Part II - Your Favorites: FRANCESCO TAMAGNO

[petereuropa]

Thank you for this short biography and this Tamagno recording. Perhaps there have been no more better Otello ever? I don't know.

[bobom1]

Chaliapin heard Tamagno singing at La Scala in 1901 and described him as "an exceptional voice - tenore di forza - indeed, the voice of a Century."

[jeichacker]

Signor Tamagno was a commanding presence in the world of great Opera singers in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. Opera houses all over the world paid him magnificent sums for his services. It is a pity that all we do not have him recorded in his prime. Verdi had reservations about his choice of Tamagno for Otello, but was more than satisfied with the results in the end. Otello made Tamagno and Tamagno made Otello, much like Caruso and the phonograph.

[papoocanada]

these old singers,,,,much overrated...always sound out of breath ............

[tomzoricic]

My dear friend "100 singers" , are you realy put Tamagno (God bless his soul) infront of Mario Del Monaco?!?!

[100Singers]

My dear friend tomzoricic: It´s not me who put someone in front of another one - all decisions were made by votings of YouTuibe-users! Mike

[hobo1975]

@tomzoricic tamagno was king moron.

[tenorvoicefan]

Ich gebe zu, ich bin hin- und her gerissen. Einerseits bewundere ich die kraft- und machtvolle Stimme, andererseits, ist da viel mehr außer diesem lauten schreien? Ich traue mich eben nicht, durch die Qualität der Aufnahmen begründet, hier ein Urteil mir zu erlauben. Ihn hätte ich gerne live erlebt! Alle weiteren Urteile gründen sich eben auf schlechte Aufnahmen und Bemerkungen von Zeitgenossen. Und da mache ich nur ungerne mit! Aber es scheint, außer laut war da wohl nicht viel!

[meltzerboy]

GB Shaw described Tamagno's singing as "magnificent screaming." And I understand that Verdi did not favor Tamagno to be the creator of the role of Otello. Further, Tamagno's recordings reveal to some a most unattractive vibrato, a bleating and much-too-open tone, a worn voice with a poor middle register, an inability to sing piano, a lack of broad phrasing, and so on. Despite all this, however, the authority, the majesty, the expressive power of Tamagno's singing shine through loud and clear.

[titaruffo2]

Que reste-t-il pour le and so on?

[meltzerboy]

Je veux dire que certaines gens n'aiment pas Tamagno et ce sont quelques-unes des raisons. Peut-etre qu'il y en a d'autres.

[inter215]

@meltzerboy I respectively disagree. Your assessment is subjective. Others including myself love his vibrato and open sound. Remember that acoustic recordings do not allow us to know exactly how these voices sounded in the flesh. And what we know of his technique has been shaped by the mainly heroic "favorites' he recorded. Should we have heard him in other repertoire what would we have heard? His recording of Mapelli's Ave Maria, e.g. is a revelation of nuance, soft singing and broad phrasing!

[meltzerboy]

@inter215 I think you may have misunderstood my comment. I was detailing some of the reasons why certain musicians and critics of the era, who in fact heard Tamagno in live performance, did not like the sound they heard; for example, George Bernard Shaw. My own feelings are the opposite; that is, I do admire Tamagno's voice and singing even on the old acoustic recordings. Like you, his vibrato and open sound do not bother me in the least. I believe he is a great artist as well as singer.

[inter215]

@meltzerboy Thanks for the clarification. i stand corrected.