Last creation:
Concert for violin and orchestra No.2
in A-dur
Written in the nature:
/ 27 May 2009, Wednesday - 20 September 2009, Sunday /
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Последна творба:
Концерт за цигулка и оркестър No.2
в A-dur
Написан през периода:
/ 27 май 2009, сряда - 20 септември 2009, неделя /
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Emona is a village in eastern Bulgaria, situated close to Cape Emine, the Black Sea, the administrative center of Municipality Nessebar, Burgas.
With its permanent population of 29 people and an average altitude of 108 meters and the coast is known for its virgin nature and clean environment, which can be found almost anywhere on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. There grow unique plants, which are listed in the Red Book of Bulgaria and are protected by the Biological Diversity Act.
Emona is the birthplace of legendary Thracian warrior Rhesus [Res], a participant in the Trojan War.
The image of the Thracian king Rhesus, an ally of the Trojans and killed by Odysseus and Diomedes, was described by Homer in the X song "Iliad":
"... I saw with my own eyes his wonderful horses, unsighted
with excellent growth and color, whiter than snow.
And the speed of the wind they vihrovit similar.
Gold and silver chariot was decorated, bright
And gold is its wondrous light weapons,
decent weapon is not deadly to stand,
and the immortal gods live forever blessed ... "
Rezos horses and hunting in the Rhodopes. Rhesus is presented as the son or the river god Strymon (Struma River), or as the son of Hebros - personification of the Maritsa river, or as the son of the god of war Ares. According to legend he was a man received a divine nature - has turned into antropodemon. Mentions that Amfipolis had his temple - Heroon.
Or the ancient fortress of Emona "Aristeum" has stood in place of "Old Fortress" at Cape Emine in Emona village. Navigation is the site of present-day lighthouse. The remains were found and in the construction of the lighthouse. Nowadays, almost erased.
In 1278 was conquered by the Byzantines in 1366 by Savoies. In 1367 the inhabitants of Emona rose in rebellion and expelled alien garrison. In late 1369 and early in 1370 the castle was in possession of the despot Dobrotitsa.
In 1388-1389, he was conquered by the Turks, and finally fell in March 1453
Near the village is the protected area and the famous Irakli camping with the same name.
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| Boris Christoff - 18 May 1914, Plovdiv - 28 June 1993, Rome: |
Борис Христов - 18 май 1914, Пловдив - 28 юни 1993, Рим:
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The greatest Bulgarian of XXc. or how Boris Christoff is refused to play the part of the Tsar Samuil in the Macedonian opera.
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Най-великият българин на XX-ти век
или как
Борис Христов отказал да играе ролята на Цар Самуил в македонска опера.
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The people who had intimate knowledge of the world-famous opera singer Boris Christoff, told, that his patriotism was great. The actor`s family came from of Macedonian lands and the great bass all life is kept in his heart the romantic love to these old Bulgarian lands.
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Хората които познавали отблизо световно известния оперен певец Борис Христов, разказват, че патриотизмът му бил огромен. Родът на артиста произхождал от македонските краища и великият бас цял живот запазил в сърцето си романтична любов към тези стари български земи.
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In 1968, Boris Christoff lives in Italia. He received a letter from unknown composer from Scopie ( then Yugoslavia ). He reported, of the celebrity bass, is composed the sitorical opera with subject for the life and death of Tsar Samuil. After he made comliments for Bulgarian`s mastery the author offered him to perform the role of Samuil ( the star basso part ) in the future "opera performance" of the Scopie national theatre.
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През 1968 година живеещият в Италия Борис Христов получил писмо от непознат композитор от Скопие (тогава Югославия). Той съобщавал на именития бас, че е написал "историческа опера" със сюжет за живота и смъртта на Цар Самуил. След като правил дежурните комплименти за майсторството на българина, авторът му предлагал да изпълни ролята на Самуил ( главната басова партия ) в бъдещия "оперен спектакъл" на Скопския народен театър.
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It's obvious that, the letter in question is harmonized with official Yugoslavian power in Belgrad. To Boris Christoff is extended invitations hot only for participations in tha musical composition, but and promises for generous fees, the gramophone reserves and very much glory along the performance of the Samuil's arias. The great opera singer is interested from the creation on the young scopian composer and he is agreed to see musical score and libretto.
Soon, the notes and words on the opera "Tsar Samuil" arrived in Italy in voluminous envelope and Boris Christoff conscientionsly is asq hainted with the htme, subject and music on the future performance.
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По-всичко личало, че въпросното писмо е съгласувано с официалните Югославски власти е Скопие, в Белград. Към Борис Христов се отправяли покани не само за участие в оперното произведение, но и обещания за щедри хонорари, грамофонни записи и много, много слава покрай изпълнението на ариите на Самуил. Големият оперен изпълнител се заитересувал от творбата на младия скопси композитор и се съгласил да погледне партитурата и либретото.
В обемист плик скоро нотите и текстът на операта "Цар Самуил" пристигнали в Италия и Борис Христов добросъвестно се запознал с темата, сюжета и музиката на бъдещия спектакъл.
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Even when he read the beggining of the opera, the greatestworld and Bulgareian bass on the all times, understood, thes was forged document of the Bulgarian history. The Bulgarian Tsar Samuil was produced as "Macedonian duke", and his boyars as elite of the invented from Yugoslavian propaganda "Macedonian nation".
The anger of Boris Christoff is wented immediately in a harshly letter-answer to the young composer from Macedonia:
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Още като прочел началото на операта най-великият световен и български бас на всички времена разбрал че пред него стои фалшификат на българската история. Българският Цар Самуил бил представен като "македонски княз", а болярите му - като елит на измислената от югославската пропаганда "македонска нация". Гневът на Борис Христов се излял веднага в остро писмо-отговор до младия композитор от Македония:
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"Mr Macedonski,
I recived program for your "Tsar Samuil" for Scopie scene. I couldn't unterstand why you sent it to me. You know long ago, my opinion which is opinion of on every Bulgarian. Probluce a painful impression to me, the preface of D.Tashkovsky which is full with absurd ratiocinations and ditorted historic truths, which can't to redeuce impression even of the ingnoratnt people.
You know, my family come from parts of Bulgaria, in which you live and wich is called Macxedonia, which was and will be a centre of the most common bulgarian national spirit , as King Samuil Was and will stick in wolrd hisoty THE KING BULGARIAN,.
I wish you and your familly Happy New Year.
Boris Christoff
12th January 1969
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"Г-н Македоснки,
Получих програмата за вашия "Цар Самуил" за скопската сцена. Защо ми я изпратихте обаче, не можах да разбера, а то Вие отдавна знаете моето мнение, което е и мнение на всеки българин.
Тягостно впечатление ми направи предговорът на Д. Ташковски, който е пълен с нелепи съждения и изопачаване на исторически истини, които не могат да не направят впечатление дори на невежи хора.
Вие знаете, че моя род произхожда от край на България, в който Вие живеете и който се нарича Македония, която в била и ще бъде център на най-здравия български национален дух, така както цар Самуил е бил и ще остане в световната история ЦАР БОЛГАРСКИЙ!
Желая Вам и на Вашето семейство Честита Нова година.
12 януари 1969г.
Борис Христов
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D.Tashovsky is one of the angrist disposed macedonian historian, who every where publishes lies and defamations for Bulgaria.
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Споменатият от певеца в писмото му Д. Ташовски навремето минава за един от най-люто настроените "македонски историчари", който под път и над път публикувал лъжи и клевети за България.
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The opera offer from Scopie deeply in concerned Boris Christoff because ofter, a few months ( on 1st September 1969 ) he wrote in this connection the outrageous letter to his fellow-student Lyuben Zhivkov:
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Оперното предложение от Скопие, изглежда, дълбоко е засегнало навремето Борис Христов, защото след няколко месеца ( на 1 септември 1969 година ) той написал по този повод възмутено писмо до своя съученик и състудент от детинстото Любен Живков:
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"...This winter the composer Macedonsky sent me one program from, the first-hight performance of the Tsar Samuil in Macedonian national theatre in Scopie. I send you attacked to the letter photo-copy from the preface to the program - a case of the official treason to generation, mother-land and human worth and photo-copy of my short letter-answer in from without - comment, I want to you, I will suffer, unless I see there two bulgarian creatures ( Macedonsky and Tashkovky ) to wring their necks, to pull out their ears and send them to blazes with massive and holy kick- Good Lord, calm your slave, Boris!"
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"… През тази зима композиторът Македонски има тупето да ми изпрати една програма от премиерното представление на "Цар Самуил" в Македонския народен театър в Скопие. Изпращам ти прибавено към писмото фотокопие от предговора към програмата - пример на официално предателство към род, родина и човешко достойнство и фотокопие на моето кратно писмо-отговор.
Без да коментирам повече, искам да ти съобщя, че ще страдам, докато не видя тези двамата български юроди ( става дума за композитора Македонски и проф. Ташовски - б.р.), да им извия врата, да им изтегля ушите и да ги изпратя по дяволите с един мощен и свещен ритник…. Боже, успокой раба, твоего Бориса!"
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After angry reaction from aside of the great singer to the scopian forgers, from there they keep silent. Didn't follow any sign - nor an apology, notyet an explanation.
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След гневната реакция от страна на великия певец към скопските фалшификатори, оттам замълчали. Не последвал никакъв знак - нито извинение, нито за обяснение.
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Today, nabody isn't remembered for opera "Tsar Samuil" whre the born in the imagination of author "macedonian Knyaz" must replace "BULGARIAN TSAR".
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А днес вече никой не си спомня за операта "Цар Самуил", където роденият във фантазията на автора "македонски княз" трябвало да "замести" БЪЛГАРСКИЯ ЦАР.
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P.s.
Let don't remember, there high patriotic words pronounced in 1969, are saw in period when Bulgaria is governed from the Bulgarian communist party, under the influence on the Comintern and the decisions accepted from the "brotherly" Communist parties from socialist camp, recognized official the existence of the Macedonian country and Macedonian nation.
Even in the passports on the Bulgarian from Pirin land is enter: Nationality - Macedonian.
This more raise up the crystal clear patriotism of Boris Christoff.
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P.s.
Нека не забравяме, че тези високо патриотични думи произнесени през далечната 1969 година, са казани в период когато България управлявана от Българската Комунистическа Партия под влияние на Коминтерна и решенията приети от "братските" Комунистически партии от социалистическия лагер признаваше най-официално съществуването на Македонска държава и Македонска нация, като дори в паспортите на българите от Пиринския край се вписваше: Национална принадлежност - Македонец.
Това още повече извисява кристално чистия патриотизъм на Борис Христов.
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In 1976 the great bass, "who never left Bulgaria in his feelings", dedicatedly extends the sacred traditions of the our old founders. He is actuated by the his love of the motherland, he is happy to do something else good for his mother country. With empathy and with his wefe's approval Mrs Franka de Renzis he gave his last home in a residential district "Monte Mario" on 6' Via Madona du Campilio street, with purpose to help, the young talents and to subserve for the developement of the art and the culture.
The villa had to change in Academy of the ecaboration of the toung opera talents from Bulgaria in stile belcanto. This his gesture was redused after the official communist regime in Bulgarian, which was leaded from selfish and atavistic feelings of malice to his tailent, the redeliest refused to give an area for the Academy, which he dreamed to contructed in Sofia.
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През 1976 година великият бас, който пак, както с чисто сърце може да се каже, "никога не е напускал България трайно, поне в чувствата си", с всеотдайността да продължител на свещените традиции на нашите стари ктитори, воден от обич към родината, "щастлив да направи още нещо хубаво за своето отечество" в съпричастие и с одобрението на съпругата си Г-жа Франка де Рензис подарява своя последен римски дом в квартал "Монте Марио" на улица "Вия Мадона ди Кампилио" номер 6, "с цел да подпомогне младите таланти и да съдейства за развитието на изкуството и културата."
Вилата трябваше да се превърне в Академия на осъвършенстване на млади оперни дарования от България в стил belcanto. Този негов жест бе направен след като официалният комунистически режим в България воден от себични и атавистични чувства на злоба към огромният му талант най-грубо отказа да предостави терен за Академията която той мечтаеше да изгради в София.
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| the undying bass: |
безсмъртният бас:
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Alexander Borodin - For the love of far away motherland's water sides [ *.mp3 ]
Alexsander Borodin - Prince Galytzky's aria ( Prince Igor ) [ *.mp3 ]
Alexsander Borodin - Kontchak's aria ( Prince Igor ) [ *.mp3 ]
Arigo Boito - Ave Signor ( Mefistofele ) [ *.mp3 ]
Arigo Boito - Son lo spiritoche nega ( Mefistofele ) [ *.mp3 ]
Borthnyansky - Mnogaya leta [ *.mp3 ]
Dobry Christoff - Hvalete imya Gospodne [ *.mp3 ]
Christoph Willibald Gluck - O Diana dea spietata ( Ifigenia in Aulide ) [ *.mp3 ]
Charles Francois Gounod - Serenada of Mefistofele ( Faust ) [ *.mp3 ]
Charles Francois Gounod - Rondo of Mefistofele ( Faust ) [ *.mp3 ]
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Cosi dunque tradisci ( K.432 ) [ *.mp3 ]
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Madamina! Il catalogo e questo ( Don Giovanni ) [ *.mp3 ]
Modest Mussorgsky - Boris Monoloque ( Boris Godunov ) [ *.mp3 ]
Modest Mussorgsky - Farewell and Death of Boris ( Boris Godunov ) [ *.mp3 ]
Modest Mussorgsky - Dossifey's Aria ( Khovantschina ) [ *.mp3 ]
Modest Mussorgsky - Song of Varlaam ( Khovantschina ) [ *.mp3 ]
Modest Mussorgsky - ( Bosir Christov ) [ *.mov ]
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov - Song of the Vikin Guest ( Sadko ) [ *.mp3 ]
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov - The prophet [ *.mp3 ]
Gioachino Rossini - La calunnia e un venticello ( Il Barbiere di Siviglia ) [ *.mp3 ]
Giuseppe Verdi - Aria of Attila ( Attila ) [ *.mp3 ]
Giuseppe Verdi - ( La Forza del Destino ) [ *.mov ]
Giuseppe Verdi - ( La Forza del Destino ) [ *.mov ]
Giuseppe Verdi - Ella giammai m'amo... Darmiro sol ( Don Carlos ) [ *.mp3 ]
Giuseppe Verdi - Che mai veff'io... Infelice e tuo credivi... ( Ernani ) [ *.mp3 ]
Giuseppe Verdi - O tu Palermo ( I Vespri siciliani ) [ *.mp3 ]
Giuseppe Verdi - Recitative and aria of Banquo ( Macbeth ) [ *.mp3 ]
Giuseppe Verdi - A te l'estremoaddito ( Simon Boccanegra ) [ *.mp3 ]
Richard Wagner - Titurel der fromme Held ( Parsifal ) [ *.mp3 ]
Song of the Volga Boatmen [ *.mov ]
 A most difficult man, a man whose conflicts, both on and off stage, are legendary, a staggering presence in life and in art. There are few singers whose careers are so clouded by personal and professional controversy, yet he stands among the greatest of the Century, a towering figure in both the Russian and Italian operatic literature.
