Singer Biographies
A - F
Lina Aimaro, soprano, born 1914 Turin. She studied at the academy of music in Milan with Mario Pieraccini. She made her debut in 1934 in Turin as Lucia. In the following years she sang in Parma, Palermo, Genoa, Florence, Rimini, Brescia Rome and Milan. In the 1938-39 season Aimaro appeared at the Metropolitan Opera as Lucia with Gigli as her partner. Her roles included Amina, Adina, Oscar, Violetta, Philine (Mignon), Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi). She sang at La Scala, Rome, Turin and the major Italian houses. In 1950 she sang in the world premiere of the opera L'Orso by L. Ferrari-Trecate and in 1953 in the world premiere of Orff’s Trionfo d'Afrodite. Aimaro was engaged to sing at the Met in 1940-41 but had to stay in Italy during the war. She made guest appearances in Lisbon, Cairo, the Netherlands, Budapest, Antwerp, Stockholm, Switzerland and Rome. She became a teacher in Milan after she retired from the stage.
Gitta Alpar, soprano. Born 1903 in Budapest, died 1991 in Palm Springs. Her father was a Cantor at a synagogue. She studied with Laura Hilgermann in Budapest. Alpar began her opera career in 1923 in Budapest as Gilda. In 1925 she made a guest performance at the National Opera in Munich again as Gilda and in 1927 and 1928 at the Viennese National Opera. In 1927 she sang the Queen of the Night and Rosina in Berlin. In 1928 she performed in the first night of the Ägyptischen Helena in the role of Aithra. After she left the Berlin National Opera she appeared in 1930 at the Berlin Metropol Theatre in Millöckers Bettelstudent and then in the first night of the Lehár operetta Schön ist die Welt. In 1931 Alpar sang the title role in the world premiere of The Dubarry at the Admiralspalast. She became well-known for her roles in operetta during the years in Berlin. In 1933 she had to leave Germany. She went first to Vienna and then to North America where she continued in operetta and film. Operatic roles included Cherubino, Janthe, Lakmé, Nedda and Oscar. She married first the Danish dancer Niels Bagge, and then the film actor Gustav Fröhlich.
Jean Aquistapace, bass-baritone. Born 1888. His debut was in 1911. He then appeared in Lyons in 1913 as Boris Godunov. He spent most of his career in French provincial theatres but also appeared as guest at the Opera-Comique and Paris Opera. In 1922 he appeared as Papageno in a performance of Die Zauberflote under Reynaldo Hahn. He later became director of Nice Opera.
Amadeo Bassi, tenor. Born 1874 near Florence. He made his debut in 1897 in Castelfiorentino in Marchetti's Ruy Blas. He sang in Venice, Trento and Genoa and made annual guest appearances ay Teatro Colon. He sang in the world premiere of Gloria at La Scala in 1907. He came to the Manhattan Opera Co in 1906, the Metropolitan 1910-1911 and then Chicago from 1910 to 1912. He appeared in concerts until 1940 and then became a singing teacher in Florence. He died in 1949.
Célys Beralta, soprano, born 1890 (?). From Belgium, this soprano was active in Spain and Italy in the years to 1920. In the autumn of 1920 she appeared at the Teatro Liceo in Barcelona as Gilda opposite Hippolíto Lázaro and also as Olga in Giordano’s Fedora. Further details of her career are little known, however one may assume that she also sang in Belgium and France.
Gertrud Bindernagel, soprano, born Magdeburg 1894, died in Berlin 1932. She studied first at the Magdeburg Conservatory and then the Berlin Music High School (1913-17). She sang at the Breslau Opera (1917-19) and Regensburg (1919-20). In 1920 she was engaged by the Berlin State Opera and remained there until 1927. She had great successes there, especially in the Wagner roles. She made guest appearances in Barcelona, Munich, Vienna, Mannheim and Hamburg. She died after an attempt on her life by her husband as she was leaving a performance in Berlin.
