O’Mara, Joseph

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O’Mara, Joseph

O’Mara, Joseph, Irish tenor; b. Limerick, July 16, 1861; d. Dublin, Aug. 5, 1927. He studied with Moretti in Milan. On Feb. 4, 1891, he made his debut as Sullivan’s Ivanhoe at the Royal English Opera House in London. After further training from Perini and Edwin Holland, he toured under the auspices of Augustus Harris. From 1902 to 1908 he was the principal tenor of the Moody-Manners Opera Co. In 1910 he became a member of Beecham’s Co. at London’s Covent Garden. From 1912 to 1924 he was director of his own O’Mara Grand Opera Co., with which he often appeared in leading roles.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire