Portrait of the singer Renata Tebaldi (1922-2004)

The soprano Renata Tebaldi (1922-2004) was born in Pesaro (as was Rossini) and is remembered as the greatest lyrical performer of all time. She is considered a Verdi and Puccini specialist. She débuted in a 1946 concert at La Scala which had only just been rebuilt after suffering bomb damage. On that occasion, Toscanini apparently said: “Let the Heavens descend to me this voice of an angel” and the glowing nickname stuck. She never married as having a family would have prevented her having a singing career.
In the 1950s when La Scala seemed to prefer Maria Callas, Tebaldi received enthusiastic reviews everywhere, beginning with the Teatro San Carlo in Naples.
The New York Metropolitan Opera became the main stage for her art, but she was in demand everywhere.
Reports point to a presumed rivalry between her and Maria Callas, which may have started during ajoint tour of Brazil. Tebaldi told of being urged by fans to sing a few encores, but this was seen as a slight, given her colleague had wanted to sing those pieces.
When asked to compare the two singers, all the experts agree that Tebaldi’s voice was more beautiful and even, velvety and crystalline, whilst the mythologised Callas had more depth as a performer and was a more engaging interpreter of characters. The two great lyrical singers denied any disagreement and besides, there was a reconciliation in 1968 when Callas openly praised the other during a performance.
Tebaldi’s repertoire proved stressful for her voice, but which, from the 1960s, was however less worn out than Callas’ voice. The “angel’s voice” continued to sing on stage until 1973. She gave a charity concert one last time at La Scala in 1976, the year of the Friuli earthquake. It was yet another memorable triumph.