Ebe Stignani
Ebe Stignani ( born July 11, 1903 in Naples, † October 5, 1974 in Imola ) was an Italian opera singer with the vocal ranges mezzo- soprano and alto.
Life
Stignani studied singing at the Conservatory of San Pietro Agostino Roche a Majella in her hometown of Naples. Her education completed in July 1924. During a student concert at the Conservatory she heard the then director of the Teatro San Carlo in Naples and hired her. Her stage career began then in the season 1924 / 1925. She made her debut at the Teatro San Carlo in January 1925 as Amneris in Aida by Giuseppe Verdi. Other roles in their first season in Naples Maddalena in Rigoletto and were Meg Page in Falstaff. Her debut in Naples was so successful that it was subsequently committed by Arturo Toscanini for the 1926/1927 season at La Scala in Milan. In December 1925 Stignani sang at the Teatro Piccinni in Bari the Adalgisa in the opera Norma by Vincenzo Bellini. In January 1926 Engagements followed at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, as well as Adalgisa and as Amneris. In April 1926 she sang at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, the Azucena in Il trovatore by Giuseppe Verdi and the Principessa di Bouillon in Adriana Lecouvreur by Francesco Cilea.
In October 1926 Stignani sang for the first time at La Scala. She took over the alto part in a concert performance of the Ninth Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven under the baton of Arturo Toscanini. Your operatic debut at La Scala was then also in 1926 as Eboli in Don Carlo by Giuseppe Verdi. More Subjects games in their first season in Milan was the Amneris and Laura in La Gioconda. They even took over two real -soprano roles: Annie in Der Freischütz and Gutrune in Götterdämmerung, respectively in Italian. In November 1928, the Ortrud the Cathos followed the Preziosilla ' in Giuseppe Verdi's La forza del destino, in January 1929 in Richard Wagner's opera Lohengrin romantic and in February 1929 in Le Preziose Ridicole by Felice Lattuada.
Stignani appeared at La Scala in several world premieres: In May 1928, she sang the role of the blonde lady ( Una donna Bionda ) in the world premiere of the opera Fra Gherardo of Ildebrando Pizzetti. In February 1937, the premiere of the opera Lucrezia by Ottorino Respighi, with the small role of La Voce followed. 1938, 1946, 1948 and 1952, she sang Santuzza in Cavalleria rusticana by Pietro Mascagni. In the season 1938/1939 she sang the role of Rubria in the rarely performed opera Nerone by Arrigo Boito. She sang regularly until 1956, then at La Scala, and grew to become the leading contralto of the house. In the season 1956/57, she sang as the last game of the Ulrica in Giuseppe Verdi 's Un ballo in maschera.
She performed several times at the Arena di Verona. In 1930 she sang the Marina in Boris Godunov. More gigs followed in 1935 as Adalgisa, as well as in the years 1938 and 1949. During summer 1937, she sang in the Baths of Caracalla in Rome, Amneris in Giuseppe Verdi's Aida in 1939 where the title role in Carmen. In 1937 she sang at the Maggio Musicale in Florence, the Fenena in Giuseppe Verdi's early opera Nabucco and La vestal by Gaspare Spontini. In 1940 she sang the virtuoso coloratura role of Arsace in Semiramide by Gioacchino Rossini.
Guest appearances have also led to the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires (1927 Adalgisa and Hansel, 1933 Marfa and Preziosilla 1953 Eboli and Amneris ), to the Covent Garden Opera in London ( debut in 1937 as Amneris, 1939 Amneris and Azucena, 1952 Azucena and Adalgisa, 1955 Amneris, Adalgisa in 1957 ), the San Francisco Opera, and the Glyndebourne Festival and Edinburgh. Multiple guested Stignani also at the Teatro San Carlos in Lisbon. In April 1948 she sang the Santuzza, in March 1949, Ulrica, Amneris and 1950, respectively on the side of Mario del Monaco. 1951 guested Stignani with a guest performance by the Teatro San Carlo in Paris as Ulrica. In the season 1955/1956 she sang at the Lyric Opera in Chicago also the Ulrica.
In 1958 she officially ended her career at the Drury Lane Theatre in London in the role of Azucena. Then you came, however, again in three performances in Dublin as Amneris on. She lived withdrawn later in Imola.
Voice
Stignani was in her generation as one of the leading interpreters of the dramatic mezzo- soprano trade, particularly in the operas of Giuseppe Verdi. These games, she introduced " intensity and dramatic fire." Her singing style was " described terrific and haunting " as. Stignani had a vocal range that extended into the " upper layers of the alto voice ".
Your contralto was famous for their large volume and because of their virtuoso singing technique. In addition to the sonority especially was praised " rich nuances of their expressiveness and their exemplary vocal technique ".
The passed on through radio broadcasts, live recordings and records of musical work Ebe Stignani was largely on CD, partly in special historical documentaries, re-released in recent years.