BGuthrie Photos: DC -- Library of Congress -- Exhibit (Performing Arts): #Opera Before Instagram: Portraits, 1890-1955

DC -- Library of Congress -- Exhibit (Performing Arts): #Opera Before Instagram: Portraits, 1890-1955:

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Description of Pictures: #Opera Before Instagram: Portraits, 1890-1955
August 11, 2016–January 21, 2017
The Charles Jahant Collection in the Library of Congress Music Division contains nearly 2,000 photographs of opera singers from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, many of which are inscribed to him. Jahant began donating his collection to the Library in 1980, and it remains the largest iconographical collection held by the Music Division. The photographs on exhibit in #Opera Before Instagram: Portraits, 1890–1955 represent a cross section of important singers who performed in the United States. Some artists are presented in formal attire, which would have been used for general publicity and concert appearances, and others are costumed as characters from their operatic repertoire.

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Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

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[1] OPB4_160824_003.JPG	[2] OPB4_160824_014.JPG	[3] OPB4_160824_016.JPG
[4] OPB4_160824_027.JPG	[5] OPB4_160824_034.JPG	[6] OPB4_160824_039.JPG
[7] OPB4_160824_044.JPG	[8] OPB4_160824_056.JPG	[9] OPB4_160824_063.JPG
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[16] OPB4_160824_127.JPG	[17] OPB4_160824_137.JPG	[18] OPB4_160824_144.JPG
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[25] OPB4_160824_191.JPG	[26] OPB4_160824_205.JPG	[27] OPB4_160824_208.JPG
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[34] OPB4_160824_253.JPG	[35] OPB4_160824_259.JPG	[36] OPB4_160824_273.JPG
[37] OPB4_160824_278.JPG	[38] OPB4_160824_284.JPG	[39] OPB4_160824_297.JPG
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Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. OPB4_160824_014.JPG: #Opera Before Instagram: Portraits, 1890-1955 #Opera Before Instagram: Portraits, 1890–1955 features a selection of photographs from the collection assembled by Charles Jahant (1909–1994), a well-known critic, radio panelist, teacher, lecturer, and a member of the Advisory Council of the Metropolitan Opera Archives. Drawing on his comprehensive knowledge of opera, he also contributed articles to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera, The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, and other important publications. The Charles Jahant Collection in the Library of Congress Music Division contains nearly 2,000 photographs of opera singers from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, many of which are inscribed to him. Jahant began donating his collection to the Library in 1980, and it remains the largest iconographical collection held by the Music Division. The photographs on exhibit represent a cross section of important singers who performed in the United States. Some artists are presented in formal attire, which would have been used for general publicity and concert appearances, and others are costumed as characters from their operatic repertoire. Before Instagram and other apps made sharing photos as easy as pressing a button, pictures of popular opera singers, like those in this exhibit, were sold in gift shops across the operatic world. The most ardent fans would also write letters to their favorite singers to request photographs. Today, when using one's cellphone camera is commonplace, it may be difficult to appreciate the importance of acquiring such a photograph. Apart from the program booklet or ticket stub, it would have been the only remembrance that a dedicated fan could take home to commemorate a particularly wonderful night at the opera. For a collector like Jahant, however, photographs of this kind took on a different significance. His collection represents a historical view of the art of operatic singing through photographs of the greatest singers of his time and before. #Opera Before Instagram explores what Charles Jahant's Instagram account might have looked like had he lived in the internet age, with photographs of his favorite opera singers, along with captions giving his assessment of each singer's talent and history. The labels presented in this exhibition are drawn from Jahant's own writings. They capture his personal, and sometimes quirky, descriptions of opera singers just as he might have presented them on social media. #opera
