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Lamberto Gardelli

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

Lamberto Gardelli was an Italian conductor who later became a Swedish citizen. He was born in Venice in 1915 and studied in Pesaro and at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome. He began as a pianist and double bass player, also took composition lessons with Goffredo Petrassi and was assistant to Tullio Serafin for eight years. In 1944 he made his debut as a conductor with La traviata in Rome. He himself wrote five operas, of which only L'impresario delle Americhe was performed, and a post-Romantic Requiem.

Music and breakthrough

In Stockholm Gardelli worked at the Royal Opera with singers such as Jussi Björling and Birgit Nilsson, and he was later a conductor in Copenhagen, music director of the Hungarian State Opera in Budapest and chief conductor in Munich and of the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra. He also conducted at Glyndebourne, in London and, in 1966, for the first time at the Metropolitan Opera in New York.

Influence

He was regarded as a Verdi specialist. In the 1960s and 1970s he recorded forgotten early Verdi operas for Philips and Orfeo, such as Alzira, Attila, Stiffelio and I masnadieri, alongside Nabucco and Macbeth. He also made the first complete French version of Rossini's Guillaume Tell and recorded four operas by Respighi. He coached young sopranos, including Sylvia Sass and Lucia Aliberti. One critic praised his grasp of structure and his tasteful expression without exaggeration.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to his recording of Nabucco and notice the chorus in the famous choral scene and how the orchestra lets the singing breathe without letting the tempo sag.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists