1929 APOLLO GRANFORTE HMV TEST PRESSING Povero Rigoletto/ Cortigiani Vil Razza78

$

30

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The greatest Italian Baritone of the Electric era, Apollo Granforte, has left us mesmerized in his evil performances in the complete Otello and Tosca recordings

Here in an early electric recording made in Milan under Carlo Sabajno

HMV, Milano 1929-05-01
Rigoletto (Verdi): La ra, la ra... Povero Rigoletto with Menni, Palaia and Ottavi DB1450 2-054294 Matr 849 Take 2
Cortigiani, vil razza dannata - DB1450 32-1560 Matr 1199 Take 4 

12" 78 rpm record

Condition:

EXCELLENT FAINT SCUFFS,

A SUPERB COPY

The life

Apollo Granforte was born in the town of Legnago, a commune of Verona, on 20 July, 1886. Brought up in a humble family, the youngster found that he had a very imposing voice and, without formal training, attempted an operatic career as a tenor. He made little impression at his debut in Legnago 1905 as Arturo Bucklaw (Lucia di Lammermoor). The local reviewer wrote Granforte had a volcanic voice but sang with little finesse. After a few more disappointing attempts in several towns around Verona, he decided to give away a career in opera. In late 1905, he migrated to Rosario, Argentina , where he went to work as a cobbler.

A music lover funded his education at the Buenos Aires Conservatory, where Apollo studied for nine solid years. In March 1914, he debuted as a baritone at the Rosario Politeama in the role of Giorgio Germont (La Traviata), followed by Scarpia (Tosca), Marcello (La Boheme), Amonasro (Aida), Figaro (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Alfio (Cavalleria Rusticana) and in The Passion and Death of Jesus by Galleani. His success was enormous and he immediately received invitations to appear at all provincial theatres of Argentina. By 1915, he had appeared at Buenos Aires, the Solis of Montevideo and, in Brazil, at Pelotas, Rio Grande and Porto Alegre .

During World War I, Apollo returned to Italy. Being a fervent patriot, he fought in battle but continued his operatic career. In 1916, he appeared in Rome at the Teatro Costanzi and in Milan at the Teatro Dal Verme. In 1921, he was engaged by La Scala where he remained a pillar of the company until the break of World War II. As a guest artist, he frequently appeared in France, Australia (in Nellie Melba's own opera company), England and South America. Apollo created several roles, the most famous of which was Menecrate in Mascagni's Nerone, on 16 January 1935 at la Scala. During the early 1940s, in the twilight of his career, he appeared in Trieste and various other Italian cities.

Escamillo

(Carmen)

His farewell to the operatic stage was on 26 February, 1943, in Pizzetti's Fedra at the Teatro Verdi of Trieste. Iva Pacetti sang the title role and Gianandrea Gavazzeni, his long time and good friend, conducted. In 1945, he became the Director of the Ankara Conservatory and Leyla Gencer's teacher. After an assignment at the Opera House of Prague, he returned to Milan and opened a music school where one of the graduates was Raffaele Arie. He continued to participate in musical life well into his eighties and was often invited to sit on panels during music competitions. Apollo Granforte died on 11 June 1975 at Gorgonzola, a suburb of Milan.

The voice

Apollo Granforte belonged to an incredible group of great Italian baritones, including Amato, Franci, De Luca, Ruffo, Stracciari, Sammarco, Galeffi, Stabile, Viglione Borghese, Formichi and Ancona . Each was unique: either actor or stentorian voice or stylist but very few, from recorded and written evidence, combined the best of these qualities. Granforte was one of them. Reviews of live performances confirm his superb acting ability as well as his voluminous sound.

He had a major career, which encompassed over 1500 performances and took him to just about every major theatre in South America as well as to Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, Switzerland, Hungary and Yugoslavia . His voice was one of the loudest and most vibrant instruments in the recorded annals. Yet, musicality and taste are present in all his complete recordings, especially I Pagliacci, Tosca, Il Trovatore and Otello.

Selecting three recordings to illustrate Granforte's superb sound and vocal interpretation is not an easy task.

The celebrated aria "O, du, mein holder Abendstern" of act III from Tannhauser, the rejected Wolfram's afflicted song to the enchanting night star, is superbly interpreted and sung in Italian. Granforte was a master of the best Italian tradition in the Wagnerian repertoire and the aria illustrates it.

The very melodic trio "Veglia, o donna, questo fiore" of act I from Rigoletto, perceiving the fatherly affection Rigoletto holds for his daughter Gilda kept in a secret abode and the way he addresses Giovanna, custodian of Gilda, is eloquently and warmly executed.

In the ensemble "Innaffia l'ugola" of act I from Otello, Jago is drawn by hate towards his master Otello, begins to plot against him and involves the favourite captain Cassio in a drinking bout. In the ensemble, Granforte interprets the perfidious Jago with an almost perfect blending of superb vocality and characterization.

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