Tancredi Pasero
Encyclopedia
Tancredi Pasero was an Italian bass who enjoyed a long and distinguished singing career in his native country and abroad.
Arturo Pessina in Turin, Pasero made his debut there, during 1917, as Ramphis in Verdi's Aida
—although he always considered his official operatic debut to have taken place in Vicenza
, on December 15, 1918, as Rodolfo in Bellini
's La sonnambula
.
According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera, Pasero went on to make guest appearances in London, Paris, Barcelona, Berlin, Hamburg, Brussels, Buenos Aires and New York City.
La Scala
, Milan, where he made his debut in 1926, would become his main artistic home, but American audiences did get to hear him from 1929 until 1933, when he sang at the Metropolitan Opera
. His roles at the Met included Oroveso
, Raimondo
, Miller
, Ferrando
, Fiesco
, Padre Guardiano
and Alvise
. A performance of Don Giovanni with Pasero singing Leporello with Ezio Pinza singing the Don was broadcast in 1932. Unfortunately, no recording exists of this performance.
Pasero notably sang the role The Miller in the world premiere of Umberto Giordano
's Il re
on the 12 January 1929 at La Scala. He also enjoyed considerable success in such Wagner roles (sung in Italian) as Heinrich
, Marke
, Pogner, Hagen
, Gurnemanz
. Pasero appeared, too, in the title part in Modest Mussorgsky
's Boris
and participated in the first performances of several other operas, notably, Mascagni's Nerone, in Milan, and Pizzetti's Orseolo, in
Florence.
In 1950, at the age of 58, Pasero retired from the stage.
Pasero was widely regarded as having one of the finest basso voices of his era, ranking on a par with those of his acclaimed compatriots Fernando Autori, Nazzareno De Angelis
and Ezio Pinza
. Indeed, the voice of Pasero closely resembled that of Pinza in terms of its range, size and exceedingly vibrant tonal qualities.
Pasero's reputation for high-quality singing is borne out by his recorded legacy, which includes recordings of five complete works: Norma
(released in 1937), La forza del destino
(1941), Un ballo in maschera
(1943), and Aida
(1928 and 1946). Also released on CD are extracts from a performance of Aida from 1937; unfortunately the whole of Act IV is missing. Also available on CD is a recording of Verdi's Requiem from 1940 but again this is only extracts. During the 1920s, '30s and '40s, he also cut a number of impressive recordings of individual arias from operas by Verdi, Bellini, Donizetti, Ponchielli and several French composers. Made originally for the Fonotipia, Columbia and Cetra labels, many of these 78-rpm discs have been re-released on CD in recent times by Preiser Records and other firms.
After retiring from the stage, Pasero dedicated his time to teaching. Among his pupils was Zdeněk Kroupa
.
He died in Milan at the age of 90.
Career & recordings
After studying with the baritoneBaritone
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...
Arturo Pessina in Turin, Pasero made his debut there, during 1917, as Ramphis in Verdi's Aida
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
—although he always considered his official operatic debut to have taken place in Vicenza
Vicenza
Vicenza , a city in north-eastern Italy, is the capital of the eponymous province in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, straddling the Bacchiglione...
, on December 15, 1918, as Rodolfo in Bellini
Bellini
-People:*Vincenzo Bellini , opera composer*a family of Italian painters:**Jacopo Bellini , father of Gentile and Giovanni**Gentile Bellini **Giovanni Bellini , the most famous of the three...
's La sonnambula
La sonnambula
La sonnambula is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the bel canto tradition by Vincenzo Bellini to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ballet-pantomime by Eugène Scribe and Jean-Pierre Aumer called La somnambule, ou L'arrivée d'un nouveau seigneur.The first...
.
According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera, Pasero went on to make guest appearances in London, Paris, Barcelona, Berlin, Hamburg, Brussels, Buenos Aires and New York City.
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...
, Milan, where he made his debut in 1926, would become his main artistic home, but American audiences did get to hear him from 1929 until 1933, when he sang at the 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...
. His roles at the Met included Oroveso
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
, Raimondo
Lucia di Lammermoor
Lucia di Lammermoor is a dramma tragico in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's historical novel The Bride of Lammermoor....
, Miller
Luisa Miller
Luisa Miller is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play Kabale und Liebe by Friedrich von Schiller. The first performance was given at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples on December 8, 1849...
, Ferrando
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...
, Fiesco
Simon Boccanegra
Simon Boccanegra is an opera with a prologue and three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play Simón Bocanegra by Antonio García Gutiérrez....
