Soprano Eugenia Ratti died in her hometown of Piacenza on November 16, 2020 at the age of 87. Ratti was a contemporary of Maria Callas, singing opposite the famed soprano in 1957 at Teatro alla Scala as Lisa in the Visconti production of “La sonnambula,” conducted by Leonard Bernstein. She also replaced Callas as Rosina in The Dallas Opera’s 1959 {…}
There were many controversial aspects about the life of tenor Tito Schipa. But there will never be any doubt that he was a great tenor. Born on Dec. 27, 1888, he studied in Milan and made his opera debut in Vercelli at the age of 21. From there he started performing throughout his native Italy and Buenos Aires. He also {…}
On Dec. 27, 1888, Raffaele Attilo Amedeo Schipa, better known as Tito Schipa, came into the world. Over the span of his 77 years, he would give the world glorious music in many forms. He was of course best known as a tenore di grazia, though he managed a number of Verdi and Puccini operas while conquering Italian roles by {…}