Alberto Randegger (13 April 1832 – 18 December 1911) was an Italian-born composer, conductor and singing teacher, best known for promoting
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...
and new works of British music in England during the
Victorian era
In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
and for his widely used textbook on singing technique. His compositions included ballets, masses and other church music, operas and numerous other vocal pieces. He also edited several collections of vocal music.
He began his composing and conducting career in Italy, where he knew
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
, but in 1854 he moved to London, which became his base for the rest of his life. From 1857 he conducted Italian opera at the
St. James's Theatre
The St James's Theatre was in King Street, St James's, London. It opened in 1835 and was demolished in 1957. The theatre was conceived by and built for a popular singer, John Braham; it lost money and after three seasons he retired. A suc ...
and was professor of singing at the
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...
and the
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...
, retaining both posts for the rest of his life. From 1859 to 1870 he was organist at St Paul's Church,
Regent's Park
Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...
.
Randegger served as musical director of the
Carl Rosa Opera Company
The Carl Rosa Opera Company was founded in 1873 by Carl Rosa, a German-born musical impresario, and his wife, British operatic soprano Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa to present opera in English in London and the British provinces. The company premiere ...
from 1879 to 1885, gaining a reputation for high quality productions, and helping to revive interest in opera in England. He also became conductor of the Norwich Musical Festival, which he directed until 1905. From 1885 to 1887, he conducted
Henry Leslie's Choir. In the 1890s, he conducted at Queen's Hall, the
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dr ...
and the
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...
, where he became known for his performances of
Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
,
Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
and
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
operas. His most enduring legacy was a textbook titled ''Singing'', published in 1879.
Life and career
Early years
Randegger was born in
Trieste
Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into provi ...
, Italy, the son of a musician mother and schoolteacher father. He studied the piano with Jean Lafont and composition with
Luigi Ricci Luigi Ricci may refer to:
* Luigi Ricci (composer) (1805–1859), Italian composer
* Luigi Ricci (vocal coach) Luigi Ricci (1893–1981) was an Italian assistant conductor, accompanist, vocal coach, and author.
Career
Ricci began studying music ...
.
[
Randegger's earliest compositions were masses and other pieces of church music and, with two other young pupils of Ricci, he produced two ballets and an opera, ''Il Lazzarone,'' in 1852.][ In 1854 he composed another opera, ''Bianca Capello'', at ]Brescia
Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...
.[ During this period, he also served as music director of theatres in ]Fiume
Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...
, Senigallia
Senigallia (or Sinigaglia in Old Italian, Romagnol: ''S’nigaja'') is a ''comune'' and port town on Italy's Adriatic coast. It is situated in the province of Ancona in the Marche region and lies approximately 30 kilometers north-west of the pro ...
, Brescia and Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
.[Grove, George, John Warrack and Rosemary Williamson]
"Randegger, Alberto"
''Grove Music Online'', Oxford University Press, 2001. Retrieved 10 September 2020
In 1854 Randegger was engaged to conduct a season of Italian opera in New York and was on his way there when news arrived of a cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...
outbreak in the city. Instead, he spent a month in Paris, and on the recommendation of his elder brother he moved on to London, which became his base for the rest of his life.[ He built up a reputation as a singing teacher, conductor and composer, and from 1857 he conducted Italian opera at the ]St. James's Theatre
The St James's Theatre was in King Street, St James's, London. It opened in 1835 and was demolished in 1957. The theatre was conceived by and built for a popular singer, John Braham; it lost money and after three seasons he retired. A suc ...
.[ He was simultaneously professor of singing at the ]Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...
and the Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...
, retaining both posts for the rest of his life.[ From 1859 to 1870 he was organist at St Paul's Church, ]Regent's Park
Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...
. His singing pupils included sopranos Evangeline Florence
Evangeline Florence (12 December 1867 – 1 November 1928) was an American-born soprano who built a successful concert career in Great Britain.
Early life
Born as Florence Angeline Houghton in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the daughter of Julia Mar ...
, Alice Barth
Alice Mary Barth (25 August 1848 – 18 July 1910) was an English operatic soprano who for some years was a member of the Carl Rosa Opera Company and who during the 1880s managed her own troupe, the Alice Barth Opera Company.
Early life and ...
, Liza Lehmann
Liza Lehmann (11 July 1862 – 19 September 1918) was an English soprano and composer, known for her vocal compositions.Banfield, Stephen. Grove Music Online'
After vocal studies with Alberto Randegger and Jenny Lind, and composition studies ...
