Description

IGNACY DYGAS (IGNAZIO DIGAS) (29 JULY 1881 WARSAW – 17 MAY 1947 WARSAW)

He began studying voice at the Warsaw Conservatory under Y. Shepkovsky, initially training as a baritone. Later, his voice was retrained from baritone to tenor by V. Aleksandrovich. In 1907, he continued his studies in Milan with Vincenzo Lombardi. He made his debut in 1905 as Valentin in Gounod’s Faust at the Warsaw Opera. That same year, under the name Ignacy Gorszynski, he made his second debut at the same theater as Jontek in Moniuszko’s Halka. He performed at the Warsaw Opera until 1907.

From 1907 to 1913, under the name Ignacio Digas, he appeared in many major Italian opera houses, including performances in Turin, Padua, Teatro Lirico (Milan), Teatro San Carlo (Naples), Teatro Massimo (Palermo), Genoa (Teatro Carlo Felice, 1909), Rome (Teatro Costanzi, as Lohengrin and Pollione in Norma, 1910), and Bologna (Teatro Comunale, again as Lohengrin, 1913). He also achieved great success in Madrid, Montevideo, and Rio de Janeiro.

Between 1910 and 1914, he performed in Poland, where he also served as the director of the Warsaw Opera from 1913. In the 1913-1914 season, he appeared at the National House in St. Petersburg, and from 1914 to 1916, he sang at S. Zimin’s Opera House. From 1916 to 1917, he was engaged at the Moscow Bolshoi Theatre, and he also performed at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg as Hermann in Tchaikovsky’s Pique Dame.

Starting in 1917, he resumed his appearances at the Warsaw Opera. In 1918, he founded his own opera troupe, which toured various cities in Poland. As a principal soloist, he performed at the Teatr Wielki in Warsaw from 1919 to 1924. In 1924, he moved to the United States, where he performed in cities such as Chicago, New York, and Detroit. He also made guest appearances in Romania, Yugoslavia, and the Czech Republic between 1927 and 1928.

In 1937, he sang for the last time in Warsaw as Eleazar in La Juive. Until his death, he continued to occasionally perform on stage and taught singing at the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw. He was known for possessing a beautiful, strong chest voice with a wide range and a dense middle register.

TRACKLIST

1. Mattianata (Leoncavallo) 3316 20147 Syrena
2. Mattianata (Leoncavallo) 10785 Syrena
3. Mattianata (Leoncavallo) 21070 29658 Pathé, Warszawa
4. Mowc do mnoe jeszcze Rutkoeski Favorite 1-75651 5942-0
5. Pagliacci (Leoncavallo) Vesti la giubba 10781 Syrena, Warszawa 1906
6. Pagliacci (Leoncavallo) Vesti la giubba 29663 Pathé, Warszawa 1906
7. Pod krucyfiksem (Faure) 26482 Pathé, Warszawa
8. Pojdz skarbie moj (Leoncavallo) 8434 Syrena
9. Rigoletto (Verdi) La donna e mobile 3358 20378 Syrena
10. Rigoletto (Verdi) Questa o quella 1270 13324 Syrena
11. Straszny dwor (Moniuszko) Aria z kurantem 842 10782 Syrena
12. The sweet scent of lilac, Romance (Plotnikov) 18338 Syrena
13. Tosca (Puccini) E lucevan le stele 13326 1271 Syrena
14. Trovatore (Verdi) Di quella pira (with orchestra) 912 8432 Syrena
15. Trovatore (Verdi) Di quella pira (with piano) 4-22494 1771ae Gramophone, Warszawa 1910-09
16. Werther (Massenet) Ah! non mi ridestar 1272 13328 Syrena
17. Wesoly nam dzis dzien nastal 3179 19132 Syrena
18. Z dymem pozarow Hymn narodowy (Nikorowicz) 3004 18617 Syrena
19. Zasmuconej (Karlowicz) 10793 Syrena