Lyric Opera 2024-2025 Issue 1 - Rigoletto

Lyric Opera of Chicago | 26 Ettore Bastianini The Lion Following Titta Ruffo’s vocal decline in the mid-1920s, Italians found their new baritone hero three decades later in Ettore Bastianini. Ruffo famously possessed “la voce del leone” (“the voice of a lion”), and the same could have been said of Bastianini, whose power and sheer density of sound were astonishing. He earned legions of admirers in Europe and America—including Chicago, where Rigoletto was the third of his seven Lyric roles from 1955 to 1965. Alas, he died in 1967, at only 43. Bastianini’s throat cancer was diagnosed in November 1962, the same month that he sang Rigoletto at Lyric. Unaware of his condition, the critics judged him harshly—in fact, one called his singing “dry” and “monochromatic,” which is simply not true. Admittedly, in surviving recorded excerpts from that production his pitch is often questionable, and softer passages no longer come easily, but it’s clear that this is still an impressive instrument. No video exists of Bastianini in the role, but in a 1960 studio recording, he’s simply magnificent. The voice stuns with its power and dark mahogany timbre, which are never an end in themselves—the vocalism serves the character. This is absolutely honest, unfettered singing, with the words always meaningfully inflected. The leonine sound in the “vendetta” duet with Gilda is hair- raising, but in contrast, whenever Verdi needs restraint from Rigoletto—for example, in his low-lying portion of the quartet—Bastianini is also ideal. Tito Gobbi The Complete Artist This company’s unofficial “godfather,” Tito Gobbi provided wise counsel in many artistic matters during Lyric’s first quarter-century. Backstage he exuded warmth and bonhomie, while always communicating a passionate devotion to his art. From 1955 to 1973 at Lyric, he sang 21 of the nearly 100 roles in his repertoire. The Chicago Sun-Times 1955 review of his performance in the company’s first Rigoletto noted that he “gave a galvanizing performance. It was a choice piece of drama and equally honorable vocally.” He would return to the role three seasons later. Gobbi recorded Rigoletto in 1955, but any portrayal of his needed to be seen, not just heard. Although only 33 years old at the time, he’s in commanding form throughout a 1946 television film. Achingly tender in the scenes with Gilda, he also has the biting rage for the dramatic confrontation with the courtiers. Never a luxuriant or unfailingly effortless sound, Gobbi’s voice nonetheless handles each challenge comfortably, often achieving memorable beauty (for example, when Rigoletto tells Gilda how his now-dead wife had loved him, Gobbi’s singing is exquisitely sweet). In every moment his face, voice, and physicality work in perfect unity, with a truly complete portrayal as the gratifying result. Ettore Bastianini (lower right) with Richard Tucker as the Duke in Lyric’s 1962 production of Rigoletto . Nancy Sorensen