Francesco Merli was an Italian tenor celebrated for his commanding voice and his mastery of heavy dramatic roles. He is often remembered as one of the finest dramatic tenors of the inter war period. His breakthrough came when he won second prize in the 1914 Parma singing competition—first place went to Beniamino Gigli, who became one of the most famous tenors of the century. He was the first tenor to record Turandot, and his interpretation of the role of Calaf gives insight into the early 20th century performance practice. I hope that you enjoy this post.
Meyerbeer, L’Africana, “O Paradiso”
Mi batte il cor!
Spettacol divin
Sognata terra ecco ti premo al fin
O paradiso
Dal onda uscito
Fiorente suol
Splendido suol
In voi rapito io son
Tu m’appartieni
O nuovo mondo
Alla mia patria ti posso
Ti posso ofrir
Nostro e questo terreno fecondo
Que l’europa puo tutta arricchir
Spettacolo divin
In te rapito
Io son
O nuovo mondo
Tu m’appartieni (rep)
A me, tu m’appartieni a me
O nuovo mondo tu m’appartieni
Tu m’appartieni a me ame, a me, a me
Meyerbeer, The African, “Oh, Paradise”
My heart beats fast!
Divine spectacle
Dreamed land, here I am at last
O paradise
Emerging from the waves
Flourishing soil
Splendid soil
I am enraptured by you
You belong to me
O new world
To my homeland I can offer you
I can offer you
This fertile land of ours
That can enrich all of Europe
Divine spectacle
Enraptured by you
I am
O new world
You belong to me (rep)
To me, you belong to me
O new world, you belong to me
You belong to me, to me, to me
Puccini, Turandot, “Nessun dorma”
Nessun dorma! Nessun dorma!
Tu pure, o Principessa
Nella tua fredda stanza
Guardi le stelle che tremano
D’amore e di speranza!
Ma il mio mistero è chiuso in me
Il nome mio nessun saprà!
No, no, sulla tua bocca lo dirò
Quando la luce splenderà!
Ed il mio bacio scioglierà
Il silenzio che ti fa mia!
Dilegua, o notte! Tramontate, stelle!
Tramontate, stelle! All’alba vincerò!
Vincerò! Vincerò!
Puccini, TUrandot, “No one sleep”
No one sleep, no one sleep!
Even you, oh Princess,
In your cold room,
Watch the stars,
That tremble with love
And with hope.
But my secret is hidden within me,
No one shall know my name,
No… no…
On your mouth, I shall tell it,
When the light shines.
And my kiss will dissolve the silence that makes you mine!
Fade, stars! At dawn, I shall win!
I shall win! I win!
Verdi, Aida, “Celeste Aida”
RADAMÈS
Se quel guerrier
Io fossi! se il mio sogno
S’avverasse!… Un esercito di prodi
Da me guidato… e la vittoria… e il plauso
Di Menfi tutta! E a te, mia dolce Aida,
Tornar di lauri cinto…
Dirti: per te ho pugnato, per to ho vinto!
Celeste Aida, forma divina.
Mistico serto di luce e fior,
Del mio pensiero tu sei regina,
Tu di mia vita sei lo splendor.
Il tuo bel cielo vorrei redarti,
Le dolci brezze del patrio suol;
Un regal serta sul crin posarti,
Ergerti un trono vicino al sol
Verdi, Aida, “Heavenly Aida”
RADAMÈS
If I were
that warrior! If my dreams
were to come true! A valiant army
led by me… and victory… and the acclamations
of all Memphis! And to return to you, my sweet Aida,
crowned with laurels…
to tell you: for you I fought, for you I conquered!
Heavenly Aida, form divine,
mystical garland of light and flowers,
of my thoughts you are the queen,
you are the light of my life.
I would return to you your lovely sky,
the gentle breezes of your native land;
a royal crown on your brow I would set,
build you a throne next to the sun.
Verdi, Otello, Act III, “Dio! mi potevi scagliar tutti i mali”
OTELLO
Dio! mi potevi scagliar tutti i mali
della miseria, della vergogna,
far de’ miei baldi trofei trionfali
una maceria, una menzogna…
E avrei portàto la croce crudel
d’angoscie e d’onte
con calma fronte
e rassegnato al volere del ciel.
Ma, o pianto, o duol! m’han rapito il mirraggio
dov’io, giulivo, l’anima acqueto.
