Description

EUGENE VITTING (ST. PETERSBURG, JULY 8 (20), 1884 – MINSK, 10 AUGUST, 1959)

 

 

 

 

His real surname was Vittings. Initially, he studied with his brother, an operetta singer, before continuing his vocal education at the St. Petersburg Conservatory under Gabel. However, he soon chose to leave the Conservatory and trained privately with the distinguished Russian tenor Lev Klementiev. In 1904, he moved to Milan to further his studies with Del Fiume. He made his operatic debut in 1906 in Piacenza as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor. Following this, Vitting performed in Milan and Parma, and later that same year, he returned to Russia, where he appeared at the St. Petersburg National House.

From 1909 to 1918, he was a soloist at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, debuting as Sobinin in A Life for the Tsar. In 1913, he was a guest artist in Kazan. After 1918, he relocated to Riga, where he contributed to the founding of the National Opera Theatre, performing there until 1940. From the 1920s onward, he made appearances in England, France (1924-26), Monaco, Spain (1924-26, 1932, 1934 in Madrid and Barcelona), Italy (1924-26, 1932 at La Scala), Berlin (1928), Belgrade (1929-31), Bucharest (1932), the USA (1933-36 in New York and Philadelphia), China (1929 in Shanghai), Japan (1929), Czechoslovakia, Finland, Lithuania, and Estonia. He also performed in Odessa (1926), Sverdlovsk (1927-28), and Tiflis (1927). His final appearance was in 1946 as Eleazar in Halévy’s La Juive at the Riga Opera Theatre.

Vitting possessed a strong voice with an even quality across all registers, especially notable for its rich middle register and wide range, handling upper-register challenges with ease. His repertoire included over 35 roles. He was a close friend of the famed baritone Titta Ruffo.

 

Chronology of some appearances

 

1906 Piacenza Opera House Lucia di Lammermoor (Edgardo)

1908 St. Petersburg Mariinsky Theatre A life for the Tzar (Sobinin)

1927 Riga Opera Theatre La Juive (Eleazar)

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

1. Mefistofele (Boito): Se tu mi doni un ora with Lev Sibiryakov Gramophone 024041 2037c
2. Nijegorodci (Napravnik): Kuratov’s romance Gramophone 022178 2048c
3. Carmen (Bizet): La fleur que tú m’avais jetée Gramophone 022179 2049c
4. Don’t trust you baby (Petrov) Gramophone 4-22179 14910b
5. No to byl son von (Lassen) Gramophone 4-22181
6. You are my morning (Vrangel) Gramophone 4-22182 14913
7. She was yours (Grechaninov) Gramophone 4-22194 14968b
8. Mattinata (Leoncavallo) Gramophone 4-22206 15010
9. Carmen (Bizet): C’est toi! c’est moi!… with Evgenija Zbrueva Gramophone 024052 2455c
10. Carmen (Bizet): Mais moi, Carmen, je t’aime encore with Evgenija Zbrueva Gramophone 024053 2456c
11. Aida (Verdi): Ariya Radamesa – Milaya Aida Gramophone 022303 2480c
12. The Sailors (Villebois) with Lev Sibiryakov Gramophone 2-24040 16682½b
13. Te wedding (Dargomizhsky) Gramophone 022307 2655c
14. Zhidovka: Ariya Eleazara, A4 – Rakhil, ty mne dana, Halévy Gramophone 022304 2656c
15. Pagliacci (Leoncavallo) Vesti la giubba Gramophone 4-22543 16529
16. The magic of the roses (Schenk): The troubadour’s aria Gramophone 022335 2903c
17. Eugene Onegin (Tchaikovsky): Duel scene with Mikhail Karakash Gramophone 024082 2900c
18. Carmen (Bizet): Ho nome Escamilio with Mikhail Karakash Gramophone 024086 2901c
19. With the sweet scent of lilac (Plotnikov) Gramophone 4-22605 17558 ½b
20. Madama Butterfly (Puccini): Duo with Mikhail Karakash Gramophone 2-24217 17543