Frederick Jagel (June 10, 1897,

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

– July 5, 1982,

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

) was an American

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing 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 low extreme for tenors is wide ...

, primarily active 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 the 1930s and 1940s.

Life and career

Jagel studied voice in New York City and Milan. He debuted as Rodolfo in ''

La bohème ''La bohème'' (; ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions '' quadri'', '' tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giusep ...

'' in Livorno, in 1924. He sang throughout Italy under the name of Federico Jaghelli. After his return to America, he made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera on November 8, 1927, as Radames in ''

Aida ''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 Decemb ...

''. In 23 seasons with the Met, he sang 217 performances in 34 roles, primarily in the Italian and French repertories. He can be heard in recordings of many

Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts The Metropolitan Opera radio broadcasts are a regular series of weekly broadcasts on network radio of full-length opera performances. They are transmitted live from the stage of the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. The Metropolitan Opera In ...

, notably as Pollione in ''

Norma Norma may refer to: * Norma (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Astronomy *Norma (constellation) *555 Norma, a minor asteroid * Cygnus Arm or Norma Arm, a spiral arm in the Milky Way galaxy Geography *Norma, Lazi ...

'' opposite

Zinka Milanov Zinka Milanov (; May 17, 1906 – May 30, 1989) was a Croatian operatic dramatic soprano who had a major career centered on the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. After finishing her education in Zagreb, Milanov made her debut in 1927 in Ljublj ...

, as Don Alvaro in '' La forza del destino'' opposite

Lawrence Tibbett Lawrence Mervil Tibbett (November 16, 1896 – July 15, 1960) was an American opera singer and recording artist who also performed as a film actor and radio personality. A baritone, he sang leading roles with the Metropolitan Opera in New York ...

under Bruno Walter in 1943, and as Edgardo in ''

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 ...

'' opposite

Lily Pons Alice Joséphine Pons (April 12, 1898 – February 13, 1976), known professionally as Lily Pons, was a French-American operatic soprano and actress who had an active career from the late 1920s through the early 1970s. As an opera singer, she s ...

. Jagel also appeared in San Francisco, Chicago and Buenos Aires before retiring in 1950. He taught singing in New York after his retirement. Among his pupils were tenors Augusto Paglialunga, David Romano, Robert Moulson and John Stewart, as well as bass-baritone

Justino Diaz Justino is a name which is used as both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Justino de Azcárate (1903–1989), Spanish lawyer and politician * Justino Díaz (born 1940), Puerto Rican operatic bass-barit ...

. He also served as Chairman of the Voice Department at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston.

Sources

* D. Hamilton (ed.),''The Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia: A Complete Guide to the World of Opera'' (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1987).

References

1897 births 1982 deaths American operatic tenors Voice teachers Singers from New York City Musicians from Brooklyn New England Conservatory faculty 20th-century American male opera singers Classical musicians from New York (state) {{US-opera-singer-stub