Sofia Scalchi
Encyclopedia
Sofia Scalchi was an Italian opera
tic contralto
who could also sing in the mezzo-soprano
range. Her career was international, and she appeared at leading theatres in both Europe and America.
in 1850, Scalchi studied voice with Augusta Boccabadati. In 1866, she made her stage debut in Mantua
as Ulrica in Giuseppe Verdi
's Un ballo in maschera
.
Her first major international success came at the Royal Opera House
, Covent Garden
, where on November 5, 1868, she made her London debut as Azucena in Il trovatore
, also by Verdi. She appeared with the Covent Garden company thereafter until 1890, performing most of the standard lower-pitched female operatic roles. These included Urbain, Amneris and Arsarce, among others. Meanwhile, in 1882-83, she toured the United States for the first time, singing on that occasion with Mapleson
's company.
Scalchi helped to make history when she sang in the newly constructed New York
Metropolitan Opera
's first ever staged work, Charles Gounod
's Faust
, which inaugurated the theatre on October 22, 1883. She returned to Mapleson's troupe a year later but went back to the Metropolitan in 1891, where she would spend five further seasons.
Scalchi created no significant new operatic roles during her long stint at Covent Garden. She did, however, take part in a number of important American premieres, including those of Verdi's last two masterpieces, Otello
and Falstaff
. She appeared, too, in the initial American productions of Amilcare Ponchielli
's La Gioconda
and Umberto Giordano
's Andrea Chénier
. Scalchi retired from the Met in 1896 and formed her own private company of singers a year later, which then undertook a final American tour.
Commentators praised Scalchi during her prime for the strength, wide range and remarkable agility of her voice, although she was said to have possessed distinct breaks between each of her registers. She never made any gramophone
records. Her death occurred in Rome
in 1922.
, thus becoming the Countess Lolli. After her marriage, she was often addressed privately and billed publicly on theatrical posters or programs as "Sofia Scalchi-Lolli."
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 contralto
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
who could also sing in the mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
range. Her career was international, and she appeared at leading theatres in both Europe and America.
Singing career
Born in TurinTurin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
in 1850, Scalchi studied voice with Augusta Boccabadati. In 1866, she made her stage debut in Mantua
Mantua
Mantua is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the province of the same name. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family, made it one of the main artistic, cultural and notably musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole...
as Ulrica in Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
's Un ballo in maschera
Un ballo in maschera
Un ballo in maschera , is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi with text by Antonio Somma. The libretto is loosely based on an 1833 play, Gustave III, by French playwright Eugène Scribe who wrote about the historical assassination of King Gustav III of Sweden...
.
Her first major international success came at the 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...
, Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
, where on November 5, 1868, she made her London debut as Azucena in 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...
, also by Verdi. She appeared with the Covent Garden company thereafter until 1890, performing most of the standard lower-pitched female operatic roles. These included Urbain, Amneris and Arsarce, among others. Meanwhile, in 1882-83, she toured the United States for the first time, singing on that occasion with Mapleson
James Henry Mapleson
James Henry Mapleson was an English opera impresario, probably the leading figure instrumental in the development of opera production, and of the careers of singers, in London and New York City in the second half of the 19th century.-Life and career:Mapleson was born in London, England...
's company.
Scalchi helped to make history when she sang in the newly constructed New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
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...
's first ever staged work, Charles Gounod
Charles Gounod
Charles-François Gounod was a French composer, known for his Ave Maria as well as his operas Faust and Roméo et Juliette.-Biography:...
's Faust
Faust (opera)
Faust is a drame lyrique in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carré's play Faust et Marguerite, in turn loosely based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, Part 1...
, which inaugurated the theatre on October 22, 1883. She returned to Mapleson's troupe a year later but went back to the Metropolitan in 1891, where she would spend five further seasons.
Scalchi created no significant new operatic roles during her long stint at Covent Garden. She did, however, take part in a number of important American premieres, including those of Verdi's last two masterpieces, 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....
and Falstaff
Falstaff (opera)
Falstaff is an operatic commedia lirica in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, adapted by Arrigo Boito from Shakespeare's plays The Merry Wives of Windsor and scenes from Henry IV. It was Verdi's last opera, written in the composer's ninth decade, and only the second of his 26 operas to be a comedy...
. She appeared, too, in the initial American productions of Amilcare Ponchielli
Amilcare Ponchielli
Amilcare Ponchielli was an Italian composer, largely of operas.-Biography:Born in Paderno Fasolaro, now Paderno Ponchielli, near Cremona, Ponchielli won a scholarship at the age of nine to study music at the Milan Conservatory, writing his first symphony by the time he was ten years old.Two years...
's La Gioconda
La Gioconda (opera)
La Gioconda is an opera in four acts by Amilcare Ponchielli set to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Angelo, tyran de Padoue, a play in prose by Victor Hugo, dating from 1835...
and Umberto Giordano
Umberto Giordano
Umberto Menotti Maria Giordano was an Italian composer, mainly of operas.He was born in Foggia in Puglia, southern Italy, and studied under Paolo Serrao at the Conservatoire of Naples...
's Andrea Chénier
Andrea Chénier
Andrea Chénier is a verismo opera in four acts by the composer Umberto Giordano, set to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica. It is based loosely on the life of the French poet, André Chénier , who was executed during the French Revolution....
. Scalchi retired from the Met in 1896 and formed her own private company of singers a year later, which then undertook a final American tour.
Commentators praised Scalchi during her prime for the strength, wide range and remarkable agility of her voice, although she was said to have possessed distinct breaks between each of her registers. She never made any gramophone
Phonograph
The phonograph record player, or gramophone is a device introduced in 1877 that has had continued common use for reproducing sound recordings, although when first developed, the phonograph was used to both record and reproduce sounds...
records. Her death occurred in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
in 1922.
Personal life
In 1875-76 she wed Count Luigi Alberto Lolli, an aristocrat from FerraraFerrara
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...
, thus becoming the Countess Lolli. After her marriage, she was often addressed privately and billed publicly on theatrical posters or programs as "Sofia Scalchi-Lolli."