2. OPB4_160824_016.JPG: Luisa Tetrazzini Luisa Tetrazzini was a truly great coloratura (vocal range of low B to high F). She made her debut in 1891 in Florence, Italy, and then left for a long stay in South America where she led a bohemian existence. She first sang in San Francisco in 1904 with a Mexican company and remained there for two seasons. Tetrazzini then went to London and was rapturously received. Oscar Hammerstein signed her immediately, and she soon conquered the New York public. When Hammerstein's Manhattan Opera failed, she joined the Chicago Opera from 1910 until 1913, singing briefly with the Metropolitan Opera, in 1911–1912. Her voice was uneven, and while superb in the upper register was somewhat undeveloped elsewhere. However, her joy of singing is apparent on her records. #opera
3. OPB4_160824_027.JPG: Helen Traubel Missouri's Helen Traubel first sang concerts in St. Louis in 1923. Her 1937 Metropolitan Opera debut in Walter Damrosch's The Man Without a Country revealed a voice of unprecedented beauty, particularly in Wagnerian roles, beginning with Sieglinde in Wagner's Die Walküre in 1939. A somewhat short range distracted from the whole, and her acting was rudimentary. Unflattering costumes were another liability. She made her career chiefly in the United States, but she sang also in Mexico, Buenos Aires, and London. Traubel's predilection for radio and night club appearances annoyed the Met management and ended her operatic career in 1953. #opera
4. OPB4_160824_034.JPG: Giovanni Zenatello If Enrico Caruso had one rival during his lifetime, it was Giovanni Zenatello, because of the latter's ringing high notes. He debuted as a baritone in 1898 and yet again as a tenor in 1899. Four years later he performed at La Scala where he created many leading roles including Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly in 1904. He then went to London, and while there Hammerstein engaged him for New York between 1907 and 1910. For the Metropolitan Opera's 1910 tour, Hammerstein graciously lent Zenatello to replace Caruso. He sang in Chicago and frequently in Philadelphia during the 1920s, and finally in New York's Bryant Park in 1933. #opera
5. OPB4_160824_039.JPG: Bruna Castagna as Carmen Bruna Castagna joined the Metropolitan Opera's popular-priced spring season of 1935 as the second great Italian mezzo-soprano since Sofia Scalchi. Her voice was sumptuous and her acting acceptable, although her own costumes sometimes were considered to verge on the vulgar. During her ten years in New York, Castagna rarely gave an unsatisfactory performance. She sang with many companies in the United States, including the Cleveland Orchestra Opera Company, the St. Louis Company, and at the Cincinnati Zoo Opera. #opera
6. OPB4_160824_044.JPG: José Luccioni as Werther Corsican-born José Luccioni was a pupil at the Paris Conservatory and made his debut in 1931 at the Paris Opéra. He sang in most French cities, as well as Monte Carlo, London, Barcelona, Rome, Turin, Florence, Verona, and throughout South America. In 1937, Luccioni sang in Chicago. His voice, penetrating but not overly powerful, enabled him to sing such heroic roles as Canio (Pagliacci), Radames (Aida), Calaf (Turandot), Samson (Samson and Delilah), his speciality, Otello (Otello); and lyric ones such as Werther (Werther), Roméo (Roméo and Juliet), and Faust (Faust). Luccioni created the lead in Alfano's Cyrano de Bergerac. #opera
7. OPB4_160824_056.JPG: Joseph Rogatchevsky as Des Grieux in Manon Lyric-dramatic tenor Joseph Rogatchevsky was born in a Russian-dominated section of Poland. He was sent to Paris to study and made his debut at the Opéra-Comique in 1922. In 1924 Rogatchevsky went to Brussels, where he remained, with some interruptions, for twenty years. He appeared also in Vienna, Lisbon, Berlin, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia. During World War II he fled to America where he was ignored until 1944, when he sang with the New York City Opera and San Francisco's Russian Opera. In 1953 he was made director of the Royal Opera in Brussels. He had a fine voice and sang a large repertoire from Mozart to Wagner. #opera
