Mafalda Favero
Encyclopedia
Mafalda Favero was an Italian
opera
tic soprano
.
Mafalda Favero was born in Portomaggiore
, near Ferrara
. When she was 17, she started studying with Alessandro Vezzani at the Conservatory in Bologna
and attracted the notice of Franco Alfano
. She began her professional career in her early 20s in Cremona
, then moving to Parma
where she sang several roles, before eventually getting to La Scala
where she debuted singing Eva in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
under Arturo Toscanini
in 1929.
She remained one of the regular singers at La Scala until 1950, also singing in London (Royal Opera House
) in 1937 and 1939, and in the United States (Metropolitan Opera
and San Francisco Opera
) in 1938. She had a large repertoire, including many contemporary works. She sang in the first performances of Alfano
's L'ultimo Lord, Pietro Mascagni
's Pinotta
, Riccardo Zandonai
's Farsa amorosa, and Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari
's Il campiello
and La dama Boba.
Attracted to the role of Madama Butterfly
, she later blamed this for her early retirement in 1954: "The role of Cio-Cio-San was my ruination. To sing it as I did, giving everything I had and then some, exacted an enormous price. I am quite aware that Butterfly cut short my career by at least five years".
Giulietta Simionato
remarked on her "animal sensuality" and said "She gave away a great deal of herself - more than was good for her - but the result was extremely moving."
She died in Milan
in 1981, aged 78.
from L'amico Fritz
, one of the glories of the gramophone.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
opera
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...
tic soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
.
Mafalda Favero was born in Portomaggiore
Portomaggiore
Portomaggiore is a town and comune in the province of Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Davide Santon was born here.-Main sights:The main attraction of the comune is the Delizia del Verginese, in the frazione of Gambulaga, a castle-residence built by Duke Alfonso I d'Este in the early 16th...
, near Ferrara
Ferrara
Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the Po River, located 5 km north...
. When she was 17, she started studying with Alessandro Vezzani at the Conservatory in Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
and attracted the notice of Franco Alfano
Franco Alfano
Franco Alfano was an Italian composer and pianist. Best known today for his opera Risurrezione and above all for having completed Puccini's opera Turandot in 1926. He had considerable success with several of his own works during his lifetime.- Biography :He was born in Posillipo, Naples...
. She began her professional career in her early 20s in Cremona
Cremona
Cremona is a city and comune in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Pianura Padana . It is the capital of the province of Cremona and the seat of the local City and Province governments...
, then moving to Parma
Parma
Parma is a city in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna famous for its ham, its cheese, its architecture and the fine countryside around it. This is the home of the University of Parma, one of the oldest universities in the world....
where she sang several roles, before eventually getting to 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...
where she debuted singing Eva in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg is an opera in three acts, written and composed by Richard Wagner. It is among the longest operas still commonly performed today, usually taking around four and a half hours. It was first performed at the Königliches Hof- und National-Theater in Munich, on June 21,...
under Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini was an Italian conductor. One of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 19th and 20th century, he was renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orchestral detail and sonority, and his photographic memory...
in 1929.
She remained one of the regular singers at La Scala until 1950, also singing in London (Royal Opera House
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
) in 1937 and 1939, and in the United States (Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
and San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera is an American opera company, based in San Francisco, California.It was founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola and is the second largest opera company in North America...
) in 1938. She had a large repertoire, including many contemporary works. She sang in the first performances of Alfano
Franco Alfano
Franco Alfano was an Italian composer and pianist. Best known today for his opera Risurrezione and above all for having completed Puccini's opera Turandot in 1926. He had considerable success with several of his own works during his lifetime.- Biography :He was born in Posillipo, Naples...
's L'ultimo Lord, Pietro Mascagni
Pietro Mascagni
Pietro Antonio Stefano Mascagni was an Italian composer most noted for his operas. His 1890 masterpiece Cavalleria rusticana caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history and single-handedly ushered in the Verismo movement in Italian dramatic music...
's Pinotta
Pinotta
Pinotta is an idillio or opera in 2 acts by Pietro Mascagni from an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti. The opera received its first performance on March 23, 1932 at the Teatro del Casinò in San Remo....
, Riccardo Zandonai
Riccardo Zandonai
Riccardo Zandonai was an Italian composer.-Biography:Zandonai was born in Borgo Sacco, Rovereto, then part of Austria–Hungary....
's Farsa amorosa, and Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari was an Italian composer and teacher. He is best known for his comic operas such as Il segreto di Susanna...
's Il campiello
Il campiello
Il campiello is an opera in three acts by Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari. The Italian-language libretto was by Mario Ghisalberti, after the famous comedy of the same name written for the 1756 Venetian Carnival by the great Venetian playwright, Carlo Goldoni.Referred to as a commedia lirica, it is an...
and La dama Boba.
Attracted to the role of Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
, she later blamed this for her early retirement in 1954: "The role of Cio-Cio-San was my ruination. To sing it as I did, giving everything I had and then some, exacted an enormous price. I am quite aware that Butterfly cut short my career by at least five years".
Giulietta Simionato
Giulietta Simionato
Giulietta Simionato was an Italian mezzo-soprano. Her career spanned from the 1930s until her retirement in 1966.-Life:Born at Forlì, Romagna, she studied in Rovigo and Padua, and made her operatic debut at Montagnana in 1928...
remarked on her "animal sensuality" and said "She gave away a great deal of herself - more than was good for her - but the result was extremely moving."
She died in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
in 1981, aged 78.
Recordings
Preiser have published a collection of her recordings on CD in their Lebendige Vergangenheit series (Mono 89162). This contains the 1937 'Cherry Duet' (Suzel, buon di) with Tito SchipaTito Schipa
Tito Schipa was an Italian tenor. He is considered one of the finest tenori di grazia in operatic history...
from L'amico Fritz
L'amico Fritz
L'amico Fritz is an opera in three acts by Pietro Mascagni, premiered in 1891 from a libretto by P. Suardon , based on the French novel L'ami Fritz by Émile Erckmann and Pierre-Alexandre Chatrian.While the opera enjoyed some success in its day and is probably Mascagni's most famous work after...
, one of the glories of the gramophone.