FERRUCCIO TAGLIAVINI (REGGIO EMILIA, 14 AUGUST, 1913 – REGGIO EMILIA, 28 JANUARY, 1995)
He originally pursued a career in engineering, but his father recognized his vocal talent and arranged for his musical training. He studied at the Parma Conservatory under Brancucci and later with the renowned tenor Amedeo Bassi in Florence. His breakthrough came when he won a singing competition in Florence in 1938, leading to his stage debut in 1939 as Rodolfo in La Bohème.
In 1942, he performed at La Scala in Milan, singing the role of Count Almaviva in Il Barbiere di Siviglia alongside famous artists like Gianna Pederzini and Tito Gobbi. He continued to perform at La Scala regularly from 1943 to 1953. His roles included performances in Semiramide at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in 1940 and the world premiere of Mario Persico’s opera La Locandiera in Rome in 1941.
He married soprano Pia Tassinari in 1941, and after World War II, his career flourished globally. He performed in Rio de Janeiro (from 1946), Chicago (1946), and San Francisco (1948-49, and 1952), where he portrayed roles such as the Duke in Rigoletto and Faust in Mefistofele. He also appeared at Covent Garden, the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, the Vienna State Opera, and the Verona and Florence festivals, among many others.
The Metropolitan Opera in New York became an important venue for him from 1947 to 1954, and again in 1961-62, where he was heard in major roles like Rodolfo, Nemorino, Cavaradossi, Alfredo, and Edgardo.
Widely regarded as one of the leading Italian lyric tenors of his era, his repertoire also included roles such as Elvino in La Sonnambula, Nadir in Les Pêcheurs de Perles, Werther, and the title role in Mascagni’s L’Amico Fritz, a part he performed under the composer’s direction in 1939.
In 1965, he gave his farewell performance at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, singing the role of Werther. Though he occasionally gave concerts afterward, such as at Carnegie Hall in 1981, he spent his later years in Italy.
TRACKLIST
- Amarilli (Caccini) Cetra AB 30004 71168
- Andrea Chenier (Giordano) Come un bel di di maggio Cetra BB 25217B 2.71156
- El Guitarico (Soriano) Cetra AT 0293 3793
- Falstaff (Verdi) Del labbro il canto Cetra CB 20142 70467
- I Lombardi (Verdi) La mia letizia infondere Cetra BB 25026 70490
- I Pescatori di Perle (Bizet) Mi par d’udire ancora Cetra BB 25237
- I Quattro Rusteghi (Wolf-Ferrari) Luceta xe un bel nome Cetra CC 2234 70468
- Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Rossini) Ecco ridente in cielo Cetra BB 25181
- La Boheme (Puccini) Che gelida manina Cetra CC 2255 70442
- La Sonnambula (Bellini) Prendi l’anel ti dono Cetra CB 20142 70469
- La Traviata (Verdi) Parigi, o cara (w. Tassinari) Cetra 11277
- L’Africana (Meyerbeer) Mi batte il cor… O paradiso Cetra BB 25273
- L’Amico Fritz (Mascagni) Ed anche Beppe amo’ Cetra BB 25026 70491
- L’amico Fritz (Mascagni) Suzel, buon di… Tutto tace with (w. Olivero) Cetra BB 25050 BB 25050
- L’Arlesiana (Cilea) E’ la solita storia Cetra CC 2255 70466
- L’elisir d’amore (Donizetti) Quanto e bella Cetra BB 25219A 2.71157
- L’elisir d’amore (Donizetti) Una furtiva lagrima Cetra BB 25058A 2.70440
- Malinconia d’Amore (D’Anzi) Cetra AT-0125 51759
- Manon (Massenet) Instant charmant…En fermant les yeux Cetra BB 25119
- Martha (Flotow) M’appari tutt’amor Cetra BB 25230B 2.71169
- O del mio dolce ardor (Gluck) Cetra AB 30004 71167
- Rigoletto (Verdi) Ella mi fu rapita Cetra BB 25273
- Rigoletto (Verdi) Parmi veder le lagrime Cetra BB 25058B 2.70441
- Tosca (Puccini) E lucean le stelle Cetra CC 2261 70605
- Tosca (Puccini) Or lasciami al lavoro… Mia gelosa (w. Tassinari) Cetra 25232 2-71159, 2-71160
- Tosca (Puccini) Recondita armonia Cetra CC 2261 70606
- Werther (Massenet) Dividerci Dobbiamo (w. Tassinari) Cetra 11278
- Werther (Massenet) Pourquoi me reveiller Cetra BB 25234
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