Leone Giraldoni

Leone Giraldoni (born 4 July 1824, Paris – died 19 September 1897, Moscow) was a celebrated Italian operatic baritone. He created the title roles of Gaetano Donizetti's Il duca d'Alba (1882) and Verdi's Simon Boccanegra (1857) as well as the role of Renato in Verdi's Un ballo in maschera (1859).[1]

Portrait of Leone Giraldoni

Leone Giraldoni, photographed circa 1865

Giraldoni studied in Florence with Luigi Ronzi and made his début as the High Priest in Pacini's Saffo (Lodi, 1847). He made his La Scala début as Il Conte di Luna in Il trovatore in 1850 and during his long career sang throughout Europe with considerable success. His final performance was in Filippo Marchetti's Don Giovanni d'Austria at Rome's Teatro Costanzi in 1885.[2]

After his retirement he taught voice and singing, first in Milan, and from 1891 at the Moscow Conservatory.[2] He was the author of two works on singing:

  • Guida teorico-pratica ad uso dell'artista-cantante, Bologna, 1864 (with a revised and expanded edition published in 1884)
  • Compendium, Metodo analitico, filosofico e fisiologico per la educazione della voce, Milan, Ricordi, 1889.

Contemporary accounts describe his voice as warm, smooth and evenly produced. He also was considered to be an effective actor, with a noble and dignified stage presence and beautiful phrasing, qualities which made him one of Verdi's favourite baritones.[3]

Giraldoni belonged to a distinguished generation of baritones able to perform the then demanding new works of Verdi, as well as the existing bel canto operatic repertoire, with exemplary style and technical skill.

Personal life

Giraldoni was married to the well-known soprano and violinist Carolina Ferni. Their son, Eugenio Giraldoni (1870–1924), became a leading baritone like his father. In Rome in 1900, Eugenio created the role of Baron Scarpia in Puccini's Tosca.[4][1]

References
  1. Forbes, Elizabeth. (2008). "Giraldoni, Leone". The Grove Book of Opera Singers, p. 192. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195337654
  2. Rosenthal, H. and Warrack, J. (1979) The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera, 2nd Edition, p. 195. Oxford University Press
  3. Gaspare Vetro, Dizionario della musica e dei musicisti dei territori del Ducato di Parma e Piacenza, Istituzione Casa della Musica, Parma, 2002.
  4. Steane, J.B. (2008). "Giraldoni, Eugenio". Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195337654
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