Boris Christoff was born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria on 18 May 1914 of a Bulgarian father and a Russian mother. Raina Teodorovna Ivanov was determined that Boris would have an education that stressed his Russian lineage. His lessons included Russian history and language as well as Russian music both at school and at home. However, it must be noted that another biography, one sanctioned by Christoff himself, states that his mother was Bulgarian. The family was very well to do and Boris received the best education available, including a period of study at the University of Sofia. During this time he sang both with the chorus of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and with the Opera company in "Lohengrin", "Tannhauser" and "Prince Igor". He gave up formal studies in 1939, but continued to be privately tutored with the definite intention of pursuing an operatic career.
Boris made enough money to support himself working as a judge and he occupied much of his spare time singing with the Gusla Chorus. In 1940, after making an enormous impression as the chorus's soloist, he sang his first recital at Sofia's Sala Bulgaria. Four days after the outbreak of World War II, Bulgaria declared its neutrality, so Boris was spared the horror of armed conflict. At some point after his graduation from the University, Boris did serve in the armed forces and was commissioned in the cavalry. He sang regularly in military concerts and was so admired that he was invited to appear on Bulgarian radio as a soloist.
 With his military service behind him, with financial help from the Royal Family, and with his family's blessing, on 18 May 1942, his birthday, he emigrated to Italy where, he felt he might better advance his career. The details are unclear but it is certain that sometime during 1942, with help from Giuseppe de Luca, he was introduced to Riccardo Stracciari, who took an immediate interest in the youngster. The great baritone worked with Christoff for nearly two years, tutoring him in the core Italian bass repertoire: Mefistofele, Don Basilio, Philip, Ramfis and Guardiano, as well as Leporello in Mozart's "Don Giovanni". Christoff returned to Sofia for concerts in 1943, and after further study with Stracciari, he moved to Austria, where, during 1944 and 1945 he made several guest appearances in concerts and recital including several broadcasts.
After the defeat of the Axis powers, life began to return to normal and Boris was free to travel wherever he wished. He returned to Italy, where, on 28 December 1945 under the auspices of the Accademia di Santa Cecilia, he made what he considered his official stage debut. The program consisted of several Russian songs, Leporello's catalogue aria and Boris Gudonov's "I have attained the highest power". A month later, at Rome's Teatro Adriano he sang Wotan's Farewell with the Santa Cecilia orchestra under Molinari Pradelli and on 12 May 1946 he made his operatic debut as Colline in "La Boheme" at Reggio Calabria.
The performance was so successful that Boris was forced to sing "vecchia zimarra" three times. It was a clamorous and most encouraging beginning, but, as so often happens, the road forward would not be easy. He returned to Rome, where, over a period of three months he appeared in nine concerts including a performance of Bach's "St Matthew's Passion". In July he traveled to Turin for Haydn's "Creation" in a radio broadcast and on the 30th he appeared as Cirillo in Giordano's "Fedora" at Rome's Teatro Quirino. August began with the Pharaoh in Rossini's "Mose" at the Quirino and at the end of the month he moved to the Teatro Adriano for Raimondo in "Lucia di Lammermoor" with Lina Pagliughi. In September, at the Adriano, he repeated Colline and followed these performances with a series of recitals in Rome. On 9 November he returned to the Quirino for Rocco in "Fidelio" and closed out the year with two additional Roman concerts.
 On 7 February 1947 Christoff sang an all Brahms recital at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia and the following evening he made his debut at Rome's Teatro dell'Opera as Pimen in "Boris Gudonov". This was a real breakthrough; he had made it into Italy's second theater in a leading, if not starring, role, and the reviews were excellent. At the end of the month he appeared at Palermo's Teatro Massimo in Beethoven's Symphony Number Nine, after which he returned to Rome for Zehrer's "Requiem Mass" and Handel's "Messiah".
In April he traveled to Sardinia for Ramfis, the Conte Des Grieux in "Manon" and Il Cancelliere di Ragusa in Alfano's "Madonna Imperia" at Cagliari. His reviews were unexceptional though they indicated good musicianship, the right temperament and more than just promise. On 4 June, he made his La Scala debut in Brahm's "Deutsches Requiem" with Suzanne Danco under the leadership of Vittorio Gui and he was very well received. At Pescara, in July, he gave a recital, then returned to Rome for three concerts. In the late summer, he returned to Sardinia for Raimondo, Timur and Padre Guardiano at Sassari's Teatro Giardino, again to solid reviews. On 10 September, he appeared in opera at La Scala for the first time when he sang Pimen to the Boris of Tancredi Pasero. The premiere was broadcast throughout Italy, and for the first time, his name appeared in newspapers throughout the country. His reviews were exceptional.
Christoff debuted at Venice's Teatro La Fenice on the 20th in the Mozart "Requiem" and five days later sang in the ?Creation? at Perugia. It was clear that he was very much admired as a vocalist, but that most of Italy was not ready to offer him lucrative opera engagements, yet. He returned to Venice in November for Beethoven?s 9th and on 30 December made his opera debut there as King Mark in "Tristan and Isolde" with Callas, Barbieri, Tasso and Torres under Serafin?s direction. Boris was certain that this engagement would assure his passage from comprimario to star, and his intuitions were correct.
 On 17 February 1948 Christoff debuted at Trieste?s Teatro Verdi as Dosifey in "Khovanschina" and a week later assumed the role of Hagen in "Gotterdammerung". He received enormous acclaim in the press and was called almost immediately to substitute for an ailing Tancredi Pasero as Tsar Boris at Cagliari. It was an historic performance, calling forth every superlative imaginable. "Christoff has interpreted this most difficult role with a remarkable personality. The death scene culminated in a display of extraordinary dramatic power and sublime singing." - Corrado Atzeri.
Boris was now hailed as one of Italy's leading singers. Florence saw him as both Dosifey in "Khovanschina" and King Henry in Lohengrin during the festival weeks of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and in July he debuted at Caracalla as Ramfis. In September he sang in Handel's "Samson" at Perugia and in October he assumed the role of Fiesco for the first time with the forces of Rome's Radio Station. In November with Turin Radio he sang Kaspar in "Der Freischutz" to the Agathe of Caterina Mancini and in December he returned to Florence in "Khovanschina" with Rossi-Lemeni. On 23 December he debuted at Naples Teatro San Carlo as Oroveso in a cast that included Maria Caniglia, Elena Nicolai and Mirto Picchi. Christoff walked off with the reviews. "Majestic, of a grandeur that this theater has not seen since before the War." On the 28th he ended the year at the San Carlo with "Der Freischutz".