Spento è quel sol, quel sorriso, quel raggio
che mi fa vivo, che mi fa lieto!
Tu alfin, Clemenza, pio genio immortal
dal roseo riso,
copri il tuo viso
santo coll’orrida larva infernal!
Ah! Dannazione!
Pria confessi il delitto
e poscia muoia!
Confession! Confession!
Entra Jago
La prova! . . .
Verdi, Othello, Act III, “God! You could have hurled at me all the evils”
Othello
God! You could have hurled at me all the evils
of misery, of shame,
turned my proud triumphal trophies
into rubble, into lies…
And I would have borne the cruel cross
of anguish and disgrace
with calm brow
and resigned to the will of heaven.
But, oh tears, oh pain! They have stolen my mirage
where I, joyful, calmed my soul.
That sun, that smile, that ray
that makes me alive, that makes me happy, is extinguished!
You at last, Clemenza, pious immortal spirit
with rosy laughter,
cover your holy face
with the hideous infernal mask!
Ah! Damnation!
Let her first confess her crime,
then die!
Confession! Confession!
Iago enters
The proof! . . .
Francesco Merli
January 28, 1887 – December 11, 1976
Francesco Merli was born into a family of humble means on a farm just outside Milan. He began his working life as a school janitor but always displayed a talent for singing. Merli had a few scattered voice lessons over the years, but never completely took his singing seriously. However, in June of 1913, the Milan City Council sponsored a concert at the Teatro dal Verme, intended to encourage musical education in the city’s schools. As a school janitor who was popular with students, Merli was asked to participate in the program. With two other vocalists, he sang the trio from Verdi’s I Lombardi, impressing all in attendance with his powerful voice. So impressed was the city council, that they promoted Merli from school janitor to janitor of the municipal offices!
Perhaps the honor of sweeping floors at Milan’s government buildings was not quite the result Merli was expecting, for he began to turn his attentions more and more to singing. When famed conductor and impresario Cleofante Campanini organized an international competition for young singers in Parma the following year, Merli entered. He took first prize in the division for dramatic tenors and second prize overall. Coincidentally, the top prize was awarded to a fledgling tenor from Recanati…Beniamino Gigli. Merli’s rise to fame was not a smooth one, however. At the time of the aforementioned competition, he was essentially a natural singer with no real technique. A sponsor (Tullio Serafin’s brother) arranged for a stipend to be provided that would allow Merli to take a one year leave of absence from his city janitorial duties. Arrangements were also made to pay for the young tenor’s vocal studies. However, this good fortune came to a grinding halt when Merli was conscripted into the Italian Army.
Merli came through the war unscathed and made his debut toward the end of 1916 in the small role of Alvaro in La Scala’s production of Spontini’s Fernand Cortez. In the fall of 1918, he made a second debut at La Scala, this time in the more substantial role of Elisero in Rossini’s Mosè in Egitto. This was the beginning of a long association with this prestigious theater. It also marked the start of a major international career for the tenor. Over the course of the next thirty years, Merli appeared in the major theaters of Verona, Florence, Palermo, Naples, Padua, Trieste, Rome (singing Calaf in the Roman premiere of Turandot), London (he was also Covent Garden’s first Calaf), Sydney (yes, he was the first Calaf there, too), Melbourne, Paris, Brussels, Copenhagen, Sao Paolo, Buenos Aires and New York. His Met debut came on March 2, 1932 as Radames in Aïda. However, after singing only eight performances of four operas, including Lucia di Lammermoor, Simon Boccanegra and Madama Butterfly (as well as a pair of concerts), Merli was taken ill and had to return to Italy. Sadly, he never again returned to the U.S.
Merli’s repertoire was vast, encompassing over 40 roles in such works as Pagliacci, Cavalleria Rusticana, Siberia, Andrea Chénier, La Fanciulla del West, Manon Lescaut, Turandot, La Gioconda, Carmen, Samson et Dalila, Lohengrin, Die Meistersinger, Fidelio, La Forza del Destino, Ernani, I Lombardi, Il Trovatore and, what was considered his greatest triumph, Otello. He sang nearly 300 performances as Otello, culminating in a final Otello in Trieste in 1946. The veteran tenor retired two years later and devoted himself to teaching during the final three decades of his life. Merli passed away in Milan in December of 1976, just six weeks shy of his 90th birthday.