Hans Braun, baritone, born Vienna 1917. As a child he belonged to the Wiener Sangerknaben and studied voice with Gallos and Duhan. He made his debut in Konigsberg (1938) as Count Almaviva in Nozze. He was engaged in Berlin, Saarbrucken, Bremerhaven and from 1945 in Vienna, where he stayed. He made guest appearances in Milan, London, Naples, Florence, Berlin, Munich, Hamburg and Salzburg. In 1953 he sang at Bayreuth in Lohengrin.
Cornelis Bronsgeest, baritone. Born 1878 in Leiden (Netherlands), died 1957 in Berlin. He first studied architecture but then turned to singing and studied with Richard Schulz-Dornburg in Berlin and with Julius Stockhausen in Frankfurt. His debut was in 1902 in Magdeburg. From 1903-08 he was engaged in Hamburg. He made a guest appearance in 1906 at the Berlin Hofoper as Amonasro and was offered a contract there from 1908-1919 and again from 1921-23. Before the first world war he made guest appearances in the Netherlands, Belgium and France. In 1914 he appeared at Drury Lane Theatre in London as Papageno under Sir Thomas Beecham. In the 1919-20 season he undertook a tour of North America. In 1920 he appeared at the Viennese National Opera. From 1924-33 he sang in opera on German radio broadcasts. He sang at Berlin National Opera until 1935 and his repertoire was extensive and included leading roles in Verdi, Wagner and Mozart. From 1935-1944 he became director of the Berlin Youth Theatre and later taught in the city.
Charles Cambon, baritone. Born 1892 in Florensac, France. He studied first at the Toulouse Academy and then the Paris Conservatoire. He started as a chorus member at the Paris Opera in 1923. From 1930 to 1953 he sang the major baritone roles in this house such as Rigoletto, Amonasro, the Dutchman, Valentin, Iago and Samson. He appeared in the premiere of Enescu's Oedipe in 1936. He sang at the Opera-Comique and made guest appearances in Barcelona and London. He died in Paris in 1965.
Francesco Cigada, baritone. Born October 3, 1878 Bergamo, died August 6, 1966 Caprino Bergamasco. He studied in Milan with Vincenzo Sabatini and made his debut in 1900 in Forli as Lescaut in "Manon Lescaut" by Puccini. In 1903 he sang in Rio de Janeiro, in 1904 at the Teatro Dal Verme in Milan, from 1905 he had great success at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome, where he made his debut as Mephisto in "La damnation de Faust" and then until 1908 he played roles as different as Alberich in " Rheingold ”, Jochanaan in“ Salome ”by R. Strauss (1908) and Athanël in“ Thaïs ”by Massenet (with Mattia Battistini in the title role!) In 1913 he appeared at the Teatro Comunale Bologna as Telramund, as early as 1911 at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa as Hans Sachs in the "Meistersinger". On February 19, 1914 he sang the part of Giovanni at the Teatro Regio in Turin in the premiere of the opera "Francesca da Rimini" by Zandonai. In 1914 he made guest appearances at Covent Garden Opera in London, where he participated in the premieres of Zandonai's "Francesca da Rimini" and Montemezzi's "Amore dei tre Re". In 1914 he appeared at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris with the Ensemble of the Boston Opera, although he had never performed in the United States. During this guest performance he sang Manfredo in the French premiere of Montemezzi's "Amore dei tre Re" and Lescaut in "Manon Lescaut" by Puccini. At the Teatro Colón Buenos Aires he created Pizzetti's "Fedra" for South America in the 1919-20 season and sang the Kurwenal in "Tristan", the Amonasro in "Aida" and the Hermann in Catalani's "Loreley". In 1918 he participated in the Milan Scala in the premiere of the opera "La Nave" by I. Montemezzi and sang the Amonasro as well as in the premieres of the operas "Ghismonda" by Bianchi and "Urania" by Farara (1918). In 1921 he made a guest appearance in Madrid as Wilhelm Tell. Other guest appearances included Barcelona, Rio de Janeiro, Santiago de Chile and Havana. In 1924 he last appeared on stage in Bergamo (as Wilhelm Tell). After losing his only daughter at the age of 21, he gave up his career and lived alone in his villa near Bergamo.
