Giacomo Rimini (March 22, 1887–March 6, 1952) was an Italian born American operatic
baritoneBaritone is a type of classical male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek βαρύτονος, meaning 'deep sounding', music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second G below middle C to the F above...
most admired for his interpretations of the works of Verdi.
Born and raised in
VeronaVerona is a city in Veneto, northern Italy, one of the seven provincial capitals in the region. It is one of the main tourist destinations in north-eastern Italy, thanks to its artistic heritage, several annual fairs, shows and operas, such as the lyrical season in the Arena, the ancient...
, Rimini studied at the Verona Music Conservatory with Conti Foroni. He began his operatic career in Italy in his early twenties. His first lead role was as Escamillo in Bizet's
CarmenCarmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...
at the age of 22. In 1910 he sang the role of Albert in Massenet's
WertherWerther is an opera in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet and Georges Hartmann based on the German epistolary novel The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe....
at the municipal theatre of Desenzano.
Giacomo Rimini (March 22, 1887–March 6, 1952) was an Italian born American operatic
baritoneBaritone is a type of classical male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek βαρύτονος, meaning 'deep sounding', music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second G below middle C to the F above...
most admired for his interpretations of the works of Verdi.
Biography
Born and raised in
VeronaVerona is a city in Veneto, northern Italy, one of the seven provincial capitals in the region. It is one of the main tourist destinations in north-eastern Italy, thanks to its artistic heritage, several annual fairs, shows and operas, such as the lyrical season in the Arena, the ancient...
, Rimini studied at the Verona Music Conservatory with Conti Foroni. He began his operatic career in Italy in his early twenties. His first lead role was as Escamillo in Bizet's
CarmenCarmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...
at the age of 22. In 1910 he sang the role of Albert in Massenet's
WertherWerther is an opera in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet and Georges Hartmann based on the German epistolary novel The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe....
at the municipal theatre of Desenzano. He sang with many notable Italian opera houses over the next several years including the Teatro Regio Turin, the Teatro Massimo in
PalermoPalermo is a historic city in Southern Italy, the capital of the autonomous region Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its rich history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
, and at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome. In 1915, Rimini was chosen by
Arturo ToscaniniArturo Toscanini was an Italian conductor. One of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 19th and 20th Centuries, he was renowned for his brilliant intensity, his restless perfectionism, his phenomenal ear for orchestral detail and sonority, and his photographic memory...
to sing the title role in Verdi's
FalstaffFalstaff is an operatic commedia lirica in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, adapted by Arrigo Boito from Shakespeare's plays The Merry Wives of Windsor and scenes from Henry IV. It was Verdi's last opera, written in the composer's ninth decade, and only the second of his 26 operas to be a comedy...
at the Teatro del Verme in
MilanMilan in Italy, is the capital of the region of Lombardia and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while the urban area is the fifth largest in the E.U. with an estimated population of 4.3 million...
. He reprised the role later that year with Toscanini at
La ScalaLa Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal Theatre of La Scala La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally...
in the presence of King Victor Emmanuel III.
Also in 1915, Rimini met Polish opera singer
Rosa RaisaRosa Raisa was a Polish-born, Italian-trained, Russian-Jewish dramatic soprano. She was one of the most highly-acclaimed operatic performers of her time with a voice of great size. In 1926 she created the role of Turandot at La Scala, Milan.-Career:She was born Raitza Burchstein, the daughter of...
and the two of them fell in love with each other. They married in 1916 and moved to Chicago, Illinois shortly thereafter where they would both establish a long association with the
Chicago City Opera CompanyThe Chicago City Opera Company was a grand opera company in Chicago, organized from the remaining assets of the bankrupt Chicago Grand Opera Company, that produced four seasons of opera at the Civic Opera House from 1935 to 1939 before it too succumbed to financial difficulties...
, the
Chicago Civic OperaThe Civic Opera Company was a Chicago company that produced seven seasons of grand opera in the Auditorium Theater from 1922 to 1928, and three seasons at its own Civic Opera House from 1929 to 1931 before falling victim to financial difficulties brought on in part by the Great Depression.-...
, and the Ravinia Festival. Rimini had been married once previously to a woman from Rome, Rafaelle Bettei. Rimini and Raisa became naturalized citizens of the United States a few years after moving to Chicago.
