Di Stefano, Giuseppe

▪ 2009

      Italian lyric tenor

born July 24, 1921, Motta Santa Anastasia, Sicily, Italy

died March 3, 2008, Santa Maria Hoe, near Milan, Italy

was hailed as one of the finest operatic tenors of his generation. Di Stefano was admired for the warmth of his voice and for his bravura stage presence in such operas as La traviata, Rigoletto, Faust, L'elisir d'amore, Un ballo in maschera, and Tosca. Some of his greatest performances were opposite soprano Maria Callas, his frequent partner from 1951 to the mid-1960s; he later persuaded her to come out of retirement for a joint U.S., Asian, and European tour (1973–74). Di Stefano sang popular music as a child and during his World War II army service. In 1943 he fled to Switzerland, where he studied opera and sang recitals on the radio. He made his operatic debut in Massenet's Manon in Reggio Emilia, Italy, in 1946 and made his American debut two years later at New York City's Metropolitan Opera, where he went on to sing more than 100 performances over 17 seasons. In later years Di Stefano's voice darkened, and he ventured into heavier dramatic roles; he continued to perform occasionally until 1992.

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