 1949 began with the historic revival of "I Puritani" at the Fenice with Maria Callas, who stepped into the role of Elvira on five days notice, replacing an indisposed Margherita Carosio. Her performance made headlines throughout Italy. Commentators went to history books to find another occasion in which any singer had alternated such distinctly different roles as the Walkuere Brunnhilde and the Bellini heroine. Christoff was again lauded for the authority of his acting and the magnificence of his voice. On 31 January he appeared as Rocco in "Fidelio" at La Scala and on 9 February he sang Dosifey partnered again by Rossi-Lemeni. Late in the month he returned to Venice for Dosifey and in March he sang in Cimarosa's "Il Matrimonio Segreto" at La Scala.
The Milan public saw him as Guardiano on 22 March in a cast that included Elisabetta Barbato, Giulietta Simionato, Mario Filippeschi and Paolo Silveri, and after several concerts in the spring, he appeared at the Verona Arena on 21 July in "Lohengrin" with Renata Tebaldi, Nicolai, Gianni Poggi and Torres. At Salzburg, he appeared in the Verdi Requiem and Beethoven's Symphony No.9 and in September he sang Seneca in "L'Incoronazione di Poppea" at Vicenza. The opera was repeated intact at Venice's Fenice on 16 September. In October he sang Banquo for the first time for Turin Radio and on 19 November he debuted at Covent Garden as Tsar Boris. The London Times reported "the fact that Christoff sang the role in Russian was a small price to pay for such a fine interpretation". A later article sported the banner headline "Covent Garden finds a new Chaliapin". Harold Rosenthal stated that London had been privileged to see his debut in the role and that he had previously sung only Pimen and Varlaam. Neither statement was true; he had previously sung Boris and he had not sung Varlaam. In fact, he sang Varlaam only once, in a semistaged television broadcast from Copenhagen in 1971, a performance in which he also sang Boris and Pimen. On the 25th he repeated the Beethoven 9th at Royal Albert Hall with Schwarzkopf, J. Watson and Schock under von Karajan's direction. During his stay he made his first recordings for HMV. He closed out the year with another triumph as Tsar Boris at La Scala.
Boris Christoff, Nino Stinco, Giulieta Simionato, Ferruciio Tagliavini, Paulo Fortes, Guilhermo Damiano
On 21 January 1950 Boris appeared in "Simon Boccanegra" at the Fenice with Mancini, Penno and Tagliabue and on 4 February he sang Gounod's Mephistopheles for the first time. His Venice season ended on 19 February as Rocco in "Fidelio". The Naples San Carlo presented him in Tannhauser on 12 March with Tebaldi, Hans Beirer, and Tagliabue and later in the month he returned to Cagliari for "Il Matrimonio Segreto" and "Khovanschina". In April he repeated Dosifey at La Scala and on 27 May, for the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, he sang Philip in "Don Carlo". The stellar cast of Caniglia, Stignani, Picchi, Silveri and Neri was conducted by Tullio Serafin. On 15 June, at Florence, he sang Agammemnon in Gluck's "Iphiginie in Aulide" and at the end of the month Boris traveled to Berne for "La Forza del Destino". At La Scala he appeared in Beethoven's "Missa Solemnis", Bach's Mass in B minor, and in Brahms "Deutsches Requiem" with Victoria de los Angeles, all of which received unqualified praise.
It was time for Christoff's Met debut. Rudolf Bing had decided to inaugurate his era with "Don Carlo" and he invited Boris to debut on the opening night. The United States government had just enacted the McCarran Immigration act by which citizens of many countries, including Bulgaria, were barred from entry into the country. In fact, Christoff was accused of being a Russian, from Moscow, and he naively declared in a sworn statement that he had never even been to Moscow. The immigration service would not relent despite intervention from Sol Hurok and other high placed dignitaries. With a short time remaining until the first performance, Bing reluctantly gave up hope that the issue would be resolved and offered the role to Cesare Siepi. The production and the libretto were protested as subversive, anti Catholic and pro Communist by many Roman Catholics and some far right politicians. The fact that Christoff had been engaged only contributed to the controversy and there were pickets at the Met for a considerable period of time before the premiere and during its run. Boris Christoff would sing in the United States six years later, but his subsequent negotiations with the Met amounted to nothing, and he never did appear in that theater.
The Met's loss was posterity's gain, because on 20 November 1950 he recorded the role of Gurnemanz in a most moving performance of Parsifal for Italian Radio. Maria Callas sang a surpassing Kundry and among the Flower Maidens was Lina Pagliughi. It has been released in several editions and is among the author?s favorite recordings. On 23 December he sang the role of Cerevik in "La Fiera di Sorocinski" at the Rome Opera and two weeks later sang in "La Sonnambula" at that theater with Carosio and Cesare Valletti. On 6 February he recorded both Galitsky and Konchak in "Prince Igor" for Italian Radio and later in the month he returned to the Rome Opera for "Ernani" with Mancini, Penno and Silveri.
On 26 February he repeated Gudonoff at London's Covent Garden and made additional recordings for HMV. March found him at Cagliari for the Manzoni Requiem and "Don Carlo" and in April he returned to La Scala for Galitsky and Konchak. In May he sang Procida for the first time in a spectacular production at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. Callas was Elena, Kokolios sang Arrigo and Enzo Mascherini sang Montforte. It is preserved on record and is a truly grand performance, even if the tenor leaves something to be desired. He continued his season at Florence in Haydn's "Orfeo ed Euridice", again with Callas, after which he took a long break from performing.
 On 6 September he debuted as Philip at Rio de Janeiro's Teatro Municipal and on the 16th he sang Oroveso to the Norma of Callas, the Adalgisa of Nicolai and the Pollione of Picchi. On 9 October he debuted at Antwerp as Tsar Boris and on 3 November he sang Oroveso at Catania. Callas, Simionato and Gino Penno rounded out the cast and the Sicilian press declared the revival the most satisfactory in this Century. Six days later he sang in "I Puritani" with Callas, after which he traveled to Florence for his first assumption of the title role in Rossini's "Mose". Mancini, Carteri and Gustavo Gallo were his partners. On 7 December he opened the La Scala season as Procida, again with Callas who was making her official debut at the theater.
On New Years Day 1952 he debuted at Barcelona's Liceo as Tsar Boris and on the 17th he returned to Rome for "Der Freischutz" with Mancini, Simionato and Franco Albanese. On 21 March he recorded Boris Gudonoff for Rome's Radio Station and on 16 April he recorded the "Deutsches Requiem" with Carteri. On 27 July he performed Boito?s Mefistofele for the first time when he debuted at Naples outdoor Arena Flegrea. In the autumn Bologna heard him in "Lohengrin" with Carteri, Nicolai and Penno and in "Simon Boccanegra" with Mancini, Penno and his brother in law, Tito Gobbi. Theirs was not a good relationship, and as we will later see, there were public feuds, which both men in later years attempted to play down. On 14 December he repeated Tsar Boris for the Rome Opera and opened the New Year in the role at Modena's Teatro Comunale.
 In 1953, Boris sang Boris at Venice, Cagliari, the Paris Opera, and at Nice. He also sang in "Faust" at Rimini, "Don Carlo" at Bologna and "Norma" with Callas, Nicolai and Corelli at Trieste. Il Giornale di Trieste: "Boris Christoff defined with unquestionable authority the beauty and vigor of his voice and the dignity of his acting". Boris opened 1954 with "Don Carlo" at Venice and on 13 February he sang Gounod's "Mephisto" at La Scala with Schwarzkopf, Poggi, and Mascherini. In March, the Rome Opera presented Christoff, Mancini, Nicolai, Corelli and Gobbi in a stunning and hugely successful production of "Don Carlo".
