GRAND OPERA SEASON
Sir,-In the interesting article on the 1949 Operatic Season in The Listener of 19.11.48, it is stated that the artistic director of the company, Franco Ghione, conducted the first Italian performance of Puccini’s Turandot. This is incorrect, as the conductor was Toscanini. In both Opera at Home and The Victor Book of the Opera, reference is made to the fact that Toscanini conducted at the premiere of the opera, which took place.at La Scala, Milan, on April 23, 1926. Your readers may be interested to know that at least three of the singers with the company have recorded. Mario Basiola, who is a_ well-known international celebrity (he sang leading roles at the Metropolitan from 1925-32), can be heard as Tonio on the complete recording of Pagliacci, with Gigli, etc. Maria Huder sings the roles of Flora Bevoise and Annina in new recordings of La Traviata and that of the Priestess in Aida. The tenor Adelio Zagonara sings. on both of these recordings, as Gaston de Letorieres in’ La Traviata, and the Messeriger in Aida.
M. T.
STEWART
(Mt. Eden).
(We referred this letter to Mr. J. N. Tait, and give here the relevant portions of his reply: "With regard to the statement concerning the first performance of Turandot in Italy which was associated with the name of Maestro Franco Ghione, this was due to an error and arose from an announcement in a programme in Turin which indicated he was the first conductor of Puccini’s opera, but attually it referred to the first performance at the Reggio Theatre in Turin. Toscanini was the conductor of the premiere of Turandot at La Scala, Milan, and Maestro Ghione also conducted at La Scala, but at a later date. We produced Turandot in Australia for the first time in 1928 when Signor Gaetano Bavagnoli conducted the premiere. We intend to present Turandot in Sydney about the middle of January. It will, however, be impossible to present Turandot in New Zealand, for two rea-sons-the first being the shortness of our seasons in each city, and the second the fact that this opera calls for a greatly augmented chorus and elaborate staging, and time would not permit this being attempted.’’)
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New Zealand Listener, Volume 20, Issue 496, 24 December 1948, Page 5
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368GRAND OPERA SEASON New Zealand Listener, Volume 20, Issue 496, 24 December 1948, Page 5
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