Angelo Masini by Bergamasco

Angelo Masini (1844-1926); Italian tenor. In 1867 he made his debut at the Teatro Finale Emilia as Pollione in Bellini’s “Norma”. In the following years he performed at Italian theaters e.g. Rome, Bologna and Modena and also in Spain. In 1876 he went to Russia; first to Moscow and then to St. Petersburg and was very succesful. His career in Russia lasted more then 26 years and he was the favourite tenor singer (like Tamberlick before) of the Russian tsars.
When Verdi wrote the tenor solo “Ingemisco” for his “Messa da Requiem” in 1874 he had the voice of Masini -whom he greatly admired- in mind. In 1875 Masini sang the “Requiem” in London, Paris and Vienna with Verdi himself as a conductor. In the first performance in France of Verdi’s “Aïda”, also under the direction of the composer, Masini performed the rôle of Radames.
His last opera performance was in 1905 in “Il barbiere di Siviglia” with Titta Ruffo as Figaro.

On the photo he is seen as Raoul in Meyerbeer's "Les Huguenots".