On 8 June, Boris sang in Tschaikovsky's "Mazeppa" at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino with Magda Olivero, and at Caracalla, in July, he sang Zaccaria in "Nabucco" with Mancini, Albanese and Gobbi. August found him at Naples for "Aida" with Cerquetti, Nicolai, Penno and Giangiacomo Guelfi and for "Faust". In November he sang Ivan in Rimsky-Korsakov's opera on Milan's Radio network and in December he returned to Florence for "Nabucco" and "La Boheme".
In early January 1955 Boris sang both Galitzky and Konchak at the Rome Opera and began rehearsals for "Medea" with Maria Callas. Callas, when told that Boris would be Creonte, protested that she should have known earlier, claiming veto rights over casting until shown her contract. Christoff protested cuts in the score, stating that he was left with one third of the role, and that he would not sing unless the cuts were restored. He furthermore asserted that the Meneghinis were behind it. Meneghini, for his part, hired a claque to disrupt Christoff's scenes, and on the first night, 22 January, a large number of people did exactly that at the end of Creonte's invocation. There were fights in the balcony and police had to be called to the upper reaches of the theater to restore some semblance of order. Maria was protested at the end of "Deh tuoi Figli" and again, there was a delay. At the end of act two, as Maria approached the proscenium for a solo curtain call, Boris blocked her way and refused to allow her passage. "Either we all go out together, or no one goes out". The applause was frantic and interminable but no one appeared on the stage. Finally, the theater's manager explained to a large group of onlookers and reporters "Oh it's nothing serious. Just a Greco-Bulgarian war". Callas ultimately retreated to her dressing room. They completed the engagement and never sang together again.
 In 1955 Boris added Handel's "Judas Maccabeus", "Acis and Galatea" and "Giulio Cesare" to his repertoire and in 1956, he sang Sarastro at Naples and Don Basilio at Rio de Janeiro for the first times. He also debuted in the United States at the San Francisco War Memorial on 25 September as Tsar Boris and a few nights later he sang in "Simon Boccanegra" with Renata Tebaldi and Leonard Warren. The company performed both operas in Los Angeles. Arthur Bloomfield's "The San Francisco Opera" - "When Christoff arrived, he did not like the production at all. Furthermore, he had an argument with Steinberg who had replaced Von Matacic as conductor and left a rehearsal to sulk in his dressing room. Swallowing his dissatisfaction somewhat, he ultimately did perform as advertised". On 10 December he sang in New York for the first time at the NBC studios. In a concert that included Marian Anderson, de los Angeles and Richard Tucker, Christoff sang Boris's Farewell and Death. On 26 December he returned to Rome for "Iris" with Clara Petrella and Giuseppe di Stefano. The performance has been preserved on CD and is among the favorite versions of that opera for a large number of people.
In May1957 he debuted as Dosifey at Lisbon's Sao Carlos and later sang in "Simon Boccanegra" there with Pobbe, Gobbi and Corelli. On May 25 he recorded Massenet's "Don Quichotte" at Milan with Teresa Berganza and in June he returned to the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino for "Ernani" with Cerquetti, Del Monaco and Bastianini. In September, Cerquetti, Simionato, Miranda Ferraro, Protti and Christoff record "La Forza del Destino" for RAI. The Convent Scene is among the great moments in our recorded legacy, and, though flawed, is of a grandeur that is breathtaking. So says the author. Boris returned to the United States in October for a debut at New Orleans as Tsar Boris and followed that with concerts at Miami, Washington, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. On 22 November he debuted as Philip at the Chicago Lyric with Cerquetti, Nell Rankin, Brian Sullivan and Tito Gobbi. Paul Fornatar remembers - "I was fortunate enough to see everything Christoff did in Chicago. Sublime would describe the total package of voice, acting and makeup. He was the role he was singing and I think he might have considered himself a great artist - that was the magnetism that crossed the footlights. The voice never recorded as full and penetrating as it was in the house. It wasn't a large voice but a dark arrow which penetrated to the marrow".
 1958 recorded one of the most infamous episodes in Christoff's professional life. At the Rome Opera during a rehearsal of Don Carlo, as Philip was in the act of confronting his son in the "Auto da Fe", Christoff?s sword came crashing down upon Franco Corelli's own, and blows were struck. Tito Gobbi describes the scene "It is a terrific moment and I still see Boris, as the King, meeting the uplifted sword of the young and handsome Corelli and the fierce blows they exchanged before I stepped hastily forward to prevent quite a serious accident. Recalling this tempestuous rehearsal, I cannot help asking myself whether some magic from the scenic suggestion affected them or some private grudge provoked this realistic encounter". Christoff retreated from the theater and withdrew from the production, declaring that Corelli was devoid of artistic integrity. Mario Petri replaced him and the revival was, despite the defection, an enormous success.
The year also found Christoff's in two of his most celebrated performances, both preserved on LP and CD. At Naples in March, he sang in "La Forza del Destino" with Tebaldi, Dominguez, Corelli, Bastianini and Capecchi and in May he appeared in the historic Visconti production of "Don Carlo" in London with Brouwenstijn, Barbieri, Vickers and Gobbi. Nick Palmer remembers - "I guess that I went to some 20 performances with Christoff, Boris and Don Carlo mainly. Irrevocably etched in my memory - his curtain calls. I never saw him acknowledge the audience with other than a grave inclination of his head. I never saw him even lift his arms. I never saw even the remotest hint of a smile. Even amidst the audience cacaphony he stood nearly immobile - almost arrogant". On 2 December he made his Carnegie Hall debut in a concert version of "Mose" with the American Opera Society and on 18 December he repeated the role at La Scala.
 In the spring of 1959, after further performances of "Mose" at Rome, he returned to La Scala for "A Life for the Tsar" with Scotto, Cossotto and Gianni Raimondi, and in June, Boris sang for the Milanese in "Iphiginie in Aulide" with Simionato, Adriana Lazzarini and Mirada Ferraro. In August at Rome he recorded the Verdi Requiem with Vartenissian, Cossotto and Fernandi and in September he recorded a recital of Tschaikovsky songs at Paris. Christoff ended the year with Boris Gudonoff in London.
January of 1960 found Boris in Philadelphia and New York for concerts, and in February he returned to La Scala for Tsar Boris, followed by "Parsifal". He sang in "Don Carlo" at Salzburg in August, and in October, he returned to Chicago as Philip with Roberti, Simionato, Tucker and Gobbi. The arguments between the two brothers in law were horrific and Gobbi said in a later interview "men who are secure in themselves and know what they want, will disagree". The local newspapers referred to gross epithets that were unprintable. The theater's management attempted to mitigate the damage by painting a picture of two men who misunderstood certain directions in the production and Gobbi later stated that "we basically argued over two dogs in one of the scenes, nothing more than that". The performances were considered superb and the incident was all but dropped.
 On 13 December, Boris returned to La Scala for "Don Carlo" with Stella, Simionato, Labo and Bastianini. The newcomer, Nicolai Ghiaurov, was assigned the role of the Grand Inquisitor. So much anger passed between the two men that physical restraint was threatened on more than one occasion. Ghiauroff was admired and supported by the Communist regime in Bulgaria, and Christoff was so despised, that when his father died earlier in the year, he was denied a visa to attend the funeral. Audiences were mesmerized by the palpable effect of their intense animosity, most thinking that it was the product of a dramatic brilliance engendered by the opera. The tensions became unbearable, and Christoff announced that the theater was not large enough to accommodate both men. He was very specific in his demand that one or the other would have to leave. The Scala management chose not to capitulate and offered Boris the opportunity to honor his contract with "Parsifal" which was already in rehearsal with Rita Gorr, Sandor Konya, and Gustave Neidlinger. He chose to sing Gurnemanz. On 11 May, 1961 the doors of La Scala were closed behind Boris Christoff, never again to be opened.