8. OPB4_160824_063.JPG: Bidu Sayão as Manon Brazilian soprano Bidu Sayão studied with famed Polish tenor Jean de Reszke before making her debut in Rio de Janeiro in 1925 in The Barber of Seville. After many European successes, Sayão came to Washington, D.C., in 1936 where she made her American debut in Lakmé. It was a disastrous performance in which the unpaid orchestra refused to play, and the opera was performed solely to piano accompaniment. The Metropolitan Opera engaged Sayão in 1937, where she remained until 1951. Her delicate voice was perhaps too small for the cavernous "Old Met," but her successes, especially in French opera, endeared her to audiences. #opera
9. OPB4_160824_069.JPG: Kerstin Thorborg as Orfeo in Orfeo ed Euridice A superb Swedish mezzo-soprano, Kerstin Thorborg made her debut with the Swedish Royal Opera, singing small roles in 1923 and moving to larger parts the next year. She went next to German theaters and then to Prague, Vienna, Salzburg, London, and to the Metropolitan Opera where she sang from 1936 until 1950. Tall and willowy, Thorborg was a mistress of gesture and could emphasis a word with the lifting of an arm or the opening of a palm. Very different from singer Maria Olszewska, she was in her own way equally imposing and impressive. #opera
10. OPB4_160824_076.JPG: Eva Turner as Turandot Dame Eva Turner was one of the last surviving singers of the First World War period. A dramatic soprano, she made her debut with England's Carl Rosa Company in 1914. In 1924 she went to Italy and was engaged at La Scala and became a favorite of Italian audiences. She also sang in Buenos Aires and Lisbon and with the Chicago Opera from 1928 to 1930 and again in 1938. Turner was conventional in her interpretations, but her voice, extremely clear, was one of a handful of comparably powerful sopranos of the age. She sang Turandot for the first time in 1926, and would be associated with that role for the next two decades. #opera
11. OPB4_160824_089.JPG: Leonard Warren as Rigoletto American baritone Leonard Warren entered the Metropolitan Opera in 1938 as a beginner by singing in duets and ensembles during Sunday night concerts. Soon he was awarded small roles and then larger ones. His large voice was woolly; it was only after studying with Giuseppe de Luca that Warren learned the secrets of bel canto (characterized by beautiful, even-note singing) that rendered his voice so distinctive. Additionally, his pronunciation of Italian was immaculate. His dramatic death from a cerebral hemorrhage suffered onstage at the Metropolitan during a performance of La Forza del Destino robbed the Met of one of its most valued performers. #opera
12. OPB4_160824_105.JPG: Zinka Milanov as Manon Lescaut Dramatic soprano (vocal range of Middle C to high D) Zinka Milanov was a pupil of Milka Ternina, among others. Her 1927 debut as Leonora in Il Trovatore in Ljubljana, Slovenia, launched her career. Milanov sang in Czech and Yugoslav theaters until 1937, when she was invited to perform in Dresden, Vienna, and Salzburg. The Metropolitan Opera engaged her that same year to replace Rosa Ponselle, who had just retired. Early in her career, she had a tendency to sing sharp and much of her work lacked discipline. In later years she was a more controlled singer in the grand manner of the Old Italian school, her pianissimo (very soft) singing being especially notable. Milanov performed with the major American opera companies as well as at La Scala and Covent Garden. #opera
13. OPB4_160824_110.JPG: Lily Pons as Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia A press agent's dream, Lily Pons came to the Metropolitan Opera in 1931, an absolute unknown, and continued to perform there for nearly three decades. Her tiny figure and her faintly tremulous voice with its exceptionally high range made her an instant favorite. Her best roles were not the ones requiring finished singing, but comic ones such as Marie in The Daughter of the Regiment, Queen Shemakana in The Golden Cockerel, and Olympia in The Tales of Hoffman. In late career her voice became increasingly uncertain, although her popularity never waned. Pons also sang in Chicago and San Francisco. #opera