, Padre Guardiano
La forza del destino
La forza del destino is an Italian opera by Giuseppe Verdi. The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on a Spanish drama, Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino , by Ángel de Saavedra, Duke of Rivas, with a scene adapted from Friedrich Schiller's Wallensteins Lager. It was first performed...
and Alvise
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...
. A performance of Don Giovanni with Pasero singing Leporello with Ezio Pinza singing the Don was broadcast in 1932. Unfortunately, no recording exists of this performance.
Pasero notably sang the role The Miller in the world premiere of 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 Il re
Il re
Il re is a novella or opera in one act and three scenes by composer Umberto Giordano to an Italian libretto by Giovacchino Forzano. The opera premiered at La Scala in Milan on 12 January 1929.-Performance history:...
on the 12 January 1929 at La Scala. He also enjoyed considerable success in such Wagner roles (sung in Italian) as Heinrich
Lohengrin (opera)
Lohengrin is a romantic opera in three acts composed and written by Richard Wagner, first performed in 1850. The story of the eponymous character is taken from medieval German romance, notably the Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach and its sequel, Lohengrin, written by a different author, itself...
, Marke
Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde is an opera, or music drama, in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting...
, Pogner, Hagen
Götterdämmerung
is the last in Richard Wagner's cycle of four operas titled Der Ring des Nibelungen...
, Gurnemanz
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...
. Pasero appeared, too, in the title part in Modest Mussorgsky
Modest Mussorgsky
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky was a Russian composer, one of the group known as 'The Five'. He was an innovator of Russian music in the romantic period...
's Boris
Boris Godunov (opera)
Boris Godunov is an opera by Modest Mussorgsky . The work was composed between 1868 and 1873 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is Mussorgsky's only completed opera and is considered his masterpiece. Its subjects are the Russian ruler Boris Godunov, who reigned as Tsar during the Time of Troubles,...
and participated in the first performances of several other operas, notably, Mascagni's Nerone, in Milan, and Pizzetti's Orseolo, in
Florence.
In 1950, at the age of 58, Pasero retired from the stage.
Pasero was widely regarded as having one of the finest basso voices of his era, ranking on a par with those of his acclaimed compatriots Fernando Autori, Nazzareno De Angelis
Nazzareno De Angelis
Nazzareno De Angelis was an Italian operatic bass, particularly associated with Verdi, Rossini and Wagner roles.-Career:...
and Ezio Pinza
Ezio Pinza
Ezio Pinza was an Italian basso opera singer with a rich, smooth and sonorous voice. He spent 22 seasons at New York's Metropolitan Opera, appearing in more than 750 performances of 50 operas...
. Indeed, the voice of Pasero closely resembled that of Pinza in terms of its range, size and exceedingly vibrant tonal qualities.
Pasero's reputation for high-quality singing is borne out by his recorded legacy, which includes recordings of five complete works: Norma
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
(released in 1937), La forza del destino
La forza del destino
La forza del destino is an Italian opera by Giuseppe Verdi. The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on a Spanish drama, Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino , by Ángel de Saavedra, Duke of Rivas, with a scene adapted from Friedrich Schiller's Wallensteins Lager. It was first performed...
(1941), 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...
(1943), and Aida
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
(1928 and 1946). Also released on CD are extracts from a performance of Aida from 1937; unfortunately the whole of Act IV is missing. Also available on CD is a recording of Verdi's Requiem from 1940 but again this is only extracts. During the 1920s, '30s and '40s, he also cut a number of impressive recordings of individual arias from operas by Verdi, Bellini, Donizetti, Ponchielli and several French composers. Made originally for the Fonotipia, Columbia and Cetra labels, many of these 78-rpm discs have been re-released on CD in recent times by Preiser Records and other firms.
After retiring from the stage, Pasero dedicated his time to teaching. Among his pupils was Zdeněk Kroupa
Zdeněk Kroupa
Zdeněk Kroupa was a Czech opera singer. His wife became lifelong soloist of the National Theatre in Mira Figarova.-Life:...
.
He died in Milan at the age of 90.
Sources
- D. Hamilton (ed.),The Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia: A Complete Guide to the World of Opera (Simon and Schuster, New York 1987). ISBN 0-671-16732-X
- Roland Mancini and Jean-Jacques Rouveroux, (orig. H. Rosenthal and J. Warrack, French edition), Guide de l’opéra, Les indispensables de la musique (Fayard, 1995). ISBN 2-213-01563-6