 In August Boris debuted at the King's Theater in Edinburgh as Don Basilio and in September he recorded "Gallo d'Oro" ( The Golden Cockerel ) for Rome Radio. He returned to Chicago in October for "Mefistofele", "La Forza del Destino" and "Barbiere di Siviglia" and ended the year at Naples as Philip.
In March 1962 he debuted at the Vienna Staatsoper in "Don Carlo" with Sena Jurinac, Simionato, Labo, Eberhardt Waechter and Hans Hotter and in May he returned for "La Forza del Destino". In October, Chicago saw him in "Prince Igor" and "La Boheme" and in December Boris sang in Verdi's "Attila" for the first time at Florence's Teatro Comunale.
 In April 1963 Christoff debuted at Hamburg as Philip and in May he sang in "Faust" at Geneva. Chicago hosted him as Zaccaria, Pizarro and Don Basilio in the autumn, and he ended the year at Florence with Tsar Boris. In January 1964 Boris sang Pogner at the Rome opera, and after appearances at Paris and Vienna, he sang in "Prince Igor" at Rome in September.
It was discovered that Boris had a brain tumor and that immediate surgery would be necessary if his life were to be saved. The operation was successful but it was to be several weeks before it was certain that there was no permanent physical or mental damage. Public statements were withheld until just before Christmas 1964 at which point it was known that Boris would be able to resume a normal life including a career on the stages of the world, should he so choose. There is a most touching letter to Boris from his mother, a Christmas note, in which she says that she always knew that God was, after all, a good God and that she had placed her "Angel" in his care. She was still in Bulgaria and he in the West, a source of great emotional pain for both. Boris? recuperation was slow, but he did resume his career in 1965, though at a reduced pace. When he appeared, it was in some of his most demanding music, including the Manzoni Requiem, Tsar Boris and Giulio Cesare.
 He returned to the United States on 16 March 1966 as "Boris Gudonov" with the Boston Opera Company. Bill Fregosi, who has been most gracious in offering a great deal of information for this article, remembers - "I caught his always powerful Boris, albeit somewhat past his prime, in a Sarah Caldwell production in Boston which made the cleverest imaginable use of a miniscule stage to suggest the grandeur and scale of the Kremlin. He was magnetic and deeply moving. Audience reaction was tremendous".
The author remembers that both performances were sold out and that he was discouraged by personnel at the box office from making the trip from New York. There was a waiting list of hundreds of people for any tickets that might become available. So, I was to wait another fourteen years before I would see Boris Christoff, for the only time in my life.
In December 1966, Boris sang in "Don Carlo" at the Paris Opera and in September of 1967 he returned for additional performances. Boris beloved mother died in 1967 and he was allowed to return to Sofia for her funeral. In 1968 he sang for the first time in "Robert le Diable" for the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino with Giorgio Merighi and Renata Scotto, and in November he appeared at London's Drury Lane Theater in "Nabucco". Christoff continued to learn new roles, and in 1972, he sang in Nielsen's "Saul and David" at Copenhagen and in Verdi's "I Masnadieri" at Rome. Again, at Rome, in 1977, he sang Henry VIII in "Anna Bolena" with Leyla Gencer as the doomed heroine. Before it was over, he was also to appear at Amsterdam, The Hague, Budapest, Wiesbaden, Malta, Madrid, Birmingham (England), Cologne, Munich, Rejkjavik, and in a final concert at the Accademia di Bulgaria in Rome on 22 June 1986.
Boris Christoff never sang before a live audience in his homeland after his debut at Rome in 1945.
 On 24 March 1980, I finally had the privilege of seeing Boris at Carnegie Hall. He sang Banquo's "Come del ciel precipita", "Ella giammai m'amo" and Mussorgsky's "Songs and Dances of Death". He closed the program with "Boris's Farewell and Death". Murray Schlanger remembers - "It was one of my great nights of opera going??Christoff was dressed in white tie and tails and although I remember the house being darkened, I believe the stage remained lighted with no effort to set a mood through effect by artificial means. From the moment that unique voice uttered its first note, it was clear to me that I was living a dream that I never had expected to realize. I was so very grateful to be able to participate in an event that somehow I knew was something of a completion of a career of great stature".
The author remembers that, as he walked toward Carnegie Hall, he was besieged by people with money to spend, any amount for a ticket. I was not about to part with my treasure. It was as though a circle was about to close. The last of the great heroes of my youth was, in a few moments, to give me one of the great thrills of my life, and he did not disappoint, in any way. The concert is preserved on CD and I turn to it from time to time so that I can remember.
On 23 June 1993 Boris life was spent. His body was returned to the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral where he had first sung as a boy, for a state funeral. The Communist Hierarchy insisted upon the honor of being pallbearers, they who had so vilified him in life. It is recorded and has been relayed to me by Barry Brenesal - "so upset were some of the mourners that there was hissing in the Cathedral for the first time in recorded memory". Even in death, Boris Christoff aroused "passions" that could not be contained, just as his own could not be contained in life. To his immortal memory!
