Giovanni Breviario (27 November 1891 – 8 October 1982), was an Italian 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 ...

, particularly associated with Italian dramatic roles. Breviario was born at

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...

. He studied in Milan with Dante Lari, and made his stage debut in Pola, as Manrico, in 1924. He then sang the Italian repertory to considerable acclaim in the Netherlands from 1927 to 1934. In Italy, he sang at the

Teatro Carlo Felice The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari. The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, and dates fr ...

in Parma,

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, Teatro Regio Parma, Teatro San Carlo in Naples,

Teatro alla 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 ...

in Milan. Abroad he appeared at

Teatro Nacional Sao Carlos Teatro may refer to: * Theatre * Teatro (band) Teatro, Italian for "theatre", is a vocal group signed to the Sony BMG music label. The members of Teatro are Jeremiah James, Andrew Alexander, Simon Bailey and Stephen Rahman-Hughes. Band members ...

in Lisbon,

Hungarian State Opera The Hungarian State Opera is the national opera company of Hungary. Located in Budapest, it is a busy institution, with over 200 operas each calendar year, on top of extensive educational programs, ballet, and musical theatre. The company employs 1 ...

in Budapest, also making guest appearances at the opera houses of Malta and Cairo. He was especially appreciated in heroic roles such as; Pollione, Raoul,

Radames Radames or Radamés is a Hispanic masculine given name that may refer to *Radamés Gnattali (1906–1988), Brazilian composer, conductor, orchestrator, and arranger *Radamés González (born 1956), Cuban marathon runner * Radamés Martins Rodrigues ...

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 ...

, Canio,

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 ...

, Cavaradossi, etc. He retired from the stage in 1949, and became a teacher at the Music Conservatory of Johannesburg in South Africa. He spent his last years in his native Bergamo, where he died. Breviario is probably best remembered for his Pollione in the first complete recording of '' Norma'' in 1937, opposite

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 w ...

Ebe Stignani Ebe Stignani (10 July 1903 – 5 October 1974) was an Italian opera singer, who was pre-eminent in the dramatic mezzo-soprano roles of the Italian repertoire during a stage career of more than thirty years. Career Born in Naples in 1903 (some so ...

Tancredi Pasero Tancredi Pasero (11 January 1893 in Turin – 17 February 1983 in Milan) was an Italian bass who enjoyed a long and distinguished singing career in his native country and abroad. Career & recordings After studying with the baritone Arturo ...

, under Vittorio Gui.

Sources

*Operissimo.com
"Breviario, Giovanni"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Breviario, Giovanni 1891 births 1982 deaths Italian operatic tenors Musicians from Bergamo 20th-century Italian male opera singers