, Greta Williams
Greta Williams was a celebrated English operatic soprano and contralto, and occasional pianist of the Victorian era. Born in London, she studied piano under Edwin Holland and Alberto Randegger at the Royal Academy of Music, and made numerous appe ...
and Ellen Beach Yaw
Ellen Beach Yaw (September 14, 1869 – September 9, 1947) was an American coloratura soprano, best known for her concert career and extraordinary vocal range, and for originating the title role in Arthur Sullivan's ''The Rose of Persia'' ...
; mezzo-soprano Mary Davies; tenors William Hayman Cummings
William Hayman Cummings (22 August 1831 – 5 June 1915) was an English musician, tenor and organist at Waltham Abbey.
Cummings was born in Sidbury (near Sidmouth) in Devon. He was educated at St Paul's Cathedral Choir School and the City of L ...
and Ben Davies; baritones David Bispham
David Scull Bispham (January 5, 1857 – October 2, 1921) was an American operatic baritone.
Biography
Bispham was born on January 5, 1857 in Philadelphia, the only child of William Danforth Bispham and Jane Lippincott Scull.W. Bispham, 274 Bo ...
, Andrew Black, Charles W. Clark
Charles William Clark (15 October 1865 – 4 August 1925) was an American baritone singer and vocalist teacher. He is generally regarded as the first American baritone singer to be famous in Europe, and as one of the greatest baritone si ...
, David Ffrangcon-Davies
David Ffrangcon-Davies (11 December 1855 – 13 April 1918) was a Welsh operatic baritone.
Early life and education
David Thomas Davies was born in Bethesda, Gwynedd. He later adopted the name ''Ffrangcon'', an early variant spelling of the ne ...
and Frederick Ranalow; and basses Darrell Fancourt, Putnam Griswold
Putnam Griswold (1875 – February 26, 1914) was an American opera bass singer.
Biography
Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1875, Griswold originally followed a business career. At the age of 22 he discovered his voice and began to study wi ...
and Robert Radford
Robert Radford (13 May 1874, Nottingham3 March 1933, London) was a British bass singer who made his career entirely in the United Kingdom, participating in concerts and becoming one of the foremost performers of oratorios and other sacred mus ...
.
As a composer, in addition to his early works, Randegger wrote a comic opera
Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue.
Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...
, ''The Rival Beauties'' (1864);[ a musical play with the dramatist ]W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most f ...
, ''Creatures of Impulse
''Creatures of Impulse'' is a stage play by the English dramatist W. S. Gilbert, with music by the composer-conductor Alberto Randegger, which Gilbert adapted from his own short story. Both the play and the short story concern an unwanted and i ...
'' (1871); a dramatic cantata
A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir.
The meaning of ...
, the ''150th Psalm'', for soprano solo, choir, orchestra and organ (1872); ''Fridolin'' (1873), with a libretto by Hermine Küchenmeister-Rudersdorf Hermine Küchenmeister-Rudersdorf (December 12, 1822February 26, 1882) was a Ukrainian composer, teacher and writer. She toured throughout Europe, then settled in America and died in Boston.
Rudersdorf's father was the violinist Joseph Rudersdorff. ...
; two scenas for soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...
and orchestra, ''Medea'' (1869) and ''Sappho'' (1875); a funeral anthem, ''An Angel Came Out of the Temple'', in memory of the Prince Consort; ''The Prayer of Nature'' (1887); and numerous other vocal pieces. ''The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'' observes that Randegger's compositions were distinguished by practical qualities, were always tasteful and externally effective, but had no deep originality, and soon fell into disuse.[ He edited several collections of vocal music and collaborated with T. J. H. Marzials on the libretto for ]Arthur Goring Thomas
Arthur Goring Thomas (20 November 185020 March 1892) was an English composer.
Life
He was the youngest son of Freeman Thomas and Amelia, daughter of Colonel Thomas Frederick. His elder brothers included Freeman Frederick Thomas, a noted cricket ...
's opera '' Esmeralda'' (1883).[
]
Carl Rosa and later years
Randegger served as musical director of the Carl Rosa Opera Company
The Carl Rosa Opera Company was founded in 1873 by Carl Rosa, a German-born musical impresario, and his wife, British operatic soprano Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa to present opera in English in London and the British provinces. The company premiere ...
from 1879 to 1885,[ helping to revive interest in opera in England. In 1880, ]George Grove
Sir George Grove (13 August 182028 May 1900) was an English engineer and writer on music, known as the founding editor of ''Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians''.
