Emilia Goggi, also known as Emilia Goggi-Marcovaldi, (10 October 1817 – 29 August 1857) was an Italian operatic

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

who sang in the leading opera houses of Italy as well as in Spain. In 1853 she created the role of Azucena in the world premiere of Verdi's '' Il trovatore''.

Life and career

Emilia Goggi was born in

Prato Prato ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Italy, the capital of the Province of Prato. The city lies in the north east of Tuscany, at the foot of Monte Retaia, elevation , the last peak in the Calvana chain. With more than 200,000 i ...

. Her hyphenated family name was the result of the intermarriage in the late 18th century of two noble families in that city, the Goggi and the Marcovaldi. She showed an early musical talent and at the age of six was enrolled in the Conservatorio di Santa Caterina where she studied singing with Giuseppe Orlandi. She made her first public appearance at the age of 18 singing the

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 ...

aria "Casta diva" from

Bellini Bellini is an Italian name, Italian surname, formed as a patronymic or plural form of Bellino (surname), Bellino. People *Family of Italian painters: **Jacopo Bellini (c. 1396–c. 1470), father of Gentile and Giovanni **Gentile Bellini (c. 1429� ...

's '' Norma'' in a concert given by the conservatory. She went on to further study with Antonio Giuliani in Florence and began appearing on stage in secondary soprano roles. In 1841 she made her debut at

La Fenice Teatro La Fenice (, "The Phoenix") is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of "the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre" and in the history of opera as a whole. Especially in the 19th century, La Fenice beca ...

in Venice, singing the role of Adalgisa in ''Norma'' to great success; she was thereafter engaged to sing leading roles in theatres throughout Northern Italy.Centro Ricerche Prato (2013)
"Marcovaldi Goggi Emilia"
(sourced from Bellandi, Mario (1998). ''Pratesi d'Altri Tempi. I segni di Prato''. pp. 26–27. Studio Bibliografico Pratese). Retrieved 29 August 2013 . She also sang in Barcelona in 1845 as Abigaille in '' Nabucco'' and in 1846 as Elvira in ''

Ernani ''Ernani'' is an operatic ''dramma lirico'' in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the 1830 play ''Hernani (drama), Hernani'' by Victor Hugo. Verdi was commissioned by the Teatro La Fenice in V ...

''. The extension of her vocal range and the dark timbre of her voice ultimately led her to the mezzo-soprano repertoire, and in 1853 she created the role of Azucena in the world premiere of Verdi's '' Il trovatore'' at the

Teatro Apollo The Tor di Nona is a neighborhood in Rome's ''rione'' '' Ponte''. It lies in the heart of the city's historic center, between the ''Via dei Coronari'' and the Tiber River. Its name commemorates the Torre dell'Annona, a mediaeval tower which once s ...

in Rome, reprising the role later that year in Florence and then in Turin and Naples in 1854 and in Pisa in 1856.Springer, Christian (2013)
''Giuseppe Verdi: Leben, Werke, Interpreten''
p. 462. Epubli In addition to Azucena, Goggi also created the roles of Diomira in

Fabio Campana Fabio Campana (14 January 1819 – 2 February 1882) was an Italian composer, opera director, conductor, and singing teacher who composed eight operas which premiered between 1838 and 1869.Ambìveri (1998) p. 32 He was born in Livorno, the city whe ...

's ''Giulio d'Este'' (Teatro degli Avvalorati,

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...

, 28 August 1841) and Erminia in Josep Piqué i Cerveró's ''Ernesto, duca di Sicilia'' ( Teatro Principal, Barcelona, 4 November) 1844). Goggi died suddenly in Florence in 1857 at the age of 39 while preparing for a singing tour to England and was buried in the family tomb in the cloister of the

Chiesa di Sant'Agostino Chiesa (Italian, 'church') may refer to: People with the surname * Andrea Chiesa (born 1966), Swiss Formula One racer *Anthony della Chiesa (1394–1459), Italian Dominican friar * Bruno della Chiesa (born 1962), European linguist * Carlo Alberto ...

in the nearby town of Prato. She never married.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goggi, Emilia Italian operatic mezzo-sopranos 1817 births 1857 deaths People from Prato 19th-century Italian women opera singers