The artist's beautiful baritone voice is preserved on many G & T records, but all of them were created at the beginning of his career in 1905-08, before it peaked. These G&T recordings were partially published in the United States under the Victor label, including a full recording of the "Bajazzo" (on 21 shellac records), which was made in 1907 in the presence of the composer Leoncavallo.
The artist's beautiful baritone voice is preserved on many G & T records, but all of them were created at the beginning of his career in 1905-08, before it peaked. These G&T recordings were partially published in the United States under the Victor label, including a full recording of the "Bajazzo" (on 21 shellac records), which was made in 1907 in the presence of the composer Leoncavallo.
Giuseppe Costa, tenor, born 1895, died 1982. He studied singing with Giuseppe Longo and Gino Golisciani. His debut was in 1920 at Teatro Mastroiano in Messina as Turiddu. He also sang Arturo in I Puritani there. In 1923 he appeared at Bologna as the duke in Rigoletto. He made guest appearances in Antwerp, Germany, Austria and Hungary. He appeared in the USA in 1932 and 1934 with Teatro dei Piccoli and in Hollywood as partner to Lilian Harvey in the sound film Susanna. In the years 1927-32 he performed on Italian radio with RAI and regularly in the foremost Italian houses. He sang for the last time in opera in 1940 and spent his last years at the Casa di Riposo in Milan.
Egidio Cunego, tenor, born 1882, died1956 in Milan. He began his career in the provincial Italian theatres singing with a repertoire that included Radames, Andrea Chénier, Turiddu and Cavaradossi. In 1911-12 he sang Canio in London and in the world premiere of I Zingari under Leoncavallo. In 1914 he appeared at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome, in 1916 at Teatro Liceo in Barcelona and in 1920 at Cairo. He spent his last years at the Casa di Riposo in Milan.
Luigi Cilla, tenor. Born 1885 in Rimini. He began his career in the provincial Italian theatres. From 1910 - 1940 he appeared in the leading houses including Milan and Rome. He performed in the Italain premiere of La Fanciulla del West. In 1912 he appeared in Falstaff (Dr Caius) at la Scala. In 1910 he made a guest appearance in Boston. Cilla appeared regularly at Covent Garden from 1925-34. He toured Australia in 1923-24 and sang in the world premiere of the opera Il Gobbo del Califfo in Rome in 1929.
Florencio Constantino, tenor. Born 1869 in Bilbao, died 1920 in Mexico City. He was at first a machinist then a ship's engineer before studying singing. He made his debut in 1892 at the Montevideo opera in La Dolores. After great success on South American stages he was also well-recived on a European tour in 1903-04, especially in Germany and Spain. In 1906 he appeared at New Orleans Opera and in 1908 at Manhattan Opera. In 1909 he sang Enzo in La Gioconda with Louise Homer and Lillian Nordica at the gala opening of the new Boston Opera House. He sang at the Met in 1910-11 and Buenos Aires 1909-12. In 1915 he appeared for the last time on stage in Los Angeles. Constantino lived in poverty in Mexico City and died in a charity hospital there.
Roberto d’Alessio, tenor, born 1893, died 1975. He made his debut in 1921 in Teatro Casino, Lugano, as Wilhelm Meister in Mignon. In 1922 he sang Elvino in Teatro Massimo, Palermo, with Toti Dal Monte. In 1924 he appeared in Turin as the duke in Rigoletto, in 1927 at Teatro Fenice as Des Grieux and in 1927 as the duke of Mantua under Toscanini with Toti Dal Monte, Luisa Bertana and Carlo Galeffi. He made guest appearances at Teatro Colón (1926) , Teatro Carlo Genoa (1926), Germany (1929), Copenhagen (1929) and Rome. In 1937 he sang Don Ottavio at Teatro Regio Turin with Eva Turner and Carlo Galeffi. Other roles included Ernesto, Rodolfo, the title role in L'Amico Fritz, Maurizio in Adriana Lecouvreur, Cavaradossi and Werther. He was married to the Spanish contralto Aurora Buades-d'Alessio (1897-1965), who had an important career as an opera and concert singer in Italy, Spain and South America. From 1952 d'Alessio taught in Florence.
