Alessandro was first a boy soprano appearing in productions of Tosca and Carmen, and sang Turiddu in Cavalleria Rusticana in 1912, in London. His operatic career failed however and for years he sang in vaudeville and music halls, as ‘Alex Vallo.’ In 1924 he toured with Louisa Tetrazzini as a supporting artist in her farewll tour, then made his first recordings at the age of 37 and became famous overnight – but still did not have a successful opera career. The ‘promising new tenor’ was over 40 years old in the 1930’s after spending exhaustive years in vaudeville, often with four or more appearances a day.