| Composer |
Work ( Role ) |
Number show |
Debut: |
Final show: |
Franco
Alfano
b: 8 March 1875, Posillipo
d: 27 October 1954, San Remo |
"Madonna Imperia"
( Il Cancelliere di Ragusa
) |
1 |
Teatro Massimo di
Cagliari
10 September 1947 |
Teatro Massimo di
Cagliari
10 September 1947 |
Johann Sebastian Bach
b: 21 March 1685, Eisenach
d: 28 July 1750,
Leipzig |
Messe in B-moll BWV 232 |
1 |
Teatro alla Scala di
Milano
2 Jully 1950 |
Teatro alla Scala di
Milano
2 Jully 1950 |
| Mateus
Pasion BWV 244 |
7 |
Teatro Adriano di Roma
6 May 1947 |
Teatro alla Scala di
Milano
10 May 1950 |
Ludwig van Beethoven
b: 16 December 1770 Bonn
d: 26 March 1827,
Vienna |
"Fidelio"
( Rocco ) |
10 |
Teatro Quirino di Roma
9 November 1946 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
30 November 1955 |
"Fidelio"
( Don Pizarro ) |
7 |
Lyric Opera di Chicago
23 October 1963 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
20 February 1964 |
| Missa
Solemnis op.123 |
3 |
Teatro alla Scala di
Milano
29 June 1950 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
1 April 1961 |
| Symphony
No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 |
11 |
Teatro Massimo di Palermo
23 February 1947 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
26 September 1965 |
Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini
b: 3 November 1801, Catania
d: 23 September
1835, Puteaux |
"Norma"
( Oroveso ) |
13 |
Teatro San Carlo di
Napoli
23 December 1948 |
Teatro Verdi di Trieste
29 November 1953 |
"I
puritani"
( Giorgio ) |
7 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
19 June 1949 |
Teatro Bellini di Catania
16 November 1951 |
"La
sonnambula"
( Count Rodolfo ) |
4 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
10 January 1951 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
17 January 1952 |
Arrigo
Boito
b: 24 February 1842, Padua
d: 10 June 1918,
Milan |
"Mephistofele"
( Mephistofele ) |
11 |
Arena Flegrea di Napoli
27 Jully 1952 |
Lyric Opera di Chicago
27 October 1956 |
Alexander
Porfiryevich Borodin
b: 31 October 1833, Saint Petersburg
d: 27 February
1887, Saint Petersburg |
"Prince Igor"
( Vladimir Yaroslavich, Prince
of Galich and Konchak, a Polovetsian Khan ) |
24 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
6 February 1952 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
19 September 1964 |
Johannes
Jakob Brahms
b: 7 May 1833, Hamburg
d: 3 April 1897,
Vienna |
"Ein deutsches
Requiem" op.45 |
4 |
Teatro alla Scala di
Milano
4 June 1947 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
16 April 1952 |
Giacomo
Carissimi
b: 18 April 1605, v.Marino
d: 12 January 1674,
Rome |
"Lutsipherus" |
1 |
Oratorio SS. Crocefisso di
Roma
8 May 1952 |
Oratorio SS.Crocefisso di
Roma
8 May 1952 |
Luigi
Carlo Zenobio Salvatore Cherubini
b: 14 September
1760, Florence
d: 15 March 1842,
Paris |
"Medea"
( Creonte ) |
4 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
22 January 1955 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
30 January 1955 |
Pyotr
Ilyich Tchaikovsky
b: 7 May 1840, Votkinsk
d: 6 November 1893,
Saint Petersburg |
"Mazeppa"
( Vasily Kochubey ) |
8 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
6 June 1954 |
Teatro Bellini di Catania
5 May 1975 |
Domenico
Cimarosa
b: 17 December
1749, Aversa
d: 11 January 1801,
Venice |
"Il matrimonio
segreto"
( Count Robinsson ) |
6 |
Teatro della Piccola
Scala
22 May 1949 |
Teatro Massimo di
Cagliari
20 March 1950 |
Domenico Gaetano Maria
Donizetti
b: 29 November 1797, Bergamo
d: 8 April 1848,
Bergamo |
"Anna Bolena"
( Enrico - Henry VIII
) |
2 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
7 April 1977 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
9 April 1977 |
"Lucia
di Lammermoor"
( Raimondo Bidebent, a
Calvinist chaplain ) |
6 |
Teatro Adriano di Roma
30 August 1946 |
Teatro Giardino di
Sassari
1 September 1949 |
Umberto
Menotti Maria Giordano
b: 28 August 1867, Foggia in Puglia
d: 12 November
1948, Milano |
"Fedora"
( Cirillo ) |
2 |
Teatro Quirino di Roma
27 Jully 1946 |
Teatro Quirino di Roma
30 Jully 1946 |
Mikhail
Ivanovich Glinka
b: 1 June 1804,
v.Novospasskoye
d: 15 February
1857, Berlin |
"A Life for the
Tsar"
( Ivan Susanin, a peasant
the village of Domnino ) |
10 |
Auditorium RAI, Sala Verdi di
Milano
5 December 1954 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
31 May 1974 |
Christoph
Willibald von Gluck
b: 2 July 1714, Erasbach
d: 15 November
1787, Vienna |
"Iphigénie en
Aulide"
( Agamemnon, King of
Mycenae ) |
11 |
Giardini di Boboli di
Firenze
15 June 1950 |
Teatro alla Scala di
Milano
11 June 1959 |
Charles-François
Gounod
b: 17 June 1818, Paris
d: 18 October 1893,
St.Cloud |
"Faust"
( Méphistophélès ) |
26 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
4 January 1950 |
Grand Thearte di Ginerva
25 May 1963 |
| Guedo
Guerinni |
"Eney"
( Eney ) |
2 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
11 March 1953 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
15 March 1953 |
George Frideric Handel
b: 23 February 1685, Halle
d: 14 April 1759,
London |
"Acis and
Galatea"
( Polyphemus ) |
1 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
12 February 1955 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
12 February 1955 |
"Giulio
Cesare"
( Julius Caesar ) |
7 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
26 December 1955 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
9 February 1966 |
| Oratorio:
"Messiah" HWV 56 |
5 |
Teatro Argentina di Roma
30 March 1947 |
Teatro Nuovo di Perugia
8 April 1949 |
Oratorio:
"Samson"
( Manoah, Father to Samson
) |
2 |
Teatro Morlacchi di
Perugia
30 September 1949 |
Teatro Morlacchi di
Perugia
3 October 1949 |
| Oratorio: "Judas
Maccabaeus" |
1 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
5 February 1955 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
5 February 1955 |
Franz Joseph Haydn
b: 31 March 1732, Rohrau
d: 31 May 1809,
Vienna |
"Orfeo ed
Euridice"
( Creone ) |
3 |
Teatro della Pergola di
Firenze
9 June 1951 |
Auditorium RAI, Sala Verdi di
Milano
23 March 1958 |
Oratorio:
"The Creation"
( Raphael ) |
4 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
5 Jully 1946 |
Kunsthaus Lucerna
28 August 1946 |
Paul
Hindemith
b: 16 November 1895, Hanau
d: 28 December
1963, Frankfurt |
"Cardillac"
( The dealer of gold
) |
2 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
5 September 1948 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
7 September 1948 |
| Artur
Oneger |
"Judite"
( Olophern ) |
2 |
Teatro Morlacchi di
Perugia
19 September 1948 |
Teatro Morlacchi di
Perugia
23 September 1948 |
Pietro
Antonio Stefano Mascagni
b: 7 December 1863, Livorno
d: 2 August 1945,
Rome |
"Iris"
( Il Cieco ) |
5 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
15 June 1948 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
5 Junuary 1957 |
Jules Émile
Frédéric Massenet
b: 12 May 1842, Montaud
d: 13 August 1912,
Paris |
"Don Quichotte"
( Don Quichotte ) |
1 |
Auditorium RAI, Sala Verdi di
Milano
25 May 1957 |
Auditorium RAI, Sala Verdi di
Milano
25 May 1957 |
"Manon"
( Le Comte des Grieux, the
Chevalier's father ) |
1 |
Teatro Massimo di
Cagliari
7 May 1947 |
Teatro Massimo di
Cagliari
7 May 1947 |
Giacomo
Meyerbeer
/ Jacob Liebmann Beer /
b: 5 September 1791, Vogelsdorf, Germany
d: 2 May 1864 Paris, France |
"Robert le Diable"
( Berthram ) |
3 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
7 May 1968 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
12 May 1968 |
Claudio Monteverdi
b: 15 May 1567, Cremona
d: 29 November
1643, Venice |
"L'incoronazione di
Poppea"
( Seneca ) |
8 |
Teatro Olimpico di
Vicenza
13 September 1949 |
Teatro di San Carlo di
Napoli
12 December 1967 |
| Psalm
GXXI |
1 |
Chiesa di San Pietro di
Perugia
27 September 1947 |
Chiesa di San Pietro di
Perugia
27 September 1947 |
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
/ Johannes Chrysostomus
Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart /
b: 27 January 1756, Salzburg
d: 5 December 1791,
Vienna |
"Betulia liberata" K.