Augusto Dadò, bass, born 1860, Rome, died (?). In 1884 Dado sang Raimondo in "Lucia di Lammermoor" at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome also appeared as Fra Cristoforo in Ponchielli's "I Promessi Sposi" in Ponchielli at the Teatro Concordia in Cremona. In 1885 he appeared at the Teatro Argentina in Rome as Don Pedro in "Ruy Blas" by Marchetti. From 1892-93 he toured Central America with an Italian opera company. In 1894 he was a guest at the Opera House in Alexandria in Egypt as Alvise in "La Gioconda" by Ponchielli. In 1897 and 1902 he sang at La Scala in Donizetti's "Linda di Chamounix" and in Weber's "Euryanthe". In 1902 he was heard in Bucharest as Raimondo, in 1905 in San Francisco and Mexico City with a group whose star was the great coloratura Luisa Tetrazzini, as Conte Rodolfo in Bellini's "La Sonnambula", as Sparafucile in the "Rigoletto" and as Basilio in the "Barber of Seville". In the years 1915-19 he sang regularly at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome, i.a. the king in "Aida", the Colline in "La Bohème", the Angelotti in "Tosca", the Alvise in "La Gioconda", the uncle Bonze in "Madame Butterfly", the Dr. Grenvil in "La Traviata", the Zuniga in "Carmen", the Osiride in "Mosè in Egitto" by Rossini and the Gualtiero Walton in "I Puritani". In 1917 he appeared at the Teatro Costanzi in the premiere of P. Mascagni's "Lodoletta", in 1918 in the same theatre in Vincenzo Michetti's "Maria di Magdala", in 1919 in the Italian premiere of Puccini's "Trittico" and in the Italian premiere of Marinuzzis "Jacquerie".
Augusto Dadò made recordings of the brands Odeon, G & T and Columbia, all recorded in Milan around 1907.
Augusto Dadò made recordings of the brands Odeon, G & T and Columbia, all recorded in Milan around 1907.
Giuseppe Danise, baritone. Born 1883 in Naples, died 1963 in New York. He studied with Colonnesi and Perillo in Naples and made his debut there at the Teatro Bellini in 1906. After singing for some time in small italian houses he had his first great success at the Teatro Massimo in 1913. He was also successful at La Scala (1915-17). He was engaged at the Met in 1920 and remained there until 1932. He returned to Italy and La Scala but after World War II settled in the US. In 1947 he married the Brazilian soprano, Bidu Sayao.
Gaston Demarcy, baritone. Born 1884 in Marcinelle, Belgium. He studied with Culot and Desire Demest in Brussels and then with Jean Martapoura in Paris. He was engaged at La Monnaie, Brussels from 1911-14 and 1918-20. His roles included Valentin, Rigoletto, Amonasro and Scarpia. There is little information on the rest of his career except that he appeared with Georges Thill in I Pagliacci in Perpignan (1944).
Jolanda di Maria Petris, soprano. Born 1916 in Pola. She studied at Bologna academy of music with Arrigoni. In the 1935-36 season she made her debut in Rome as Margherita in Mefistofele. She had a good career in Italian provincial theatres. In 1939 she made a concert debut in Ravel’s Scheherazade in Rome. From then on appeared on the concert platform. In 1946 she toured Scandinavia and in 1948 North America. At the end of her career she visited East Germany.
Ugo Donarelli, baritone, born ? 1890. He had an important career in Italian provincial theatres. In 1920 he made a guest appearance in Monte Carlo as Manfredo in L'Amore dei Tre Re with Lucrezia Bori, Benjamino Gigli and Vanni-Marcoux and also as Marcello and Silvio. He sang at Teatro Colón in Manon and Madame Butterfly with Juanita Carracciolo and Ferdinando Ciniselli. In 1920 he appeared in Rio de Janeiro and in 1924 sang with an Italian opera group in London.
