GIOVANNI
MARTINELLI
(b.
in Montagnana 1885 d. in New York 1969)
The
life
Giovanni
Martinelli was born at Montagnana (Padua) on 22 October 1885,
the oldest of 14 children. His father was a clever artisan
of fine wood. As a youngster, he spent time in his father's
workshop but found the opportunity for singing with a well
tuned white voice in the local church. Thus, his love for
music took wings. He played the clarinet in the town's and
then in the army's band, during military service.
The
youngster was gifted with an excellent tenor voice. He studied
'canto' assiduously under the guidance of Maestro Giuseppe
Mandolini and sang the solo part of Rossini's Stabat Mater
on 2 December 1910. Due to a positive result, he made his
real debut as the protagonist of Verdi's opera Ernani at the
Teatro Dal Verme of Milan on 29 December of the same year.
Martinelli's
fortunate and notorious career had its roots during an audition
at the publishing house of Ricordi where Arturo Toscanini
and Giacomo Puccini were present. They chose him to sing the
role of Dick Johnson in the new Puccinian opera The Girl of
the Golden West. The European premiere of the opera was held
at the Teatro Costanzi of Rome.
Vasco
di Gama
(L'Africana)
|
Enzo
(La
Gioconda)
|
In
addition to having a prodigious voice, Martinelli was gifted
with a natural scenic posture well conveyed by his physical
appearance. Since his early baptism of fire in Rome, Martinelli
appeared on the stage from Europe to America for over fifty
years.
The
voice
Giovanni
Martinelli will be remembered as a legendary tenor and a great
interpreter of operatic roles in the lirico spinto-drammatico
repertoire. The voice had special characteristics extending
to a high D in the upper register, wherefore
he was able to take on a vast array of operatic roles.
It
allowed him to sing in such operas as Meyerbeer's The Huguenots,
Rossini's William Tell, Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor and
Verdi's Otello. For his Edgardo in Lucia, he was acclaimed
frenetically at The Met, his home away from home, and at the
Teatro Colon of Buenos Aires.
Martinelli's
unique voice was quickly appreciated across the continents
and was in high demand by major opera houses especially for
the main operas of the great Italian, French and German repertoires.
He undertook them and appeared in countless performances during
his very long career.
At
The Met, where he spent most time of his career, he sat on
the throne left vacant by Enrico Caruso. His repertoire extended
over 36 operas, his performances were in hundreds, 650 at
The Met alone, where he kept renewing his contract over a
period of thirty consecutive years, a record which has never
been broken.
Audio
files (removed)
1.
G. Rossini - William Tell
Non fuggir...Ah! Matilde - duet Journet and Martinelli
William
Tell - act I.................................4:28
(22/9/06)
2.
U. Giordano - Andrea Chenier
Come un bel di di Maggio - Martinelli
Andrea Chenier - act IV.........................3:16
(29/9/06)
3.
G. Verdi - Aida
Già
i sacerditi adunansi - duet Castagna and Martinelli
Aida - act IV...........................................7:11
(8/10/06)
(r.s.)
|
”There
is one thing to be said for glory - you can take glory
with you, when it is your time to go”