Enrico Caruso

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Enrico Caruso was born in Naples in 1873, into a poor but not destitute family. His father was a mechanic and foundry worker, and young Enrico too was first put to work in engineering. He sang in a church choir and in the street, took singing lessons and made his debut in 1895 at the Teatro Nuovo in Naples. After years in provincial opera houses he signed a contract with La Scala in 1900, where under Arturo Toscanini he sang the role of Rodolfo in La bohème.

Music and breakthrough

The turning point came in 1902. In Milan he made his first series of records for the British Gramophone Company, ten in all, and they became bestsellers at once. In 1903 he made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, where he would remain the centre of attention for years. Puccini wrote the role of Dick Johnson in La fanciulla del West in 1910 with Caruso's voice in mind. During the First World War he sang extensively for charities and war-bond drives. He died in 1921 at the age of 48.

Influence

Caruso was a tenor with a very wide repertoire, from lyric to dramatic roles. Between 1902 and 1920 he made about 250 commercial recordings. That made him the first international recording star: a singer who reached his audience not only in the concert hall but also through the gramophone, even in living rooms where opera had never been heard. Later releases of his work, such as the collection Sacred Songs for the Holy Year from 1949, show how long his voice remained in circulation. Anyone who wants to understand the history of pop music as the history of recording will end up with him.

Listening

Discography

Studio albums

• 1998The Magnificent Voice of Enrico Caruso
• 2007Farinetti meets Caruso