Description

RAPHAËL ROMAGNONI (LYON, 20 FEBRUARY, 1906 – CHÂTILLON-SUR-CLUSES, SAVOIE, 23 APRIL, 1999)

 

 

 

 

He was trained at the Conservatoire de Lyon and made his debut in 1931 at the Opéra de Lyon as Turiddu in Cavalleria Rusticana. Afterwards, he appeared at numerous French opera houses and sang at theatres in North Africa. In 1947, he was engaged by both the Grand Opéra and the Opéra-Comique in Paris. At these houses, his repertoire included Faust, Roméo in Roméo et Juliette, the Duke in Rigoletto, Mylio in Le Roi d’Ys, Don José in Carmen, Hoffmann in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Nadir in Les Pêcheurs de perles, Gérald in Lakmé, and Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly.

From 1958 onward, he took on comprimario parts, including Missail in Boris Godunov, Remendado in Carmen, Spalanzani in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, and Torquemada in L’Heure espagnole. He retired from the stage in 1971.

He also appeared as a guest abroad, performing at the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels (1950), the Teatro São Carlos in Lisbon (1964), and in Switzerland, the Netherlands, Greece, and Brazil.

His daughter, Odette Romagnoni (born June 26, 1938, in Lyon), became a noted soprano. She began performing at the Opéra de Lyon in 1961, later appearing at various French opera houses, and was a member of the Opéra-Comique in Paris from 1969 to 1971.

 

Chronology of some appearances

 

1931 Opéra de Lyon

1947 Paris Grand Opéra

1947 Paris Opéra-Comique

 

TRACKLIST

 

Carmen (Bizet) Air de la fleur

Contes d’Hoffmann (Offenbach) Légende de Kleinzach

Lohengrin (Wagner) Récit du Graal

Pêcheurs de Perles (Bizet) Au fond du temple saint (w. Borthayre)

Trouvère (Verdi) O toi, mon seul espoir

Trouvère (Verdi) Supplice infâme

Valkyrie (Wagner) Nothung, glaive rêvé

Werther (Massenet) Invocation à la nature