Caruso, Enrico

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Caruso, Enrico (b Naples, 1873; d Naples, 1921). It. tenor. Regarded as one of the greatest there has been. Début Naples 1895. Created tenor roles in Fedora (Milan, 1898), Adriana Lecouvreur (Milan, 1902) and Dick Johnson in La fanciulla del West (NY Met, 1910). Buenos Aires début 1899 (Fedora). Int. fame after La bohème with Melba at Monte Carlo 1902. CG début same year as Duke in Rigoletto. Début NY Met 1903 (Duke). Between then and 1920 sang 36 roles and appeared over 600 times at Met (last appearance 24 Dec. 1920 in La juive). First tenor to make records, his recording career extending from 1902 to 1920 and royalties in his lifetime amounting to nearly £500,000. Though not flawless stylistically, his v. was of sumptuous resonance, mellow and almost baritonal, with an exquisite mezza voce. Hon. MVO 1907.

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