Angiolina Bosio by Mayer & Pierson

Angiolina Bosio (1830-1859); Italian soprano.

Her parents were both actors and she began singing in theatrical productions with them at the age of 10. From 1840/47 she studied singing in Milan with Venceslao Cattaneo. Here she made her debut in 1846 at the Teatro Real del Circo as Lucrezia Contarini in Verdi's "I due Foscari". In 1847 she made successful appearances at the Teatro Carcano in Milan, theTeatro Filarmonico in Verona, the Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen, and the Teatro Real in Madrid. In 1848 she made her debut at the Grand Opéra Paris as Lucrezia Contarini to only moderate success. Following this performance, she undertook a North American trip which lasted from 1848-1851. She made appearances in theatres in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Havana. In 1851 she returned to Europe and was married that year to a Greek man named Xindavelonis. In 1852 she made her debut in London at the Covent Garden as Adina in Donizetti's "L'elisir d'amore". In 1852-1853 she was heard more successfully than the first time at the Grand Opéra Paris in a variety of parts, including the title role in the French premiere of Verdi's " Luisa Miller". In 1853 she accepted an invitation to join the roster of singers at the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre in Saint Petersburg. Here she was given the title "Première Cantatrice" what made her the highest paid female singer at the theatre. She was paid 100.000 Francs for a 4 months contract. She sang opposite tenor Enrico Tamberlick frequently and performed numerous times in operas and concerts attended by Alexander II of Russia. In 1855 she left Russia to join the Théâtre-Italien in Paris. In 1858 she performed again in Russia, first at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and then again at the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre. She returned to Moscow for another performance and then was traveling by train back to St. Petersburg when she caught a bad cold. The disease affected her badly and her health rapidly declined. She died in 1859 at the age of 29 in Saint Petersburg. Her funeral drew a large crowd in St. Petersburg and a monument was erected in her memory near the cathedral at the Alexander Nevsky Monastery where she is buried.