Giovanni Martinelli (tenor) - L’Ultima Canzone (Tosti) (1917)

Giovanni Martinelli, with orchestra conducted by Josef Pasternack, sings ’L’Ultima Canzone,’ recorded at Camden, New Jersey, on 19 January 1917. From Wikipedia: Giovanni Martinelli (22 October 1885 – 2 February 1969) was an Italian operatic tenor. He was associated with the Italian lyric-dramatic repertory, although he performed French operatic roles to great acclaim as well. Martinelli was one of the most famous tenors of the 20th century, enjoying a long career at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City and appearing at other major international theatres. Martinelli was born 22 October 1885 in Montagnana, Province of Padua, Veneto in the Kingdom of Italy. After service as a clarinetist in a military band, he studied with Giuseppe Mandolini in Milan, and made his first operatic role in 1908 as the messenger in Aida. On 29 December 1910, Martinelli made his professional debut at the Teatro dal Verme in Ernani. On 12 June 1911, Martinelli debuted in Rome as Dick Johnson in La Fanciulla del West; he would continue singing in that role elsewhere in Italy including La Scala in 1912. Martinelli made his London debut at the Royal Opera House as Cavaradossi in Tosca on 22 April 1912. Then on 25 April 1913 he portrayed Pantagruel in the world premiere of Jules Massenet’s Panurge at the Théâtre de la Gaîté in Paris. Martinelli’s debut at the Metropolitan Opera took place 20 November 1913, as Rodolfo in La Bohème, where the young tenor’s easy high C and pure, silvery tone attracted favorable attention; he was a Met mainstay for 32 seasons, with 926 performances of 36 roles, appearing most often as Radames in Aida; Otello; Manrico in Il Trovatore; Don Alvaro in La Forza del Destino; Calaf in Turandot and Dick Johnson in La Fanciulla del West; but also as Arnold in Guglielmo Tell; Eleazar in La Juive; Enzo in La Gioconda; Don Jose in Carmen; Vasco de Gama in L’Africaine; Canio in Pagliacci; Pollione in Norma. He also sang in Boston, San Francisco and Chicago, often trying out new roles there, before singing them at the Met. Outside the United States, Martinelli appeared in Paris and Buenos Aires during his prime but – oddly enough – his native Italy did not hear him at his peak. In 1937, he returned to London to sing at the Covent Garden in highly acclaimed performances of Otello and as Calaf, opposite the exceptionally powerful English dramatic soprano Eva Turner. Martinelli retired from the stage in 1950, although he gave one final performance in 1967 – at the age of 81 – as Emperor Altoum in Turandot, in Seattle. During retirement he taught singing in New York, where one of his pupils was tenor Jack Harrold. Martinelli was essentially a spinto tenor of steely brilliance, commanding a strong high C; his rigorously controlled technique gave him exceptional breath control, although it did not eschew some occasional tightness and squeezing out of notes, particularly during the later phase of his career. His interpretive style was generally restrained and noble, but he was capable of delivering passionate, histrionic outbursts where appropriate in such melodramatic roles as Canio and Eleazar. As his voice matured during the early 1920s, some music commentators in New York regarded him as being Enrico Caruso’s successor in dramatic parts, even though the timbre of their voices were markedly different—Caruso’s tone being much richer and warmer—Martinelli’s forward, vibrant projection and broad phrasing found their supreme expression in Verdi’s operas, ranging from Ernani to Otello; in lyrical or lighthearted music however, his voice production could be too forceful and stiff. In 1945, Martinelli retired from singing on stage but continued to make occasional appearances at charity recitals. Martinelli sang as Samson in Philadelphia in 1950 and as the emperor in a Seattle concert of Turandot in 1967. He died 2 February 1969 at Roosevelt Hospital in New York City. I transferred this side from Victrola 74517.