14. OPB4_160824_123.JPG: Rosetta Pampanini as Madama Butterfly A lovely Italian lyric soprano, Rosetta Pampanini made her 1920 debut in Rome as Micaëla in Carmen. She was soon heard in Naples and Bologna, and in 1925 was engaged by Toscanini to sing Madama Butterfly in the revival of the work at La Scala before performing internationally. Pampanini sang Puccini roles in Chicago for the 1931–1932 season, and from 1925 until 1940 she was considered perhaps the world's leading Puccini singer. In 1935 the Metropolitan Opera's newly-appointed general manager, Herbert Witherspoon, had intended to hire her, but he died suddenly, only a month after taking office, and the planned offer was not made. The soprano had a limpid (clear, bright) voice of fine quality, and she was an affecting artist. #opera
15. OPB4_160824_127.JPG: Tito Schipa The finest Italian bel canto tenor (a tenor specializing in the operas of Bellini, Donizetti, and Rossini) of the first half of the twentieth century, Tito Schipa first appeared in 1910 as Alfredo in La Traviata. He sang at La Scala during the 1915–1916 season and was soon performing in major opera houses around the world. He was a fixture at the Chicago Opera from 1919 until 1932, in San Francisco from 1940, and at the Metropolitan Opera from 1932 until 1935, and again in 1941. His first teacher kept him on vocal exercises for three years, and the result was the extreme flexibility and control of his exquisitely delicate voice. Sometimes a bit reedy, his voice was not large but it carried in the largest auditoriums. Schipa sang his last New York concert in 1962, at age seventy-one. #opera
16. OPB4_160824_137.JPG: Aureliano Pertile as Nero in Mascagni's Nerone Aureliano Pertile was Toscanini's favorite tenor, and his reputation in Europe was enormous. Following Enrico Caruso's death in the summer of 1921, the Metropolitan Opera hoped that Pertile would be able to take the late star's place. But Pertile was of a different school, specializing in a verismo style that relied on vigor and force. He sang honorably but was considered a failure, and his first season at the Met, 1921–1922, was also his last. He remained popular at La Scala, where he created the title role of Nero in works by both Boito (in 1924) and Mascagni (in 1935). #opera
17. OPB4_160824_144.JPG: Ebe Stignani as Amneris in Aïda If ever a singer belonged at the Metropolitan Opera, it was Ebe Stignani. Following her 1925 debut in Naples, Toscanini engaged her to sing at La Scala the following year, where she sang many leading mezzo roles. Stignani was in the United States for performances with the San Francisco opera in 1938 and 1948, and toured the U.S. widely after the Second World War, yet she was never invited to sing at the Met. Stignani was a pushed-down soprano (singing in the range of a mezzo) rather than a true mezzo (G below Middle C to B) and her voice was powerful, as was her acting, especially in the role of Azucena (Il Trovatore) -- where she was authoritative in the extreme. #opera
18. OPB4_160824_150.JPG: Tito Gobbi as Figaro in Il Barbiere di Siviglia Trained initially as a bass, Tito Gobbi made his debut in La Sonnambula in 1935. Two years later, he went to Rome and then to Milan as a dramatic baritone. From there he travelled the world, appearing in San Francisco in 1948, Chicago in 1954, and finally at the Metropolitan Opera in 1956. This sovereign singing actor was the logical successor to baritone Lawrence Tibbett. Unfortunately, his appearances in America were sporadic. It is true that his vocal range was somewhat restricted, but he was irreplaceable in all that he did. Late in life Gobbi became a successful stage director, instructing others in the proper interpretation of the role of Scarpia (Tosca), one of his finest roles. #opera
19. OPB4_160824_157.JPG: Rose Bampton as Armide Cleveland's Rose Bampton was trained as a mezzo-soprano at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. She made her professional debut with the Chautauqua Opera in 1929 and then sang supporting roles with the Philadelphia Grand Opera. Bampton began at the Metropolitan Opera in 1932 as Laura in La Gioconda and she sang mezzo-soprano roles until making her debut as a soprano as Leonora in Il Trovatore in 1937. She sang also with companies in Chicago, San Francisco, and Cincinnati, and with the New York City Opera in 1950. Abroad she was heard in London, Munich, Vienna, Prague, and other European cities. Bampton was a great favorite in Buenos Aires where she performed works by Gluck, Mozart, Strauss, and Wagner. Bampton was known as an intelligent actress and a dedicated musician. #opera
