Francesco Tamagno Italian opera singer tenor Date of Birth: 28.12.1850 Country: Italy

Biography of Francesco Tamagno

Francesco Tamagno was an Italian opera singer, renowned for his powerful and resonant tenor voice. He received his vocal training under the guidance of Carlo Pedrotti, the conductor of the Turin's "Regio" theater. After completing his studies, he joined the theater as a chorister and later became a comprimario (understudy).

Tamagno made his debut at the "Regio" in 1870, performing the role of Poliuto in Donizetti's opera of the same name. In 1874, he became a soloist at the "Bellini" theater in Palermo. Throughout his career, he performed in almost all major cities in Italy, including Rovigo, Rome, Turin, Florence, Naples, and Venice.

In 1877, Tamagno achieved great success when he performed the role of Vasco da Gama in Meyerbeer's "L'Africana" at Milan's La Scala theater. He also had successful international tours, performing in Lisbon, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Barcelona, Madrid, London, Monte Carlo, and more. He even appeared at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.

Tamagno's talent also brought him to Russia, where he performed in Moscow in 1894 and in St. Petersburg from 1895 to 1896. He retired from the stage in 1904 and passed away on August 31, 1905, in Varese.

Tamagno was widely recognized as one of the greatest tenors in the history of opera. His voice had a phenomenal strength and a bright, transparent timbre. He possessed a light upper register and dense, rich middle and lower registers, along with powerful breath control and impeccable diction. Tamagno also had a remarkable stage presence and expressive movements that beautifully complemented his vocal mastery.

He particularly excelled in heroic-dramatic tenor roles in Verdi's operas. His best-known portrayal was that of Othello, becoming the first performer of this role at La Scala in 1887 under Verdi's baton. Among his other notable roles were Arnold in Rossini's "William Tell," Edgar in Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor," Gennaro in Donizetti's "Lucrezia Borgia," Richard in Verdi's "Un ballo in maschera," Ernani in Verdi's "Ernani," Don Carlos in Verdi's "Don Carlos," Radames in Verdi's "Aida," Gabriele Adorno in Verdi's "Simon Boccanegra," Manrico in Verdi's "Il trovatore," Enzo in Ponchielli's "La Gioconda," Vasco da Gama in Meyerbeer's "L'Africana," Robert in Meyerbeer's "Robert le Diable," Raoul in Meyerbeer's "Les Huguenots," and John of Leyden in Meyerbeer's "Le prophète."

Towards the end of his career, Tamagno performed in the first verismo operas, such as "Cavalleria rusticana," "I Medici," "André Chénier," and more. In 1903, some of his opera performances were recorded on phonograph records.