Eugenio Giraldoni (20 May 1871,

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...

– 23 June 1924,

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

) was an Italian operatic baritone who enjoyed a substantial international career. In 1900, he created the role of Baron Scarpia in

Giacomo Puccini Giacomo Puccini ( Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long ...

's ''

Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1887 French-language drama ...

''. He was the son of another leading baritone,

Leone Giraldoni Leone Giraldoni (born 4 July 1824, Paris – died 19 September 1897, Moscow) was a celebrated Italian operatic baritone. He created the title roles of Gaetano Donizetti's '' Il duca d'Alba'' (1882) and Verdi's ''Simon Boccanegra'' (1857) as we ...

, and the soprano and violinist Carolina Ferni. His mother gave him voice lessons and he made his

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 ...

debut in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, as Escamillo in '' Carmen'', in 1891. Giraldoni consolidated his career by appearing at various operatic venues in Italy and, in 1898, visiting South America. Then, in 1900, he earned a place in operatic history when he created the part of Baron Scarpia in ''Tosca'', at the

Teatro Costanzi The Teatro dell'Opera di Roma (Rome Opera House) is an opera house in Rome, Italy. Originally opened in November 1880 as the 2,212 seat ''Costanzi Theatre'', it has undergone several changes of name as well modifications and improvements. The pre ...

in Rome. He also appeared in the first performance of Alberto Franchetti's '' La figlia di Jorio'' at Italy's foremost opera house, La Scala, Milan, in 1906. He sang in Russia and Poland from 1901 until 1907 and at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is oper ...

in New York City during the 1904–05 season. In 1913, he appeared at the Opéra-Comique in Paris, as Scarpia and Sharpless. Giraldoni had a dark, resonant voice and a strong (if unsubtle) stage presence, according to contemporary descriptions of his performances. Apart from Scarpia, his notable roles included:

Don Carlo ''Don Carlos'' is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French-language libretto by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, based on the dramatic play '' Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien'' (''Don Carlos, Infante of Spain'') by Friedr ...

Amonasro ''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 Decembe ...

, Telramund,

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

, Berlioz's Méphisto and Onegin. But like his direct rival, the Sicilian baritone

Mario Sammarco (Giuseppe) Mario Sammarco (13 December 1868, although some sources say 1867 – 24 January 1930) was an Italian operatic baritone noted for his acting ability. Biography Sammarco was born in Palermo, Sicily, and studied locally with Antonio Can ...

, Giraldoni's vehement style of singing was best suited to operas by

verismo In opera, ''verismo'' (, from , meaning "true") was a post-Romantic operatic tradition associated with Italian composers such as Pietro Mascagni, Ruggero Leoncavallo, Umberto Giordano, Francesco Cilea and Giacomo Puccini. ''Verismo'' as an ...

composers such as

Ruggero Leoncavallo Ruggero (or Ruggiero) Leoncavallo ( , , ; 23 April 18579 August 1919) was an Italian opera composer and librettist. Although he produced numerous operas and other songs throughout his career it is his opera '' Pagliacci'' (1892) that remained h ...

, who composed '' Pagliacci'',

Umberto Giordano Umberto Menotti Maria Giordano (28 August 186712 November 1948) was an Italian composer, mainly of operas. He was born in Foggia in Apulia, southern Italy, and studied under Paolo Serrao at the Conservatoire of Naples. His first opera, ''Mari ...

, who composed '' Andrea Chénier'', and Alberto Franchetti, who composed '' Germania'' and '' Cristoforo Colombo''. After

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 ...

, Giraldoni sang on the Italian provincial-theatre circuit. He retired from the stage in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into prov ...

in 1921 and died three years later in Finland, where he had gone to teach. His last operatic appearance had been as the Father in ''

Louise Louise or Luise may refer to: * Louise (given name) Arts Songs * "Louise" (Bonnie Tyler song), 2005 * "Louise" (The Human League song), 1984 * "Louise" (Jett Rebel song), 2013 * "Louise" (Maurice Chevalier song), 1929 *"Louise", by Clan of ...

''. Giraldoni made a number of recordings prior to World War I, some of which have been reissued on CD.

Sources

* ''Le guide de l'opéra'', Mancini & Rouveroux, (Fayard, 1986); * ''The Record of Singing'', Michael Scott, (Duckworth, 1977). 1871 births 1924 deaths Italian operatic baritones Musicians from Marseille Italian expatriates in Finland 19th-century Italian male opera singers 20th-century Italian male opera singers {{italy-opera-singer-stub