20. OPB4_160824_163.JPG: Charles Kullman as Rodolfo in La Bohème Charles Kullman was an American romantic tenor. A debut as Pinkerton in an English-language production of Madame Butterfly in 1929 launched his career. He then went to Europe in 1931, singing in Berlin, Vienna, Salzburg, and London for four years. He returned to America when the Metropolitan Opera engaged him from 1935 to 1960. Kullman's voice was full and dark, and he excelled in light heroic parts. With age, his voice thickened, and he assumed character roles as well as the title role in Parsifal. #opera
21. OPB4_160824_170.JPG: Celestina Boninsegna as Elena in Mefistofele This dramatic soprano is something of a mystery. Celestina Boninsegna's operatic career began with seasons in France, Russia, and Italy (including at La Scala) and appearances at the Metropolitan Opera in 1906–1907 and in the Boston Opera Company in 1909–1910. However, her subsequent career found her almost always at secondary theaters, until she disappeared from the opera world around 1920. Boninsegna received excellent reviews in New York and even more enthusiastic ones in Boston and on tour, yet these were her only ones in America. Her voice was described as not large, yet sweet, pure, and in tune, but her acting commonplace. Boninsegna's voice recorded well and her records are prized by collectors. #opera
22. OPB4_160824_176.JPG: Emmy Destinn as Amelia in Un Ballo in Maschera After her 1898 debut as Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana in Berlin and subsequent appearances in Bayreuth and London, Czech dramatic soprano, Emmy Destinn, was engaged by the Metropolitan Opera to sing Aïda in 1908. The warmth and bright richness of her voice made her an immediate favorite. During the First World War, her patriotic stance against Germany and Austria resulted in her imprisonment by the Austrian government. She returned to the Met in 1919 for two seasons, but by that time she had lost much of her vocal prowess. Destinn, the original Minnie in La Fanciulla del West, was also a painter, sculptor, translator, librettist, writer, and poet. #opera
23. OPB4_160824_182.JPG: Giovanni Martinelli as Otello After his 1910 debut in Verdi's Ernani, beloved Italian tenor Giovanni Martinelli rose rapidly to the top. His work was admired in Rome and London, before he made his American debut in Baltimore opposite Mary Garden in Tosca. Martinelli made his musical home at the Metropolitan Opera, singing 926 performances of thirty-eight operas between 1913 and 1945. He also performed with many other American companies, notably those in Chicago, San Francisco, and Boston. His voice, somewhat hard and tight, was not to everyone's taste, but Martinelli was a consummate musician, stylist, and actor, usually performing heroic roles. #opera
24. OPB4_160824_191.JPG: Lisa Della Casa Swiss lyric soprano, Lisa Della Casa made her first appearance as Madame Butterfly in 1941 and sang a variety of roles in Zurich during the years that followed. After World War II, she left Switzerland to sing in Vienna and Salzburg, and later in London. Della Casa came to New York's Metropolitan Opera in 1953 and remained there for fifteen seasons. Noted for her great beauty and charm, she was a specialist in Mozart and Strauss, occasionally taking on Wagnerian roles. #opera
25. OPB4_160824_205.JPG: Johanna Gadski as Elisabeth in Tannhäuser The great German dramatic soprano Johanna Gadski began her career at a popular Berlin summer opera in 1889 as a soubrette, singing a decidedly flippant repertoire: operetta and Gilbert and Sullivan. After her voice developed further, Walter Damrosch engaged Gadski for a tour in 1895–1896, and the Metropolitan Opera hired her for its 1898–1899 season. She remained at the Met until the United States entered World War I in 1917. Gadski was cast in heroic Wagnerian roles as well as in Italian works. She returned to the United States as the head of her own German troupe from 1929 to 1932. Her voice was not exceptional, but it served the music well and honorably. #opera
