Description

NINI FRASCANI (MILAN, ITALY, 1878 – ? 1935)

She studied with Cosentino and Puzzone in Naples and made her debut in 1899 at Naples in La Favorita. In 1903, she appeared at La Scala as Fricka in the Italian premiere of Wagner’s Das Rheingold and also performed as the Principessa in Adriana Lecouvreur. In 1909, she sang Neris in an important production of Cherubini’s Medea.

In 1905, she performed at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples in the premiere of Leopoldo Mugnone’s opera Vita Bretonne. She made her Covent Garden debut in 1904 and appeared with great success at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires in 1906 and from 1914 to 1915. At the Teatro Colón, she sang in Franchetti’s La figlia di Jorio, Rigoletto, and Wagner’s Die Walküre. On August 4, 1914, she participated in the premiere of Carlos López Buchardo’s opera El Sueño d’Alma at the same theater.

In 1909, she returned to the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, performing as the Queen in A. Thomas’s Hamlet. In 1911, she guested at the Teatro Regio in Parma as Laura in La Gioconda. She enjoyed a sustained and successful career at La Scala beginning in 1909, including her participation in the 1911 premiere of Dukas’s Ariane et Barbe-bleue.

In 1913, she participated in the Verdi-commemorative celebrations, performing in Oberto and Nabucco at the Teatro Regio in Parma and other major Italian theaters. She married tenor Gaetano Tommasini, and the couple performed together in North America. In 1921, she appeared with the Favorita Opera Company at the Manhattan Theatre in New York and later with the San Carlo Opera Company.

During the 1930s, she resumed her career briefly before settling in Milan, where she and Gaetano Tommasini opened an opera studio, nurturing future generations of singers.

Chronology of some appearances

1903 Napoli  Teatro San Carlo Favorita (Leonora)
1904 Milano  Teatro Lirico Adraiana Lecouvreur (Principessa)
1904 Londra  Covent Garden Rigoletto (Maddalena)
1905 Napoli  Teatro San Carlo Adraiana Lecouvreur (Principessa)
1905 Napoli  Teatro San Carlo Gioconda (Laura)
1908 Oporto  Teatro S. Joao  Favorita (Leonora)
1908 Trieste  Anfiteatro Fenice Favorita (Leonora)
1909 Napoli  Teatro San Carlo Carmen (Carmen)
1909 Napoli  Teatro San Carlo Guglielmo Ratcliff (Margherita)
1910 Venezia  Teatro Rossini Carmen (Carmen)
1910 Brescia  Teatro Grande Don Carlo (Eboli)
1911 Padova  Teatro Verdi Carmen (Carmen)
1911 Parma  Teatro Regio Gioconda (Laura)
1912 Bergamo  Teatro Donizetti Carmen (Carmen)
1912 Bologna  Teatro Comunale Don Carlo (Eboli)
1912 Napoli  Teatro Mercadante Favorita (Leonora)
1913 Madrid Teatro Reale Carmen (Carmen)
1913 Madrid  Teatro Reale Favorita (Leonora)
1913 Roma  Teatro Costanzi Carmen (Carmen)
1913 Trieste  Teatro Verdi Carmen (Carmen)
1913 Torino  Teatro Regio Don Carlo (Eboli)
1915 Piacenza  Teatro Municipale Carmen (Carmen)
1915 Buenos Ayres  Teatro Colon Carmen (Carmen)
1915 Firenze  Teatro Della Pergola Carmen (Carmen)
1916 Valencia  Teatro Principal Carmen (Carmen)
1917 Venezia  Teatro Rossini Carmen (Carmen)
1917 Milano  Teatro Dal Verme Favorita (Leonora)
1918 Genova  Politeama Genovese Gioconda (Laura)
1919 Mantova Teatro Andreani Carmen (Carmen)
1919 Ascoli Piceno  Teatro Ventidio Basso Carmen (Carmen)
1919 Urbino  Teatro Sanzio Gioconda (Cieca)
1920 Roma  Teatro Nazionale Carmen (Carmen)
1920 Napoli Politeama Giacosa Don Carlo (Eboli)
1920 Livorno  Teatro Avvalorati Gioconda (Laura)
1921 Prato  Teatro Metastasio Carmen (Carmen)
1921 Brooklyn  Academy of Music Carmen (Carmen)
1921 New York  Lexington Theater Carmen (Carmen)
1921 New York  Manhattan Theater Carmen (Carmen)
1921 New York  Manhattan Opera House Favorita (Leonora)
1921 New York Teatro Manhattan Gioconda (Laura)
1921 Philadelphia  Teatro Metropolitan Carmen (Carmen)
1922 Los Angeles  Philarmonic Auditorium Carmen (Carmen)
1922 Los Angeles Philarmonic Auditorium Lohengrin (Ortruda)
1922 Edmondton  Empress Theater Carmen (Carmen)
1922 St. Louis Odeon Theater Carmen (Carmen)
1922 Buffalo Teck Theater Carmen (Carmen)
1923 Napoli  Teatro San Carlo Adraiana Lecouvreur (Principessa)

TRACKLIST

1. Aida (Verdi) Duetto, act 2 (w. Boninsegna) 12565, 86600 Pathé, Milano 1918
2. Aida (Verdi) Già i sacerdoti adunansi (w. Zenatello) 39527 XPh1664 Fonotipia, Milano 1906-02-26
3. Aida (Verdi) Misero appien mi festi (w. Zenatello) 39528 XPh1663 Fonotipia, Milano 1906-02-26
4. Alla mio bambino (Giordani) 53362 2235h G&T, Milano 1904-04
5. Carmen (Bizet) Habanera D 5505 11113 Columbia, Milano 1912
6. Carmen (Bizet) Presso il bastion di Siviglia D5504 11154 Columbia, Milano 1912
7. Carmen (Bizet) Scena delle carte D5504 11153 Columbia, Milano 1912
8. Crepuscolo triste (Giordano) 053048 312½i G&T, Milano 1904-04
9. Favorita (Donizetti) O mio Fernando 39786 XPh2071 Fonotipia, Milano 1906-09-27
10. Favorita (Donizetti) O mio Fernando D 5505 11115 Columbia, Milano 1912
11. Gioconda (Ponchielli) L’amo come il fulgor (w. Boninsegna) 86599 Pathé, Milano 1918?
12. Samson et Dalila (Saint-Saëns) O aprile foriero D5519 11152 Columbia, Milano 1912
13. Samson et Dalila (Saint-Saëns) S’apre per te il mio cor (w. Gilion) 92855 XPh4431 Fonotipia, Milano 1910-12-03
14. Samson et Dalila (Saint-Saëns) S’apre per te il mio cor D5519 11151 Columbia, Milano 1912
15. Trovatore (Verdi) Sì, la stanchezza… Ai nostri monti (w. Gilion) 92856 XPh4433 Fonotipia, Milano 1910-12-03