Apollo Granforte
Encyclopedia
Apollo Granforte was an Italian opera
singer and one of the leading baritone
s active during the inter-war period of the 20th century.
, in 1913.
After returning to Italy, he sang at the Rome Opera before making his debut at La Scala
in Milan, as Amfortas
, in 1921. In 1924, he went to Australia on a successful tour with Nellie Melba
. During Granforte's subsequent tour of Australia in J. C. Williamson's 1932 Grand Opera season, Frank Thring senior's Melbourne-based Efftee Productions filmed him with the Williamson-Imperial Grand Opera Company in selections from Rossini's The Barber of Seville
. This relatively brief footage was released on VHS in 1989 by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.
Granforte possessed a big, rich, vibrant voice and he quickly established himself in the great baritone roles of Verdi and the verismo
composers. He sang some Wagner, too, and also took part in the creation of Nerone
by Mascagni in 1935.
After retiring from the stage, he taught at the Music Conservatory of Ankara, and later in Prague and Milan, where amongst his pupil was the bass Raffaele Arié
. He can be heard on recordings of Il trovatore
, Otello
, Pagliacci
and Tosca
. Granforte also recorded 78-rpm discs of individual arias and duets in the 1920s and '30s, and the best of these have been reissued on a CD anthology from the Preiser label.
Granforte is considered to have been one of the great Italian baritones of the 1920s and '30s, taking his esteemed place alongside the likes of Mariano Stabile
, Carlo Galeffi
, Cesare Formichi
, Carlo Tagliabue
, Benvenuto Franci and Mario Basiola, among others.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer and one of the leading baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
s active during the inter-war period of the 20th century.
Life and career
Granforte emigrated as a young man to Argentina, where he studied voice with Guido Capocci in Buenos Aires. He made his stage debut in Rosario, as GermontLa traviata
La traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
, in 1913.
After returning to Italy, he sang at the Rome Opera before making his debut at La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
in Milan, as Amfortas
Parsifal
Parsifal is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner. It is loosely based on Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival, the 13th century epic poem of the Arthurian knight Parzival and his quest for the Holy Grail, and on Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval, the Story of the Grail.Wagner first conceived the work...
, in 1921. In 1924, he went to Australia on a successful tour with Nellie Melba
Nellie Melba
Dame Nellie Melba GBE , born Helen "Nellie" Porter Mitchell, was an Australian operatic soprano. She became one of the most famous singers of the late Victorian Era and the early 20th century...
. During Granforte's subsequent tour of Australia in J. C. Williamson's 1932 Grand Opera season, Frank Thring senior's Melbourne-based Efftee Productions filmed him with the Williamson-Imperial Grand Opera Company in selections from Rossini's The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville, or The Futile Precaution is an opera buffa in two acts by Gioachino Rossini with a libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's comedy Le Barbier de Séville , which was originally an opéra comique, or a mixture of spoken play with music...
. This relatively brief footage was released on VHS in 1989 by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.
Granforte possessed a big, rich, vibrant voice and he quickly established himself in the great baritone roles of Verdi and the verismo
Verismo
Verismo was an Italian literary movement which peaked between approximately 1875 and the early 1900s....
composers. He sang some Wagner, too, and also took part in the creation of Nerone
Nerone
Nerone is an opera in three acts by Pietro Mascagni, 1935, from a libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti, based on the play Nerone by Pietro Cossa...
by Mascagni in 1935.
After retiring from the stage, he taught at the Music Conservatory of Ankara, and later in Prague and Milan, where amongst his pupil was the bass Raffaele Arié
Raffaele Arié
Raffaele Arié was a Bulgarian bass, particularly associated with the Italian and Russian repertories....
. He can be heard on recordings of Il trovatore
Il trovatore
Il trovatore is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play El Trovador by Antonio García Gutiérrez. Cammarano died in mid-1852 before completing the libretto...
, Otello
Otello
Otello is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play Othello. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, and was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on February 5, 1887....
, Pagliacci
Pagliacci
Pagliacci , sometimes incorrectly rendered with a definite article as I Pagliacci, is an opera consisting of a prologue and two acts written and composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo. It recounts the tragedy of a jealous husband in a commedia dell'arte troupe...
and Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
. Granforte also recorded 78-rpm discs of individual arias and duets in the 1920s and '30s, and the best of these have been reissued on a CD anthology from the Preiser label.
Granforte is considered to have been one of the great Italian baritones of the 1920s and '30s, taking his esteemed place alongside the likes of Mariano Stabile
Mariano Stabile
Mariano Stabile was an Italian baritone, particularly associated with the Italian repertory, especially the role of Falstaff.- Career :...
, Carlo Galeffi
Carlo Galeffi
Carlo Galeffi was a leading Italian baritone, particularly associated with the operatic works of Giuseppe Verdi and the various verismo composers.- Life and career :...
, Cesare Formichi
Cesare Formichi
Cesare Formichi was a prominent Italian operatic baritone, particularly associated with the Italian repertory....
, Carlo Tagliabue
Carlo Tagliabue
Carlo Tagliabue was an Italian baritone.After studies with Leopoldo Gennai and Annibale Guidotti he made his debut in Lodi, Lombardy, in Loreley and Aida. His debuts in Genoa , Torino, La Scala , Rome , and Naples were all in Tristan und Isolde...
, Benvenuto Franci and Mario Basiola, among others.
Sources
- Grove Music Online, J.B. SteaneJ.B. SteaneJohn Barry Steane was an English music critic, musicologist, literary scholar and teacher, with a particular interest in singing and the human voice...
, Oxford University Press, 2008.