26. OPB4_160824_208.JPG: Frieda Hempel as Baroness Kronthal in Der Wildschütz A lyric-coloratura soprano (vocal range of middle C to high F) of unusual gifts, Frieda Hempel was signed immediately after her debut in 1905 by the Berlin Königliche Oper, where she remained a star until leaving for the Metropolitan Opera in 1912. Hempel was trained in the old classical school and could sing parts requiring dazzling roulades (the singing of several notes to one syllable) as well as the lighter Wagnerian roles. As America's first Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier, she set a standard that remained unchallenged until the advent of operatic singer Lotte Lehmann twenty years later. Hempel retired from the Met in 1919 and, although she later sang opera in Chicago, she devoted most of her time to concertizing. #opera
27. OPB4_160824_217.JPG: Max Lorenz as Siegfried in Götterdämmerung Germany's leading dramatic tenor before World War II, Max Lorenz was first heard at the Dresden Staatsoper in 1927, where he became a principal tenor the following year. He moved swiftly to Berlin and Vienna, then to the Metropolitan Opera where he sang between 1931 and 1934 and again from 1947 to 1950. Lorenz was also heard in Milan, Florence, Rome, Paris, Bayreuth, and Budapest. His great renown probably stems from his striking physical appearance, his acting, and the absence of any serious rivals. #opera
28. OPB4_160824_220.JPG: Lillian Nordica as Isolde in Tristan und Isolde Maine-born Lillian Nordica was one of a handful of great American sopranos. Her 1879 debut at Brescia, Italy, launched a career that led her to Russia, Germany (including Bayreuth), Paris, and London. She returned to America with Henry Mapleson's Company in 1883, and she made her Metropolitan Opera debut in 1891, singing there until 1909, when she joined Oscar Hammerstein's Manhattan Opera. Her final appearances were with the Chicago Opera in 1912. Nordica had a wonderfully trained voice that enabled her to sing Violetta and the frothy Philine in Mignon, alternating with the heaviest Wagner roles in which she hurled forth huge waves of controlled sound. #opera
29. OPB4_160824_226.JPG: Stella Roman as the Empress in Die Frau ohne Schatten Romanian soprano Stella Roman trained in Italy, and established her career there during the 1930s singing in all of the large theaters in the Mediterranean, including La Scala and the Rome Opera. She was imported by the Metropolitan Opera to share dramatic soprano roles with Zinka Milanov from 1941 to 1950. Roman was rather short of stature, but her large, full voice, which she was able to shade at will, like Milanov, made her an interesting and welcome artist in Verdi and Puccini roles. #opera
30. OPB4_160824_233.JPG: Ernestine Schumann-Heink and Johanna Gadski in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg Austrian-born Ernestine Schumann-Heink (left) was a force of nature. She was trained by a coloratura and could sing trills and cadenzas that equaled those of any coloratura. Her natural range of a powerful contralto, and her introspective dramatic qualities thrilled her audiences. Schumann-Heink first sang at Dresden in 1878 before moving on to Hamburg, where she sang under Gustav Mahler. She came to the Metropolitan Opera in 1898, and then bought out her long-term Berlin contract so she could sing almost exclusively in America. She also sang with the Oscar Hammerstein Company and the Boston and Chicago operas. After Schumann-Heink gave her last Met performance in 1932, she concertized and toured with her own troupe in musical comedy, in Gilbert and Sullivan, and with Roxy's (Radio) Gang until she was well into her seventies. #opera
31. OPB4_160824_240.JPG: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf A German born in Jarotschin (now Poland), Elisabeth Schwarzkopf was one of the outstanding sopranos of the period after World War II. Her delicate instrument kept her in minor roles in Berlin after her 1938 debut. More successful in Vienna, Salzburg, and Bayreuth, she was idolized in London and appreciated in Milan. Her American debut occurred at San Francisco in 1955, as the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier, a role with which she was particularly associated. Schwarzkopf sang in Chicago in 1959 and briefly at the Metropolitan Opera from 1964 to 1966 at the outset of her decline. Her last stage appearance was in 1971 in Brussels, again, as the Marschallin. A most musical and artistic singer, Schwarzkopf was best in Mozart and Strauss. #opera
