Anselmi, Giuseppe
Anselmi, Giuseppe
Anselmi, Giuseppe, noted Italian tenor; b. Nicolosi, near Catania, Oct. 6, 1876; d. Zoagli, near Rapallo, May 27, 1929. He learned to play the violin and appeared in public as a violinist in Nicolosi when he was 13. He sang in operettas before making his operatic debut in Patras, Greece, about 1896. Following vocal training from Mancinelli, he sang in Genoa and Naples in 1900. In 1901 he made his first appearance at London’s Covent Garden, and returned there in 1904 and 1909. His engagements also took him to Buenos Aires, Warsaw, Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Spain. In 1918 he retired from the operatic stage, and in 1926 he made his last public appearance as a violinist in Rapallo. Anselmi was a remarkable bel canto stylist, winning special acclaim for his Verdi and Puccini roles. He was also a composer, numbering among his works a Poema sinfonico for Orch., chamber music, and songs. His love for Spain, where he had enormous success as a singer, prompted him to bequeath his heart to Madrid; the rest of his body was deposed in Catania Cathedral.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire