Teodorini, Elena

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Teodorini, Elena

Teodorini, Elena, Romanian soprano; b. Craiova, March 25, 1857; d. Bucharest, Feb. 27, 1926. She studied piano with Fumagalli and voice with Sangiovanni at the Milan Cons.; also received vocal instruction from G. Stephănescu at the Bucharest Cons. In 1877 she commenced her career with appearances in Italian provincial theaters as a contralto, but her voice gradually changed to a mezzo-soprano of wide range. She made her debut at Milan’s La Scala as Gounod’s Marguerite on March 20, 1880; subsequently sang in various South American music centers; was particularly associated with the Italian Opera and the National Opera in Bucharest. In 1904 she retired from the operatic stage and became a teacher in Paris; after teaching in Buenos Aires (1909-16) and Rio de Janeiro (1916-23), she settled in Bucharest. Her most notable pupil was Bidú Sayāo. Among her prominent roles were Rosina, Donna Anna, Amelia, Lucrezia Borgia, Amneris, and Gioconda. In 1964 the Romanian government issued a postage stamp in her honor bearing her stage portrait.

Bibliography

V. Cosma, Cttareata E. T (Bucharest, 1962).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire

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