Mythologies” by composer Danaë Vlasse.

She beat famous singers in the classical music community such as Will Liverman, Joyce Dionato, Jamie Barton and Laura Strickling to take the statue.

Born in Montclair City, California, to Vietnamese parents, her birth name is Mai Xuân Loan. She graduated from the Bob Cole Music Conservatory at California State University before earning her master’s degree in Music in Vocal Performance at the Boston Conservatory of Music, Massachusetts.

Cover of the album Mythologies by composer Danaë Vlasse, which won Best Classical Solo Vocal Album.

The singer often performs with her husband, guitarist Hải Nguyễn. A yoga master gave her the spiritual name “Sangeeta Kaur” in 2009, which means “Princess of Music and Harmony.”  Mai, who also teaches yoga, produced “Niguma: The Mantra Project,” an opera which incorporates song, dance, and yoga mantras. 

She has composed and performed in many cities worldwide and won over 30 prestigious music awards.