Marianne Cornetti has made her Met debut and sung around the globe, but she hasn't abandoned her Western Pennsylvania roots. On Sunday, she sang a concert at Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall to benefit that facility's capital campaign.

The Cabot, Butler County native didn't keep the audience waiting for the good stuff. She opened the program with "O, mio Fernando," a blockbuster scena from Donizetti's "La Favorita," and followed with a knockout performance of "Acerba Volutta" from Cilea's " Adriana Lecouvreur."

But she showed a lighter side, as well. She took Leoncavallo's "Mattinata" and "Non ti scordar di me" by de Curtis, two mainstays of tenor schmaltz, and turned them into sumptuous ballads. She displayed coloratura-like flexibility in "Canzone del Vela" from Verdi's "Don Carlos."

There were no printed translations or program notes, but they weren't necessary. With pianist Mark Trawka's expert accompaniment, Cornetti dramatically vented and shaded her voice to the nuances of text and score. Saint-Saens' "Mon coeur s'ouvre a ta voix" was a deliciously lingering seduction. Her physical interpretations, especially her facial expressions, masterfully conveyed the lyrics. "Condotta ell'era in ceppi" from Verdi's "Il Trovatore" was a striking expression of the horror of a gypsy sacrificing her infant.

Consummate artistry aside, the draw with Cornetti was the voice itself. It's the huge, natural instrument of a true Verdi mezzo. Although she has a solid command of high A and B-flat, the real beauty of Cornetti's voice was in the low tessitura of a classic alto, where her vocal color was its most unique.