Edoardo Faticanti, baritone, born 1880 , died March 1955 in Rome. From 1906 he was singing roles in Italian houses. In 1910 came he appeared at Teatro Comunale, Bologna, in the world premiere of the opera Semirama by Respighi. In 1914 he performed the Teatro Costanzi world premiere of Canossa by Malipiero. His roles, at the important Italian houses, included Amonasro, Escamillo, Amfortas, Osaka and Telramund. In 1912 and 1913 he sang in Rio de Janeiro, in 1912 Teatro San Carlo Naples as Jack Rance, in 1915 Teatro Regio Parma as Amonasro, Alfonso and Gérard. In 1915 he made his first appearance at La Scala. In 1927-28 he sang there under Arturo Toscanini as Alfio and Simon Mago in Boito’s Nerone. In 1928 he sang Klingsor in Rome. On 9.2.1929 he performed in the world premiere of Le Preziose by Lattuada with Mafalda Favero, Jan Kiepura, Ebe Stignani and Salvatore Baccaloni. On 5.3.1931 he sang in the La Scala world premiere of Bacco in Toscana by Castelnuovo-Tedesco. He made guest appearances in France at Nice and Lyons. From 1930 he specialized in buffo roles such as Dulcamara and Fra Melitone. He became a teacher in Rome.
Arthur Fear, baritone, born 1902 Blaina (county of Monmoutshire), died 1973 in Hertfordshire. As a boy he won prizes at English music festivals. His voice was trained at the Royal Academy of Music London by Thomas Meux. Here he appeared in school performances of Verdi's "Falstaff" and as Hans Sachs in the "Meistersinger". In 1927, he made his official stage debut as Hans Sachs with the New English Opera Company during their guest appearance in Leeds. With this company he travelled around England. In 1929 he sang the Holofernes at Covent Garden Opera in the premiere of the opera "Judith" by Eugene Goossens (with Göta Ljungberg, Walter Widdop and Dennis Noble, June 25, 1929). From 1930-31 he sang numerous roles at Covent Garden, including Gunther and Donner in the Nibelungenring, Sharpless in "Madame Butterfly", Telramund in "Lohengrin", Escamillo in "Carmen" and Hans Sachs. in 1932 at the Coliseum Theatre in London Fear appeared in the operetta "Casanova". In 1935 he was heard again at Covent Garden as Kaspar in "Der Freischütz" and as Renato in Verdi's "Ballo". In 1936 he sang concerts in the USA in Boston and New York and in Cincinnati he sang Hans Sachs in the "Meistersinger". The success was so great that he gave further concerts in America in the following three years. In the seasons 1937-39 he was again to be found at the Covent Garden Opera, including as Rigoletto and as the three demons in "Hoffmann's Tales". He toured England with the Covent Garden Company and with the English National Opera Company. After the Second World War, he still sang with the Carl Rosa Opera Company.
Emilia Figoriti, soprano, * 1884 (?), † (?). Figoriti made her debut in 1906 at Treviso's Teatro Sociale as Ornella in Alberto Franchetti's La Figlia di Jorio. Already in the 1906-07 season she appeared at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome as Woglinde and as the 1st Norn in the Nibelungenring, also as Sophie in the "Werther" by Massenet. In 1910-11 she was heard at the same house as Zorah in "La Falce" by Catalani and as Jemmy in Rossini's "Wilhelm Tell", 1911-12 as Musetta in "La Bohème" and as Inez in Meyerbeer's "Africaine". At the Teatro Costanzi in 1912 she created the Chrysothemis in the Italian premiere of the Richard Strauss opera »Elektra«. She sang Eva in "Meistersinger" at the Teatro Verdi in Sassari, at the Teatro Grande in Brescia and at the Teatro dal Verme Milan, and Nedda in the "Bajazzo" at the Teatro Apollo in Rome. She also performed at the Teatro Colón Buenos Aires under the direction of A. Toscanini. After she married, she left the stage.
