Franco Ghione (1886–1964) was an Italian conductor and violinist. He graduated from the

Parma Conservatory Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second most ...

and became a violinist for the Parma Theatre and the Augusteo in

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 began a conducting career in 1913 and conducted in many opera houses, including

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 ...

. He conducted the

Detroit Symphony Orchestra The Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is an American orchestra based in Detroit, Michigan. Its primary performance venue is Orchestra Hall at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Detroit's Midtown neighborhood. Jader Bignamini is the current music d ...

from 1936 to 1940, where it was said that, because he could not speak

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, he "would explode in frustration" when his instructions were not understood. After graduating in composition and violin at the Parma Conservatory, Ghione began his musical career as a violinist in the orchestras of the Parma Theatre and of the Augusteo in Rome, and then he made his debut as a conductor in 1913. His first appearance at La Scala was in the 1922–23 season with successful performances of Massenet's ''Manon'' and Donizetti's ''Lucia di Lammermoor''. From then on, he was regularly invited to conduct in major opera houses and worked with the finest voices of the period. He has left us numerous interesting recordings, among which we recall especially ''Pagliacci'' (by Leoncavallo) with

Beniamino Gigli Beniamino Gigli ( , ; 20 March 1890 – 30 November 1957) was an Italian opera singer (lyric tenor). He is widely regarded as one of the greatest tenors of his generation. Early life Gigli was born in Recanati, in the Marche, the son of a shoem ...

; Puccini's ''Turandot'' with

Gina Cigna Gina Cigna (6 March 1900 – 26 June 2001) was a French-Italian dramatic soprano. Biography Gina Cigna was born in Angers, department of Maine-et-Loire, to parents of Italian origin. She trained as a pianist at the Paris Conservatory studying ...

Francesco Merli Francesco Merli (28 January 188711 December 1976) was an Italian opera singer, particularly associated with heavy roles such as Otello, Canio and Calaf. He ranks as one of the finest dramatic tenors of the inter-war period. Life and career Fra ...

, and

Magda Olivero Magda Olivero (née Maria Maddalena Olivero) (25 March 1910 – 8 September 2014), was an Italian operatic soprano. Her career started in 1932 when she was 22, and spanned five decades, establishing her "as an important link between the era of th ...

; Massenet's ''

Werther ''Werther'' is an opera (''drame lyrique'') in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet and Georges Hartmann (who used the pseudonym Henri Grémont). It is loosely based on Goethe's epistolary novel ''The S ...

'' with

Tito Schipa Tito Schipa (; born Raffaele Attilio Amedeo Schipa; 2 January 1889 in Lecce16 December 1965) was an Italian lyric tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice ...

; and Verdi's ''La traviata'' with

Maria Callas Maria Callas . (born Sophie Cecilia Kalos; December 2, 1923 – September 16, 1977) was an American-born Greek soprano who was one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Many critics praised her ''bel cant ...

References

1886 births 1964 deaths Italian male conductors (music) 20th-century Italian conductors (music) 20th-century Italian male musicians {{Italy-conductor-stub