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Odetta’s monumental voice rang out in August 1963 when she sang “I’m on My Way” at the historic March on Washington, D.C., where Martin Luther King gave his “I Have a Dream” speech.

She had hoped to perform again in Washington next month when Barack Obama is inaugurated as the nation’s first black president. But the acclaimed folk singer, who influenced generations of musicians and was an icon in the civil rights struggle, died Tuesday after battling heart disease. She was 77. In spite of failing health, Odetta performed 60 concerts in the last two years, manager Doug Yeager said.

She was admitted to Lenox Hill Hospital in New York with kidney failure about three weeks ago, Yeager said in confirming her death.

Odetta is survived by a daughter and a son. She was divorced about 40 years ago and never remarried, her manager said.