Giuseppina Finzi-Magrini, soprano, born 1878 Mantua, died 1944 Desio She made her debut in 1895 at Teatro Magnifico in Brescia. In 1900 she made a guest appearance at the Teatro Verdi in Padua as Sophie in Werther and as Philine in Mignon. In 1903 she toured Chile -her first international success and followed this with performances in Odessa, Moscow, Alexandria and St Petersburg. In 1910 she sang Ophélie at the Teatro Real, Madrid, in 1911 at the Théâtre de la Monnaie in 1911, the Teatro Costanzi, Rome (1915-16) as Gilda and Violetta, at Teatro Regio Turin (1915) as Marguerite de Valois, in Brescia, Bergamo and Verona, in Teatro Carcano Milan (1922) as Rosina, in Bologna (1923) as Elvira in I Puritani and in Teatro Politeama Genoa. She also appeared in Brescia, Bergamo and Verona. During the 1914-15 season she sang at La Scala as Gilda. She became a teacher in Turin. However, as a Jew, she was forced to hide during World War II near Desio. Here she was taken ill and died in hospital at the end of 1944. Finzi-Magrini was admired for her coloratura technique.
Giulio Fregosi, baritone, born 1887, died May 1951. His debut was in Milan in 1908 and he subsequently he appeared in a number of smaller Italian theaters. From 1913 he appeared at the larger opera houses, e.g. at the Teatro Verdi Trieste and at the Teatro Petruzzelli Bari. In 1916 he sang Barnaba in Ponchielli's "La Gioconda" at the Teatro Dal Verme Milan. However, he then had to interrupt his career because he was called up for military service in the First World War. In 1918 he performed at the Teatro Lirico Milan and now began extensive guest performances in Italy and abroad. In 1921 and 1925 he sang at the Vienna Volksoper, also in 1921 at the Budapest National Opera, 1922-23 and 1925-26 he was to be found at the Cairo Opera. in 1923-24 he was involved in the USA tour of an Italian opera company, in 1925 in a similar tour through Germany. In 1925 he made guest appearances at the Geneva Opera House, in 1926 in Nice, in 1927 at the Théâtre des Champs- Élysées as Figaro in the "Barber of Seville", which he then sang at the Marseille Opera. In 1928 he performed at the Teatro Politeama Buenos Aires, in 1929 at the Vichy Opera House, in 1934 at the Teatro Liceo Barcelona and in 1936 in Madrid. However, he continued his appearances on Italian stages; in 1924 he appeared at the Teatro Costanzi Rome, in 1925 at the Teatro della Pergola Florence, in 1930 at the Teatro Regio Parma and at the Rome Opera, where he sang the Ford in "Falstaff", which he also performed in 1931 at La Scala in Milan. His career lasted a very long time, and it wasn't until 1949 that he said goodbye to the stage at the Voghera Theater in Leoncavallo's "Bajazzo". His stage roles, which primarily came from the Italian repertoire, included the Riccardo in Bellini's "I Puritani", the Pharaoh in "Mosè in Egitto", Rigoletto, Count Luna in the "Troubadour", Germont-Père in "La Traviata", Renato in "Un Ballo in maschera", Posa in "Don Carlos", Amonasro in "Aida", Severo in Donizetti's "Poliuto", Enrico in "Lucia di Lammermoor", Marcello in “La Bohème”, Jack Rance in Puccini's “Fanciulla del West”, Alfio in “Cavalleria rusticana”, Gérard in “Andrea Chénier” and Zurga in “Pêcheurs de Perles”.
Lucien Fugere, bass. Born Paris, 1848. At the age of 14 he was apprenticed to a sculptor. Because he was unable to enter the Paris Conservatoire he took evening classes with Raguneau and Batiste. He made his first public appearance in 1871 at the cafe-concert Ba-ta-clan in Paris. In 1874 he joined the Bouffes Parisiens, an operetta theatre, and then on to the Opera-Comique in 1877 where he made his debut as Jean in Les Noces de Jeanette. He was the best loved artiste at this house for 55 years! He appeared in many world premieres there. Fugere made few guest appearances - he appeared at Covent Garden in 1897 and Nice and Marseilles (1906-1910). During World War I he gave many concerts for French soldiers. He died in Paris in 1935.
Biographies taken from A Concise Biographical Dictionary of Singers and Grosses Sangerlexikon, both by K J Kutsch and Leo Riemens
and
Wikipedia
(my apologies for any inaccuracies)
and
Wikipedia
(my apologies for any inaccuracies)