Mario Del Monaco (July 27, 1915 - July 16, 1982) was an Italian tenor , particularly associated with Italian heroic roles, notably Otello . One of the leading "tenore di forza" (dramatic tenor) of the 1950s, he possessed a voice of considerable range and power with a thrilling upper register.

Life and career [ change | change source ]

Born in Florence , Italy, he studied in Pesaro with Melocchi but was mostly self-taught. He began his operatic career in Pesero in 1940, as Turriddu in Cavalleria rusticana . He then sang widely in Italy and made his debut at La Scala in Milan in 1943, as Rodolfo in La boheme . After the war, he began to appear outside Italy, Barcelona , London , Paris , Rio de Janeiro , Buenos Aires , etc. He first sang at the Metropolitan Opera in New York in 1950, as des Grieux in Manon Lescaut .

Although mostly associated with the Italian repertoire ( Ernani , Il trovatore , La forza del destino , Aida , Andrea Chenier , Tosca , La fanciulla del West , Turandot , etc.), he also enjoyed considerable success as Don Jose in Carmen and Samson in Samson et Dalila . He left several complete opera recordings, often with soprano Renata Tebaldi .

Del Monaco was married to soprano Rina Filippini, who was also his vocal coach . Their son, Giancarlo (b. 1945), is an operatic stage director. Del Monaco died from nephritis in Mestre , near Venice , at the age of 67.

Sources [ change | change source ]

• Le guide de l'opera , Roland Mancini & Jean-Jacques Rouveroux, Fayard, 1986.