Lauri Volpi sings"'Pazzo son, guardate!" from Manon Lescaut. 1934

[SuperLuckydream]

Lauri-Volpi's brilliant art simply floats my heart away. Marvelous vocal and timeless artistry! Thank you, dear Edmund.

[EdmundStAustell]

@SuperLuckydream And thankiYOU, my friend, for a lovely comment, which I appreciate very much. And I agree with you. Many people believe that Lauri Volpi was the greatest tenor of all time. While I would never make that bold a claim for anyone--because it is impossible to support such claims--I nevertheless fully understand their enthusiasm. What can be said without doubt is that he was certainly one of the greatest tenors of all time!

[PonselleLover]

To me, Lauri-Volpi is THE tenor, the one I would sure have dreamt to be if I had been given the choice. Out of this world natural means and the highest aristocratic style. The greatest amongst the greatest. "Pazzo son" is my favorite recording of his along with his trumpetting "Esultate".

[EdmundStAustell]

@PonselleLover I agree with you about his greatness. His natural endowments were unbelievable, as was his towering intellect. Eight books and hundreds of articles on diverse subjects, including philosophy and Biblical studies. He was a giant, no doubt about it!

[PonselleLover]

@EdmundStAustell Thank you and mostly for posting videos of this God. I MUST take time to read "Voce Paralleli" in English if there is a translation. Did he write other books on voice matters ?

[sugarbist]

@PonselleLover He wrote a book called (Cristalli Viventi).He writes about tecnique and the interaction of the mental physical and spiritual preparation,and glorious spirit of the musical world and may other things.I own the book and it's written in Italian.My father saw him several times in Italy and remarked that his voice resonance rang out and travelled more than any tenor he ever heard including MDM Corelli Martinelli De Muro Merli Fillipeschi etc.He was truly a vocal PHENOMENON.Enjoy

[PonselleLover]

@sugarbist Yes, there is an interview of Corelli himself you can see on YT saying his high harmonics carried further than any other tenor"s. I already tried to get LV's "Voci parallele", in vain; his books seem very hard to find. But I'll try my luck again. I am also looking for anything from or about his voice teacher Antonio Cotogni. Thanks for your reply.

[sugarbist]

@PonselleLover I find something I will notify you

[PonselleLover]

@sugarbist Thank you very much. Have a great week.

[lilythepink123]

I love Lauri-Volpi! At times the little "breaks" in his voice remind me of the great Caruso. He does not, however, have Caruso's darker tones, and has altogether his own beautiful dramatic style. Hope to hear more of him, Edmund, thanks!

[Bivolari]

What a wonderful singer. He was, also, an astute writer on voices.

[EdmundStAustell]

@Bivolari Yes, indeed--his book on singers is a classic. He also, curiously, wrote romance novels. And he was a lawyer. And a colonel in the Italian Army during WWII. He was a man of great energy and intellect. Also a holy terror. He had a terrific temper. There is an interesting YT video of him losing it altogether when a student does not do what he is telling him to do.

[FarfalloneAmoroso]

Lovely!

[EdmundStAustell]

@FarfalloneAmoroso Yes, one of the all time greats.

[meltzerboy]

Gigli's arch-rival, Lauri-Volpi is in a sense the bridge between the old bel canto school of refinement and the newer, strenuous verismo style of singing. His performances on record are always interesting and elicit very mixed reactions. I'm a fan of his voice and singing and don't mind his excesses. I think he is more elegant than his famous successor, Corelli, who also has his moments of beauty as well as intensity. Thanks for sharing this, Edmund.

[EdmundStAustell]

@meltzerboy Again, my pleasure. I've always admired his great talent and exceptional voice. Clearly one of the greats. He was Mussolini's favorite tenor, and Il Duce rewarded him with an important commission in the Italian Army, Colonel if I remember correctly. He was an exceptionally difficult man, but a super-tenor, without doubt.

[meltzerboy]

@EdmundStAustell What is that old story--or is it fabrication--that Lauri-Volpi would not rest until he received a nickel or a dime higher salary than Gigli? An egoist, yes, but also an intellect and scholar as well as a great singer and man of action.

[EdmundStAustell]

That's one I'm sorry to say I don't know...but it would not be out of character. Yes, he was a brilliant, energetic man of many talents, but with a ferocious temperament. It may have to do with the fact that he was orphaned as a small child, and was raised in a seminary, I think it was...I'm not sure....and that can sometimes make a person hell-bent on success in life. He was always an applied student and did very well academically. Fascinating man. GREAT tenor!