Mario Ancona was a very special singer during the latter part of the 19th century and the beginning part of the 20th century. The thing that I would point out is the sound production. This voice was absolutely free, and it was smooth from the bottom-most register to the top register. This was truly a remarkable voice.
Up until fairly recently, operas would be translated in to the language of the country in which they were being sung. So, Bizet’s The Pearlfishers, when sung in Italy, would be sung in Italian, as it is here. Finding a good translation from the original French to this Italian version is not worth the effort (actually, I know, having tried to do it). I am giving the original French and a translation into English, with the thought that what they are singing in Italian must have some resemblance to the original French.
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Oh, de’ verd’anni miei, Carlo’s aria from Ernani
Oh, de’ verd’anni miei
sogni e bugiarde larve,
se troppo vi credei,
I’incanto ora disparve.
S’ora chiamato sono,
al più sublime trono,
della virtù com’aquila
sui vanni m’alzerò, ah,
e vincitor de’ secoli
il nome mio farò.
Oh, of my halcyon days, Charles’s aria from Ernani
Oh, in my halcyon days,
dreams and lying worms,
if I believed you too much,
The spell has now vanished.
Yes, now I am called,
to the most sublime throne,
climbing up on his wings
of virtue like an eagle, ah,
and conqueror of the ages
my I shall make my name.
Di Provenza il mar – Germont’s aria from La Traviata
Di Provenza il mar, il suol
chi dal cor te cancello?
Al natio fulgente sol
qual destino ti furo’?
Oh, rammenta pur nel duol
ch’ivi gioia a te brillo’;
E che pace cola’ sol
su te splendere ancor puo’.
Dio mi guidò!
Ah! il tuo vecchio genitor
tu non sai quanto soffrì!
Te lontano, di squallor
il suo tetto si coprì.
Ma se alfin ti trovo ancor,
se in me speme non fallì,
Se la voce dell’onor
in te appien non ammutì,
Dio m’esaudi’!
The sea and soil of Provence – Germont’s aria from La Traviata
The sea and soil of Provence —
who has erased them from your heart?
From your native, shining sun —
what destiny stole you away?
Oh, remember in your sorrow
that joy shined on you,
and that only there peace
can yet shine upon you.
God has guided me!
Ah, your old father —
You don’t know how much he has suffered!
With you far away, with misery
has his house become full.
But if in the end I find you again,
if hope did not fail within me,
if the voice of honor
didn’t become silenced in you,
God has heard me!
Mario Ancona (February 28, 1860 – February 23, 1931), was a leading Italian baritone and master of bel canto singing. He appeared at some of the most important opera houses in Europe and America during what is commonly referred to as the “Golden Age of Opera”.
Ancona was born into a middle-class Jewish family at Livorno, Tuscany. After embarking on a business career he decided to study voice with a local singing teacher named Matteini in his native city of Livorno. Later, he took lessons from Giuseppe Cima in Milan. On February 28, 1860, he made his debut as an amateur singer in the Concerto Maglioni, in 1880. Ancona’s earliest recorded opera appearance was in 1889 with the Triest opera company, singing the role of Scindia in Massenet’s Le Roi de Lahore. Shortly after, he sang another Massenet opera, Le Cid, in Milan’s La Scala (1890), and two years later, he created Silvio in Leoncavallo’s Paglicacci. For many years he appeared as a regular artist at London’s Covent Garden Opera where he was held in very high esteem. He sang as a guest artist in Cairo, Lisbon, Madrid, Paris, Warsaw, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Chicago, Boston and various cities in South America. From 1906-08 he was engaged with the Manhattan Opera House where he was particularly successful in his role of Don Giovanni. He was much admired on stage for his elegant deportment, and his beautiful and expressive voice, particularly in the high register. His repertory included Verdi (Germont, Rigoletto, Amonasro, Iago and Don Carlos in Ernani), Puccini (Lescaut and Marcello), Mascagni (Alfio and David in L’amico Fritz), Mozart (Don Giovanni and Figaro), Wagner (Wolfram, Telrammund and Hans Sachs), and several French roles such as Nevers, Escamillo and Valentin. After retiring in 1916 Mario Ancona devoted himself to teaching voice. He died in Florence.