Although Rimini primarily worked in Chicago, he and his wife did occasionally travel to other parts of the United States for performances, usually performing together. They also maintained a villa in Verona where they would spend their summers and occasionally appear in operas. Most notably, Rimini originated the role of Ping in Puccini's
TurandotTurandot is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni. Though Puccini's first interest in the subject was based on his reading of Friedrich Schiller's adaptation of the play, his work is most nearly based on the earlier text...
at
La ScalaLa Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal Theatre of La Scala La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally...
in 1926 opposite his wife in the title role. He also was the first person to completely record the role of Falstaff, which he also did with La Scala in 1932.
In addition to Falstaff and Escamillo, Rimini was admired for his portrayals of the title role in Verdi's
RigolettoRigoletto is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo. It was first performed at La Fenice in Venice on March 11, 1851...
, Iago in Verdi's
OtelloOtello 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 second to last opera and is considered by many to be his greatest. It was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on February 5, 1887...
, Amonasro in Verdi's
AidaAida is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
, Renato in Verdi's
Un ballo in mascheraUn ballo in maschera , is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi with text by Antonio Somma. The opera's first production was at the Teatro Apollo, Rome, 17 February 1859....
, Figaro in Rossini's
Il barbiere di Siviglia, Tonio in
PagliacciPagliacci is an opera consisting of a prologue and two acts written and composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo. It recounts the tragedy of a jealous husband in a commedia dell'arte troupe...
, Barnaba in
Amilcare PonchielliAmilcare Ponchielli was an Italian composer, largely of operas.-Biography:Born in Paderno Fasolaro, now Paderno Ponchielli, near Cremona, Ponchielli won a scholarship at the age of nine to study music at the Milan Conservatory, writing his first symphony by the time he was ten years old.Two years...
's
La GiocondaLa Gioconda is an opera in four acts by Amilcare Ponchielli to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Angelo, tyran de Padoue, a play in prose by Victor Hugo, dating from 1835....
among others. In addition to frequently singing opposite his wife on the operatic and concert stage, Rimini also performed frequently with
Amelita Galli-CurciAmelita Galli-Curci was an Italian operatic coloratura soprano. She was one of the best regarded singers of the early 20th century.-Biography:...
. The two of them sang their first Figaro and Rosina in
Il barbiere di Siviglia together with the Chicago Opera Company among many other performances.
Rimini and his wife both retired from the operatic stage in 1938, deciding to dedicate their time to teaching the next generation of opera singers. They opened a voice/opera school in Chicago which they ran for two decades. As a part of the school, students would travel to Italy with Rimini and his wife to study in Verona, often staying at their teacher's villa. Rimini and Raisa had one daughter, Rosa Guilietta Segala, who was born in July 1931.
Giacomo Rimini died on March 6, 1952 in his sleep at his home in Chicago.
Opera Recordings
- Falstaff in Verdi's Falstaff
Falstaff is an operatic commedia lirica in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, adapted by Arrigo Boito from Shakespeare's plays The Merry Wives of Windsor and scenes from Henry IV. It was Verdi's last opera, written in the composer's ninth decade, and only the second of his 26 operas to be a comedy...
with Lorenzo MolajoliLorenzo Molajoli was an Italian opera conductor who was active in recording during the 1920s and 30s.The facts surrounding the career of the conductor Lorenzo Molajoli are obscure. He was born in Rome in 1868 and studied there at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia...
and La ScalaLa Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal Theatre of La Scala La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally...
, originally recorded in 1932, Naxos label, current edition released on September 17, 2002, ASIN: B00006B1K9,
Other Recordings
- Opera in Chicago, Vol.2, Symposium label, released on January 14, 1997, ASIN: B000001XWZ. Rimini sings on only two tracks: an aria from Ambroise Thomas
Ambroise Thomas was a French opera composer, best-known for his operas Mignon and Hamlet and as Director of the Conservatoire de Paris from 1871-1896....
' HamletHamlet is an opéra in five acts by the French composer Ambroise Thomas, with the libretto by Michel Carré and Jules Barbier based on Shakespeare's Hamlet and a French adaptation of the play by Alexandre Dumas and Paul Meurice. The work was premiered at the Paris Opéra on 9 March, 1868...
and an aria from Verdi's Un Ballo In MascheraUn ballo in maschera , is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi with text by Antonio Somma. The opera's first production was at the Teatro Apollo, Rome, 17 February 1859....
.
- Rosa Raisa Complete Recordings, Marston label, released August 11, 1998, ASIN: B00000AE0L. Rimini appears on over a dozen tracks singing works by Verdi, Mascagni, and Mozart.