118 |
1 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
30 May 1952 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
30 May 1952 |
| Vesprae
solemnes de confessore K. 339 |
1 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
30 May 1952 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
30 May 1952 |
"Die
Zauberflöte"
( Sarastro ) |
3 |
Teatro di San Carlo di
Napoli
27 Janiary 1956 |
Teatro di San Carlo di
Napoli
5 February 1956 |
| Requiem K. 626 |
1 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
20 September 1947 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
20 September 1947 |
Modest Petrovich
Mussorgsky
b: 21 March 1839, Karevo
d: 28 March 1881,
St. Petersburg |
"Boris Godunoff"
( Boris Godunoff, Tsar of
Russia ) |
156 |
Teatro Massimo di
Cagliari
5 March 1948 |
Covent Garden di London
23 November 1974 |
"Boris
Godunoff"
( Pimen, a monk,
chronicler ) |
8 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
8 Februari 1947 |
Televisione Danese di
Copenhagen
8 June 1971 |
"Boris
Godunoff"
( Varlaam, a mendicant,
vagrant ) |
1 |
Televisione Danese di
Copenhagen
8 June 1971 |
Televisione Danese di
Copenhagen
8 June 1971 |
"Khovanshchina"
( Dosifey, the head of a
group of Old Believers ) |
53 |
Teatro Verdi di Trieste
17 February 1948 |
Teatro Massimo Bellini di
Catania
4 April 1978 |
"La
Fiera di Sorocinski"
( Cherevik ) |
10 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
28 October 1948 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
11 April 1959 |
Carl
August Nielsen
b: 9 June 1865, Sortelung
d: 3 October 1931,
Copenhagen |
"Saul og David"
( Saul ) |
1 |
Concert hall of the Danish
radio, Copenhagen
27 March 1972 |
Concert hall of the Danish
radio, Copenhagen
27 March 1972 |
Niccolò
Piccinni
b: 16 January 1728, Bari
d: 7 May 1800,
Passy |
"Jonne"
( Samuel ) |
2 |
Тeatro Morlacchi di
Perugia
19 September 1948 |
Тeatro Morlacchi di
Perugia
23 September 1948 |
Sergey
Sergeyevich Prokofieff
b: 17 April 1891, Sontsovka
d: 5 March 1953,
Moscow |
"The Love for Three
Oranges"
( King of Clubs, he father
of the Prince) |
2 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
18 October 1947 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
21 October 1947 |
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele
Secondo Maria Puccini
b: 22 December 1858, Lucca
d: 29 November
1924, Brussels |
"La
bohème"
( Colline, a philosopher ) |
14 |
Teatro Comunale di Reggio
Calabria
12 March 1946 |
Lyric Opera di Chicago
27 October 1962 |
"Turandot"
( Timur, the deposed King
of Tartary ) |
2 |
Teatro Giardino di
Sassari
22 August 1947 |
Teatro Giardino di
Sassari
24 August 1947 |
Nikolai Andreyevich
Rimsky-Korsakoff
b: 18 March 1844, Tikhvin
d: 21 June 1908,
Lyubensk |
"The Golden
Cockerel"
( King Dodon ) |
1 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
24 September 1961 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
24 September 1961 |
"Ivan
Grozny"
( Tsar Ivan ) |
13 |
Auditorium RAI, Sala Verdi di
Milano
16 November 1954 |
Teatro Margherita di
Genova
1 June 1969 |
Gioacchino Antonio Rossini
b: 29 February 1792, Pesaro
d: 13 November
1868, Passy |
"Il barbiere di
Siviglia"
( Basilio, Bartolo's
accomplice, a music teacher ) |
15 |
Teatro Municipal di Rio de
Janeiro
31 Jully 1956 |
Lyric Opera di Chicago
15.November 1963 |
"Mosè
in Egitto"
( Mosè ) |
25 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
22 November 1951 |
Teatre Antique, Choregies di
Orange
23 Jully 1974 |
"Mosè
in Egitto"
( Faraone /Pharoah/ ) |
2 |
Teatro Quirino di Roma
3 August 1946 |
Teatro Quirino di Roma
6 August 1946 |
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco
Verdi
b: 10 October 1813, Le Roncole
d: 27 January 1901,
Milan |
"Aida"
( Ramfis, High Priest ) |
20 |
Teatro Massimo di
Cagliari
20 April 1947 |
Staatsoper di Vienna
20 March 1962 |
"Attila"
( Attila ) |
15 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
1 December 1962 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
25 January 1976 |
"Don
Carlos"
( Philip II, King of Spain
) |
158 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
10 February 1951 |
Teatro Regio di Parma
16 January 1982 |
"Ernani"
( Don Ruy Gomez de Silva ) |
9 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
10 February 1951 |
Auditorium RAI, Sala Verdi di
Milano
26 November 1968 |
"La
forza del destino"
( Father Guardiano, a
Franciscan ) |
21 |
Teatro alla Scala di
Milano
31 March 1949 |
Staatsoper di Amburgo
26 April 1973 |
"Macbeth"
( Banquo ) |
1 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
16 October 1949 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
16 October 1949 |
"I
masnadieri"
( Maximilian, Conte Moor
) |
6 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
25 November 1972 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
9 December 1972 |
"Nabucco"
( Zaccaria ) |
28 |
Terme di Caracalla Roma
27 June 1954 |
Teatro Petruzzelli di
Bari
18 January 1978 |
"Simon
Boccanegra"
( Jacopo Fiesco, a Genoese
nobleman, known as Andrea ) |
26 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
21 October 1948 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
17 May 1980 |
"Les
vêpres siciliennes"
( Giovanni da Procida, a
Sicilian doctor ) |
11 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
26 May 1951 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
7 October 1955 |
| Requiem |
11 |
Festspielhaus Salisburgo
14 August 1949 |
Radiohuset Koncertsal
Copenhagen
6 June 1971 |
Wilhelm Richard Wagner
b: 22 May 1813, Leipzig
d: 13 February
1883, Palazzo Vendramin on the Grand Canal |
"Götterdämmerung"
( Hagen ) |
7 |
Teatro Verdi di Trieste
24 February 1948 |
Teatro Nuovo di Torino
22 May 1955 |
"Lohengrin"
( Heinrich der Vogler
) |
10 |
Teatro Comunale di
Firenze
13 May 1948 |
Teatro Comunale di
Bologna
7 November 1952 |
"Die
Meistersinger von Nürnberg"
( Veit Pogner, goldsmith,
Meistersinger ) |
7 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
29 January 1962 |
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
9 February 1964 |
"Parsifal"
( Gurnemanz, a veteran
Knight of the Grail ) |
10 |
Auditorium Foro Italico RAI di
Roma
20 November 1950 |
Teatro alla Scala di
Milano
11 May 1961 |
"Tristan
und Isolde"
( Mark, King of Cornwall ) |
4 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
30 December 1947 |
Teatro La Fenice di
Venezia
11 January 1948 |
"Tannhäuser"
( Herrmann, Landgrave of
Thuringia ) |
3 |
Teatro di San Carlo di
Napoli
12 March 1950 |
Teatro di San Carlo di
Napoli
16 March 1950 |
Carl
Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber
b: 18 February 1786, Eutin
d: 5 June 1826,
London |
"Der Freischütz"
( Kaspar ) |
9 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
28 November 1948 |
Auditorium RAI di Torino
28 November 1954 |
Ervin
| Solemn Messe-Requiem |
1 |
Pontifco Istituto di Musica di
Roma
28 February 1947 |
Pontifco Istituto di Musica di
Roma
28 February 1947 |
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