A mysterious subway singer who stunned passengers with her performance has been revealed as a classically trained musician who was made homeless after falling ill and racking up huge medical bills.

Emily Zamourka, 52, became a viral sensation after a police officer captured her singing at a subway station in Koreatown, Los Angeles.

The clip shows the homeless soprano songstress clutching bags of her possessions while serenading the cop with a breathtaking Puccini aria.

Friends identified Ms Zamourka and have told how her healthcare bills made her homeless before she had her prized $10,000 violin stolen on the streets, according to NBC4.

Emily Zamourka, 52, became a viral sensation after a police officer captured her singing at a Los Angeles subway station in Koreatown

Emily Zamourka's descent into homelessness 1967 - Emily Zamourka, a trained classical violinist and pianist, is born in Russia. 1991 - The talented musician moves to Los Angeles. 1991 - 2000s - She makes a living teaching music lessons. 2001 - 2016 - Ms Zamourka falls ill and starts to rack up medical bills forcing her to take up several jobs to make ends meet. She has not revealed what her illness was. She plays her violin in the street to make extra cash. 2016 - Ms Zamourka has her $10,000 violin stolen while she is performing in downtown LA. Unable to pay rent, she is evicted from her home and forced to live on the streets. 2019 - An LAPD officer spots Ms Zamourka singing in a subway station in Koreatown and films her before posting the clip on Twitter. She soon becomes a viral sensation but does not realise she is a hit until her friends tell her the news. A local news station tracks her down to interview her about her fascinating life. Advertisement

The talented musician, who moved to the US from Russia 24 years ago, ended up on the streets after she suffered serious health problems and had to pay for her medical bills.

Ms Zamourka, who taught lessons in piano and violin, was forced to take up numerous jobs while busking on the streets just to make ends meet.

But things took a turn for the worse when her expensive violin was stolen three years ago when she was performing on the streets of downtown LA.

'It was my income,' she told NBC4. 'It was my everything to me.

'That's when I became homeless. When I could not actually pay any of my bills and could not pay anymore of my rent,' she said.

The down and out musician was then evicted from her house and has been homeless ever since.

She now sleeps rough, using cardboard as a mattress in a parking lot.

But the singer has dreams of taking her talents to the stage.

Without an instrument, Ms Zamourka began performing for commuters in the subway because 'it sounds so great'.

'I am sleeping actually on the cardboard right now, in the parking lot,' she said. 'I am sleeping where I can sleep... I have people that feel sorry for me, but I don't want to be a burden to anybody.'

Some friends said Ms Zamourka was classically trained in Russia but others have since called that into doubt.

She was captured by an LAPD officer at on the Purple Line's Normandie/Wilshire Metro stop in Koreatown who posted her song on Twitter.

The talented musician, who moved to the US from Russia 24 years ago, ended up on the streets after she suffered serious health problems and had to pay for her medical bills

Ms Zamourka, who taught lessons in piano and violin, was forced to take up numerous jobs while busking on the streets just to make ends meet

The woman was not aware her singing had become a viral hit until her friends called her, NBC4 reports.

After the clip was viewed thousands of times, a local news station managed to track down the woman.

Now she hopes the attention will help her to finally get off the streets and back to playing the violin with a roof over her head.

'I will be so grateful to anyone who is trying to help me to get off the streets, and to have my own place, to have my instrument,' she said.

The down and out musician - who is not classically trained in singing - has been homeless ever since but sings in the subway because 'it sounds so great'

And since the clip was uploaded, many people on social media have claimed to have seen Ms Zamourka's stunning performance.

'I've seen her for years on the Metro,' one Twitter user wrote. 'I heard her once singing Ave Maria and thought it was a radio at first. Everyone has a story...this woman does too. I don't know why she's been homeless all these years, but she's a human being... that's all that matters.'

Another user said: 'Me and my wife know her. Her name is Emily and she plays the violin as well as she sings.'

A GoFundMe page has since been set up to help get Ms Zamourka off the streets and back to playing her violin.