Bernardo De Muro (November 3, 1881 – 27 October 1955) was a

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

n operatic

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

Biography

Bernardino de Muro was born on November 3, 1881, in

Tempio Pausania Tempio Pausania (; sdn, Tèmpiu) is a town of about 14,000 inhabitants in the Gallura region of northern Sardinia, Italy, in the province of Sassari. History Cultural and delegated administrative centre of the Gallura sub-region, Tempio has an ...

, Sardinia, to Antonio Maria and Jeanne-Marie Demuro. His father was a small landowner. Bernardo's formal education ceased at primary school. Initially self-taught, he began singing in a café in Tempio. Moving to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, he participated in a competition for admission to the Conservatory of St. Cecilia in 1903. He studied under A. Sbriscia and Alfredo Martino. His operatic debut was on May 12, 1910, at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome, performing in ''

Cavalleria rusticana ''Cavalleria rusticana'' (; Italian for "rustic chivalry") is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from an 1880 short story of the same name and subsequent play b ...

'' by Mascagni. He received flattering reviews for this performance. In the next few years he performed in ''

Madama Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther ...

'', ''

L'Africaine ''L'Africaine'' (''The African Woman'') is an 1865 French ''grand opéra'' in five acts with music by Giacomo Meyerbeer and a libretto by Eugène Scribe. Meyerbeer and Scribe began working on the opera in 1837, using the title ''L'Africaine'', bu ...

'', ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...

'', and further performances of ''Cavalleria rusticana''. Although he was long a star at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

,''The Day'' (New London, Conn.)
"New York Day by Day"
July 30, 1934. Page 24. he was largely unknown to American audiences until he began to tour there. His continued career carried him to such places as the Solis in

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

in 1916,Salgado, Susana (2003). '' The Teatro Solís: 150 years of opera, concert, and ballet in Montevideo''. Wesleyan University Press. . the Dal Verme in Milan (performing ''

Mefistofele ''Mefistofele'' () is an opera in a prologue and five acts, later reduced to four acts and an epilogue, the only completed opera with music by the Italian composer-librettist Arrigo Boito (there are several completed operas for which he was libret ...

''),The Musical Times, volume 62 (1921) the Hippodrome,

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...

, in 1927,''The Evening Independent'' (St. Petersburg, Florida)

Nov 22, 1927. Page 7. and The Dell Ofrecie Grand Opera Company of New York (performing ''

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 December ...

'').'' The Afro-American ''
"Opera Postponed in Philadelphia"
June 1, 1935. Page 16.

Later years

By 1935 De Muro was forced to cancel performances due to ill health. He became a successful businessman with a large cork factory in Milan. In his later years he taught voice in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Sturgis, Michigan Sturgis is a city in St. Joseph County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 10,994 at the 2010 census. The city is located at the northeast corner of Sturgis Township and at the intersection of US 12 and M-66. Sturgis is just nor ...

, and Rome. He died in Rome in 1955. Recognized as Tempio's most famous son, his body was brought back to the place of his birth, and he was buried under a pyramid of his own design.Facaros, Dana and Pauls, Michael. (2004). ''Cadogan Guide: Sardinia''. Cadogan Guides, London. .

Singing style

His singing was reported to be resonant and clear with a robust tone, but pinched in the head-notes.Klein, Hermann and Moran, William R. (1990). '' Herman Klein and the Gramophone ''. Hal Leonard Corporation. .

Partial discography

* ''

'' ** (His Master's Voice DA171; Victor 949)Bolig, John R. (2004). ''The Victor Red Seal Discography Vol. 1: Single-Sided Series (1903–1925)''. Mainspring Press, Denver. . – recorded May 22, 1922 * ''

Andrea Chénier ''Andrea Chénier'' () is a verismo opera in four acts by Umberto Giordano, set to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica, and first performed on 28 March 1896 at La Scala, Milan. The story is based loosely on the life of the French poet Andr ...

'' ** (His Master's Voice DB 553; Victor 6387) Settlemier, Tyrone
"The Online Discographical Project – Victor 6000 series (12-inch Double-Sided Red Seal) Numerical Listing"
Retrieved August 9, 2010 – recorded March 1, 1912 ** (His Master's Voice DB 553; Victor 74376; Victor 6380) Settlemier, Tyrone

Retrieved August 9, 2010 – recorded March 1, 1912 * ''

'' ** Ho nome Escamillo (with Roberto Janni) (His Master's Voice DB 554; Victor 6385) – recorded March 30, 1914 ** (His Master's Voice DB 549) – recorded March 13, 1912 ** (His Master's Voice 2-052173; Victor 6385) – recorded May 19, 1917 * ' ** (His Master's Voice DA171; Victor 949)Settlemier, Tyrone
"The Online Discographical Project – Victor 500 series (10-inch Double-Sided Red Seal) Numerical Listing"
Retrieved August 9, 2010 – recorded May 17, 1920 ** (His Master's Voice DB 372; Victor 6422) – recorded November 4, 1921 * ''

Isabeau ''Isabeau'' is a ''leggenda drammatica'' or opera in three parts by Pietro Mascagni, 1911, from an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica. Mascagni conducted its first performance on 2 June 1911 at the Teatro Coliseo, Buenos Aires. A retelling of the ...

'' ** (with Valentina Bartolomasi) (His Master's Voice DB 556; Victor 6387) – recorded March 8, 1912 ** (Victor 6379) – recorded March 7, 1912 ** (His Master's Voice DB 558; Victor 6387) – recorded March 7, 1912 ** (with Valentina Bartolomasi) (His Master's Voice DB 556) – recorded March 8, 1912 ** (His Master's Voice DB 557; Victor 6379) – recorded March 7, 1912 * ''

Otello ''Otello'' () is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play ''Othello''. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on 5 February 1887. Th ...

'' ** (Victor 6386) – recorded March 30, 1914 ** (His Master's Voice DB 559) Nauck, Kurt. Catalogue: Vintage Record Auction Number 39. ** (His Master's Voice DB 560; Victor 6386) – recorded March 30, 1914 ** (His Master's Voice DB 559) * ' ** (with

Ernesto Badini Ernesto Badini (born San Colombano al Lambro, 14 September 1876; died Milan, 6 July 1937) was an Italian opera singer that sang in the baritone range. He was trained at Milan Conservatory and made his debut as Matteo (in '' Frà Diavolo'') at Lo ...

) (Victor 6410) ** (with

Maria Roggero Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...

) (His Master's Voice DB 644; Victor 6412) – recorded April 28, 1917

Legacy

The Bernardo De Muro Musical Academy, founded in 2010, is located in Tempio Pausania, Sardinia. The Bernardo De Muro Museum is housed within the Palazzo degli Scolopi, also located in Tempio Pausania, Sardinia.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:De Muro, Bernardo 1881 births 1955 deaths People from the Province of Sassari Italian operatic tenors RCA Victor artists 20th-century Italian male opera singers Italian expatriates in the United States