Grove was trained as a civil engineer, and successful in that profession, ...
wrote, "The careful way in which the pieces are put on the stage, the number of rehearsals, the eminence of the performers and the excellence of the performers have begun to bear their legitimate fruit, and the Carl Rosa Opera Company bids fair to become a permanent English institution." On the resignation of Julius Benedict
Sir Julius Benedict (27 November 1804 – 5 June 1885) was a German-born composer and conductor, resident in England for most of his career.
Life and music
Benedict was born in Stuttgart, the son of a Jewish banker, and in 1820 learnt compo ...
in 1881, Randegger became conductor of the Norwich Musical Festival, which he directed until 1905. There he conducted new works by John Barnett
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
, Frederic Cowen
Sir Frederic Hymen Cowen (29 January 1852 – 6 October 1935), was an English composer, conductor and pianist.
Early years and musical education
Cowen was born Hymen Frederick Cohen at 90 Duke Street, Kingston, Jamaica, the fifth and last c ...
, Edward German
Sir Edward German (17 February 1862 – 11 November 1936) was an English musician and composer of Welsh descent, best remembered for his extensive output of incidental music for the stage and as a successor to Arthur Sullivan in the field of En ...
, Alexander Mackenzie, Hubert Parry
Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, 1st Baronet (27 February 18487 October 1918) was an English composer, teacher and historian of music. Born in Richmond Hill in Bournemouth, Parry's first major works appeared in 1880. As a composer he is b ...
, Ebenezer Prout
Ebenezer Prout (1 March 1835 – 5 December 1909) was an English musical theorist, writer, music teacher and composer, whose instruction, afterwards embodied in a series of standard works still used today, underpinned the work of many British cl ...
, Charles Villiers Stanford
Sir Charles Villiers Stanford (30 September 1852 – 29 March 1924) was an Anglo-Irish composer, music teacher, and conductor of the late Romantic music, Romantic era. Born to a well-off and highly musical family in Dublin, Stanford was ed ...
and others. At the 1905 Festival he invited 14 British composers to conduct performances of their own works.[ From 1885 to 1887, he also conducted Henry Leslie's Choir. He conducted the Queen's Hall Choral Society and the first two seasons of symphony concerts at Queen's Hall from 1895 to 1897.][ Finally, from 1887 to 1898, he conducted at the ]Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dr ...
and the Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...
, where he became known for his performances of Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
, Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
and Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
operas.[ He had known Verdi since 1850, and learned much about his music at first hand.]["Alberto Randegger"]
''The Musical Times'', October 1899, pp. 653–658 In his Mozart performances he removed the spurious orchestral parts added by his Covent Garden predecessors; a small collection of the composer's manuscripts was among his most treasured possessions.[
Randegger's most lasting legacy was a textbook titled ''Singing'', published in 1879 by ]Novello & Co
Wise Music Group is a global music publisher, with headquarters in Berners Street, London. In February 2020, Wise Music Group changed its name from The Music Sales Group.
In 2014 Wise Music Group (as The Music Sales Group) acquired French cla ...
, which was still in use in the 21st century. In 1882, Randegger was elected an honorary member of the Royal Philharmonic Society
The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British music society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in London. Many composers and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a memb ...
.[
Randegger was married first to the actress Adeline de Leuw; they divorced in 1892, and on 11 March 1897 he married the American singer Louise Baldwin (her second marriage)."Louise Baldwin Married"]
''The New York Times'', 23 March 1897
Randegger died at his home in Marylebone
Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary.
An Civil parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish and latterly a ...
, London, at the age of 79, after a short illness. He was cremated at Golders Green crematorium
Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £135,987 in 2021), ...
.[Davey, Henry, and David J. Golby]
"Randegger, Alberto (1832–1911), music teacher and composer
, ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004. Retrieved 10 September 2020
Notes
Sources
*
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Randegger, Alberto
1832 births
1911 deaths
Academics of the Royal College of Music
Honorary Members of the Royal Philharmonic Society
Italian classical composers
Italian male classical composers
Italian opera composers
Male opera composers
People associated with Gilbert and Sullivan