Neglected giant George Enescu
The Romanian composer George Enescu is one of the neglected giants of modern music. Prodigiously gifted, he became best known in America as a conductor, where he was considered a successor to Toscanini, and in Europe, one of the greatest violinists of the century. However, he …
Giuseppe Danise
In a generation, which boasted so many great Italian baritones, as among the most important ones, even though today he is undeservedly underrated. Born on January 11th 1883 in Naples he studied singing with Luigi Colonnesi and Abramo Petillo in his hometown. In 1906 he …
Magda Olivero
Magda Olivero was born on March 25th 1910 in Saluzzo (near Turin). After having taken singing lessons with three different teachers and without apparent success at the Conservatory of Turin an audition for the chairman of EIAR (predecessor of RAI), Ugo Tansini, ended with a …
Gianna Pederzini
When one refers to outstanding exponents of the title role of Bizet’s Carmen, the name of Italian mezzo Gianna Pederzini immediately springs to mind. She was celebrated not only for her singing but also for her acting and for her allure. In his interview for …
Mario Lanza reassessed
Mario Lanza possessed “one of the truly great natural tenor voices of the past century – a voice of beauty, passion, and power!” So declares Placido Domingo in his preface to Armando Cesari’s 2004 biography, Mario Lanza: An American Tragedy. Crediting Lanza’s films
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