Daniela Dessi Opera diva Country: Italy

Biography of Daniela Dessì

Daniela Dessì, an Italian opera singer, was born in Genoa in 1957. She grew up in a family that passionately loved music; her mother studied singing professionally but did not pursue a career as a performer. At the age of nine, Daniela knew that she wanted to become an opera singer. At fifteen, she entered the Parma Conservatory and later graduated from the Kigiana Academy in Siena, studying vocal and piano classes.

After winning her first award at the international competition organized by the Italian broadcasting company 'RAI' in 1980, Daniela made her debut in the comic opera 'La serva padrona' by Pergolesi. Currently, Daniela Dessì's repertoire includes over 60 operas from Monteverdi to Prokofiev, from Mozart to Verdi. She is known not only for her beautiful voice and acting talent but also for her unique interpretation of her heroines. Today, Dessì is considered the best performer in the verismo genre, which includes operas by Mascagni, Puccini, and Leoncavallo.

Her international career has led her to the best opera houses in the world, where she has performed under the direction of world-famous conductors. At La Scala, she sang under the guidance of Riccardo Muti in 'Don Carlo', 'Falstaff', 'Requiem', 'Cosi fan tutte', and 'Le nozze di Figaro', as well as the roles of Adriana Lecouvreur and Madama Butterfly. In the Vienna State Opera, Dessì worked with Claudio Abbado in 'Simon Boccanegra' and 'Don Carlo'. In the Metropolitan Opera in New York, she performed in 'Pagliacci' and 'Madama Butterfly' with James Levine. In Berlin and Dresden, Dessì sang in 'Aida' and 'Requiem' with Giuseppe Sinopoli; in Bologna, she worked with Daniele Gatti ('Tosca', 'Aida', 'Falstaff', and 'Don Carlo'); in Munich and Parma, she collaborated with the Indian conductor Zubin Mehta ('Falstaff', 'Requiem', 'Tosca', and 'Don Giovanni'). In Philadelphia, she reunited with Riccardo Muti and performed in 'Pagliacci'. In the Rome Opera and at the Rossini Festival in Pesaro, Dessì sang in 'Iris', 'Il Trittico', and 'William Tell' under the direction of Gianluigi Gelmetti. In Verona, she worked with Georges Prêtre and Zubin Mehta and performed 'Requiem' by Verdi and parts from 'Otello', 'Aida', 'Tosca', and 'Madama Butterfly'. In Zurich, she collaborated with Bruno Bartoletti ('Il Pagliacci', 'Luisa Miller', 'Pagliacci') and Nikolaus Harnoncourt ('Aida').

Daniela Dessì is highly popular in Japan, and in recent years she has performed in Tokyo in 'La bohème', 'La traviata', 'Pagliacci', 'Tosca', and 'Don Carlo'. While singing in 'Madama Butterfly', Daniela became the first European performer of this role in Japan. Dessì has performed three times in Russia. The first time she visited Moscow was in 1989 during the Russian tour of Milan's La Scala, where she played the roles of Liu in Puccini's 'Turandot' and Fiorilla in Mozart's 'Il turco in Italia'. In 2002, Dessì came to Russia on tour with the Rome Opera and performed 'Tosca' at the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, singing a duet with her husband, tenor Fabio Armiliato, who was visiting Russia for the first time. The last time the star couple visited Moscow was in October 2009, at the invitation of conductor Vladimir Spivakov, where they performed at the closing of his festival accompanied by the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia, conducted by Spivakov himself.

Daniela Dessì has a daughter, and Fabio Armiliato has a son from previous relationships. The couple almost always performs as a duet, playing lovers on stage. In the professional community, there are rumors that Fabio, whose talent is not as bright, secures contracts only thanks to his wife, who insists that he participate in the same productions as she does. Daniela works so much that she has little time for hobbies, but she enjoys movies, good food, and is an excellent cook herself.