Tenor;
Born July 24, 1921;
Died March 3, 2008.
GIUSEPPE Di Stefano, who has died aged 86, was one of the greatest tenors of the twentieth century and a celebrated singing partner of Maria Callas.
He died at home in Santa Maria Hoe, north of Milan, from injuries sustained in an attack at his family's villa in Kenya in November 2004. The retired tenor had been incapacitated since unidentified assailants struck him on the head during the attack at his house in Diani, Kenya. Di Stefano underwent surgery twice in Mombasa before being flown to Milan. He awakened from a coma, but never fully recovered.
Di Stefano, born in Sicily in 1921, made his debut in 1946 in the northern city of Reggio Emilia with Massenet's Manon, and went on to sing at the world's top opera houses, including Milan's La Scala, New York's Metropolitan, and in Vienna and Berlin. His last performance was in Rome in 1992.
Known for his powerful voice, he also is remembered for his duets with Callas, who performed and recorded with him several times in the 1950s through to her final tour in 1973.
Di Stefano was at the height of his career when other stars of contemporary opera were taking their first steps. Luciano Pavarotti, who died in September, had his big international break when he stood in for Di Stefano as Rodolfo in Puccini's La Boheme at London's Covent Garden in 1963.
At the Met, Di Stefano sang in 112 performances from 1948 to 1965, making his debut in Verdi's Rigoletto as the Duke.
"His musical merits have mostly to do with style for the voice, though neither small nor ugly, is not an organ of great beauty," composer Virgil Thomson wrote in The New York Herald Tribune after that first performance. "But he has an impeccable enunciation, and he projects a phrase with style and authority. Also, his personality is fresh and genuine."
On Monday, Italy and the world of opera celebrated him as one of the greats.
"Let us remember his great talent and his fascinating interpretations, which brought to stages across the world the feelings and emotions of our best musical tradition," President Giorgio Napolitano said.
"Another great of the Scala family enters into the history of opera, into its myth," said a statement from the Milan opera house, where Di Stefano sang 185 times.
He is survived by his wife, Monika Curth
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