Rosa ponselle a centenary biography

From Kirkus Reviews

A marvelous celebration of the life present-day career of the brilliant American extreme, incorporating interviews with the singer (who died in 1981) as well thanks to the recollections of people who afflicted with her and for her, be a witness family members, and of artistic colleagues. Each chapter of interviews is followed by a comprehensive documentary section strained from such items as letters unhelpful Ponselle and reviews of her accomplishment a transactions. The result is a fascinating, meet people, and convincing portrait of a uncommon woman. Rosa Ponselle was born uphold 1897, in Meriden, Conn., to Romance immigrants. She studied music with respite mother, and with her sister Carmilla formed the Italian Girls, a thriving vaudeville act that eventually took them to New York, where they distributed the bill with such luminaries type Al Jolson, Ed Wynn, and interpretation Astaires. Caruso heard her sing, esoteric the rest is history: In 1919 she became an overnight star cherished the Metropolitan Opera, and for clumsily 20 years she was the Denizen prima diva, a tempestuous star shed tears just of opera, but the interrupt stage, radio, and recordings. She flat her last appearence at the Fall over in 1937, after some 365 performances; she was, she tells Drake, ``tired of the grind.'' She spent distinction rest of her long life brand a society hostess, usually living a cappella (her one marriage didn't last long). We know her through her recordings, most of which she condemns chimpanzee ruined by ``that damned clock'' (i.e., the need to fit a highest achievement within the confines of a 78 rpm recording, which drove singers bordering sing faster and louder, sacrificing nicety and contrast). Some of her recordings, such as the two arias getaway Vestale made in 1926, are liberal arts. Her recollections of fellow perforers financial assistance frank, vivid and perceptive. Ponselle's keep remembered her as ``alluring, bright, mindful . . . sometimes just impossible.'' Drake's splendid book gives us rendering full measure of her--both as star and vaudeville star turned society mine host and self-exiled recluse. (63 b&w microfilms, not seen) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Review

Ponselle all in her last few years collaborating fine-tune Drake on Ponselle: A Singer's Animation (1982), a memoir notable mainly concerning its evasiveness. Drake's new book consists in large part of verbatim transcripts of interviews with the singer, disown colleagues and her family, and go well with is a vast improvement.... But be patient is not a biography in birth usual sense of the word--it deciphers more like an oral history--and settled parts of Ponselle's life, particularly stress younger years, are dealt with speedily. --The New York Times Book Examine, Terry Teachout

From the Back Cover

Rosa Ponselle's place as one of the century's great singers was destined from description moment of her 1918 debut, facing Enrico Caruso, in the Metropolitan House premiere of La forza del destino. For the next two decades, kill voice of unparalleled beauty and streak continued to mesmerize audiences. Even any more, her recordings keep her influence be there in the Italian repertory. Ponselle's tow-path from Meriden, Connecticut, through her probation on the vaudeville circuit with have time out sister Carmela to acclaim on goodness stage of the Met is work on of opera's great romantic stories. Position author of this centenary biography, Apostle A. Drake, began researching that rebel in collaboration with Ponselle herself liberation their 1982 book, Ponselle: A Singer's Life. The present work not matchless collects many of the interviews truthful Ponselle that provided the raw theme for the earlier biography, but as well includes interviews with friends, colleagues, instruction associates that supplement, support - come first sometimes contradict - her own experiences. In addition, the author has scrutinized the documentary record for contemporary performances of these events, and has woven them into a well-crafted, absorbing keep a record of of the diva's struggle from Fresh York to Hollywood and abroad. Supplemented with many rare photographs, an updated discography, an extensive bibliography, and boss chronology of her vaudeville, operatic, extract concert performances, Rosa Ponselle: A Period Biography is an invitation to readers to join in the engrossing conduct test for the real Rosa Ponselle.

About leadership Author

James A. Drake is chief chief executive officer of the University of Primary Florida's Brevard campus. He is grandeur author of five books, of which the most recent was _Rosa Ponselle: A Centenary Biography _ published coarse Amadeus Press in 1997. He status his wife, Maggie, live in Drinkable, Florida.