Carlo Peroni (1884,

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 ...

– March 12, 1944,

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) was an Italian

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 libr ...

conductor who served as the musical director of

Fortune Gallo Fortune Thomas Gallo (May 9, 1878 – March 28, 1970) (born Fortunato Gallo) was an Italian-born opera impresario. Gallo was owner and General Manager of the traveling San Carlo Opera Company from 1913 until its disbandment in the late 1950s. ...

San Carlo Opera Company The San Carlo Opera Company was the name of two different opera companies active in the United States during the first half of the twentieth century. Henry Russell's San Carlo Opera The first company was founded by impresario Henry Russell, initi ...

(SCOC) from 1921 until his death 23 years later. With that company he performed in almost every major city in North America, typically conducting 8 opera performance a week eight months out of the year. In 1934, upon Peroni's 500th performance with the SCOC, ''

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'' declared that he had conducted more grand opera performances in North America than any conductor in history.

Life and career

Peroni studied music at the

Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia The Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia ( en, National Academy of St Cecilia) is one of the oldest musical institutions in the world, founded by the papal bull ''Ratione congruit'', issued by Sixtus V in 1585, which invoked two saints pro ...

. He began working as a musician and music teacher at a young age, and by the age of 13 his wages from teaching piano and harmony was the primary source of income for his family. At the age of 15 he began conducting, leading a 30 piece boys band in Rome. In 1914 he immigrated to the United States where his career was largely centered for the rest of his life. He served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, after which he worked as a conductor for Antonio Scotti's touring company the Scotti Opera Company from 1919 to 1921.

Wilfrid Pelletier Joseph Louis Wilfrid Pelletier (sometimes spelled Wilfred), (20 June 1896 – 9 April 1982) was a Canadian conductor, pianist, composer, and arts administrator. He was instrumental in establishing the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, serving ...

was notably his assistant at the Scotti Opera. Peroni was admired for his photographic memory. He often conducted without a score and was said to have completely memorized the complete scores to more than 70 operas. In 1929 he conducted several arias with

Giovanni Martinelli Giovanni Martinelli (22 October 1885 – 2 February 1969) was an Italian operatic tenor. He was associated with the Italian lyric-dramatic repertory, although he performed French operatic roles to great acclaim as well. Martinelli was one of t ...

for some of the last recordings made by

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. He also served as director of the

Chicago Opera Company The Chicago Opera Company was a grand opera company in Chicago, organized from the remaining assets of the bankrupt Chicago City Opera Company, that produced six seasons of opera at the Civic Opera House from 1940 to 1946 (excluding 1943). Art ...

from 1941 to 1942 and continued to collaborate with that company periodically up until his death. The last performance he conducted was an SCOC performance of

Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the ''bel canto'' opera style duri ...

's ''

Lucia di Lammermoor ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' () is a (tragic opera) in three acts by Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian-language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's 1819 historical novel '' The Bride of Lammermoo ...

'' at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia in February 1944. After his death in a month later in New York City at the age of 59, he was succeeded by Nicola Rescigno, who later founded the

Lyric Opera of Chicago Lyric Opera of Chicago is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. It was founded in Chicago in 1954, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox, Nicola Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, with a season that included Maria ...

, as musical director of the SCOC. Peroni married soprano Mary Kaestner in 1917, and she retired from her opera career. She survived him when he died in March 1944.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peroni, Carlo 1884 births 1944 deaths Italian male conductors (music) Music directors (opera) Musicians from Rome United States Navy personnel of World War I 20th-century Italian conductors (music) 20th-century Italian male musicians Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia alumni Italian emigrants to the United States