32. OPB4_160824_253.JPG: Maria Olszewska Born in a Bavarian village, Maria Olszewska chose her stage name from the Munich phone book. She made her debut in 1915 in Krefeld, and was then signed by the Hamburg Staatsoper. Vienna and Munich followed, and her world career began in Spain. She performed in Argentina, the Balkans, London, and then Chicago from 1928 to 1932. The Metropolitan Opera inherited her from the bankrupt Chicago Civic Opera. Although her voice was a strong, and rather colorless, mezzo, it was her acting that made her performances memorable. Olszewska knew the value of pose and repose, although she could be tempestuous. #opera
33. OPB4_160824_259.JPG: Jussi Björling Swedish-born Jussi Björling was among the greatest tenors of the twentieth century. He made his debut in a minor role in Stockholm in 1930 and went to the top quickly. Vienna was the first major European opera center to hear him, and his recordings soon made his name known everywhere. Björling is said to have detested the theater, but he sang widely, except during World War II, when he limited his stay in Sweden. Björling sang at the New York Metropolitan Opera from 1938 to 1960, as well as in Chicago and San Francisco. His early death saddened many opera lovers. #opera
34. OPB4_160824_273.JPG: Meta Seinemeyer Berlin-born Meta Seinemeyer was a lyric-dramatic soprano with a voice whose rich qualities were captured on many recordings. Her voice together with her early death, has made her into a cult figure. She debuted in 1918 at Deutsche Opernhause in Berlin, where she sang for several years. When Sol Hurok's German Opera Company toured America in 1923, Seinemeyer, in spite of frequent illness, sang more than forty performances throughout the eastern United States in a three-month period. She then joined the Dresden Opera and appeared in Buenos Aires, London, and Vienna. Seinemeyer's large repertoire ranged from Mozart to verismo (realism) roles, and she created the female lead in Busoni's Doktor Faust. #opera
35. OPB4_160824_278.JPG: Alessandro Bonci Alessandro Bonci made his debut in 1896 as a tenore di gracia or lyric tenor, and rose rapidly in his classification. After appearances at La Scala in Milan, Italy, and Covent Garden in London, England, he was engaged by Oscar Hammerstein for the Manhattan Opera from 1906 to 1908. The Metropolitan Opera enticed him away, and he performed there beginning in 1908. Bonci then sang with the Chicago Opera and with several smaller companies in Philadelphia and elsewhere. He taught for three years in New York City, and conducted master classes across the United States in 1924. Though their voices were not similar, he was considered a rival to tenor Enrico Caruso. #opera
36. OPB4_160824_284.JPG: Margarete Matzenauer Born in Hungary to German parents, Margarete Matzenauer, a contralto soprano, was perhaps the most outstanding example of her type of voice in the 1920s. After an inconsequential debut in Strasburg in 1901, she sang in Munich, Bayreuth, and London. At the Metropolitan Opera from 1911 until 1930, the beauty of her voluminous voice and her regal bearing established her as a force to be reckoned with, even against rivals of considerable power. She sang mezzosoprano and soprano roles at the Met and in Chicago, and continued to appear in operatic productions until 1942. #opera
37. OPB4_160824_297.JPG: Francesco Tamagno Francesco Tamagno was the foremost Italian dramatic tenor of the nineteenth century. At first appearing in supporting roles in 1869, he was soon singing leads, due to his immensely powerful voice, which could hurl out high Bs and Cs from a seemingly endless supply. Composer Giuseppe Verdi chose him to inaugurate the title role in Otello in 1887 at La Scala in Milan, Italy. Tamagno was in demand everywhere, and expensive, and came to America in 1891 with the touring Abbey and Grau Company. He appeared in New York as a regular at the Metropolitan Opera during the 1894–1895 season. #opera
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