Carlo Tagliabue (1898-1978)
"Il balen"
Il Trovatore
by Giuseppe Verdi
Carlo Tagliabue studied with Gennai and Guidotti and made his début at
Lodi in 1922 as Amonasro. He performed at provincial theaters in Florence,
Palermo and the Verona Arena for several years, then was engaged by La Scala in
1930. He sang the Italian repertory and some of the Wagner roles. In 1934 he
created the role of Basilio in Respighi's
La fiamma
at the Rome Opera. His international appearances included Teatro Colón
(1934), the Metropolitan (1937-1939), San Francisco (1938) and Covent Garden
(1938). He continued performing until 1960.
This is a technically horrible recording made during a performance at La Scala
in 1953, at the close of Tagliabue's tenure there (1930-1953). Some critics
note that Tagliabue was not an effective actor, and that although his voice was
glorious, his performances were reliable rather than inspired.
