Giorgio Zancanaro (born 9 May 1939) is an Italian

baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...

, particularly associated with the Italian repertory, especially

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi ( ; ; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto, a small town in the province of Parma, to a family of moderate means, recei ...

. He studied in his native Verona with Maria Palanda and was revealed at the Verdi Competition in Busseto in 1969. He made his official operatic debut the following year in

Mantua Mantua ( ; ; Lombard language, Lombard and ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Lombardy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, eponymous province. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the "Italian Capital of Culture". In 2 ...

, as Riccardo in ''

I puritani ' (''The Puritans'') is an 1835 opera by Vincenzo Bellini. It was originally written in two acts and changed to three acts before the premiere on the advice of Gioachino Rossini, with whom the young composer had become friends. The music was set ...

''. Quickly invited to sing at all the major opera houses of Italy, he established himself as the eminent "Verdi baritone" of his generation, notably in '' I masnadieri'', ''

Luisa Miller ''Luisa Miller'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play '' Kabale und Liebe'' (''Intrigue and Love'') by the German dramatist Friedrich von Schiller. Verdi's initial idea f ...

'', and '' La traviata''. He made his debut at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was Santa Maria della Scala, Milan, a church). The premiere performa ...

in 1982, as Ford in ''

Falstaff Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays ''Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...

'', and took part in important revivals of ''

Attila Attila ( or ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in early 453. He was also the leader of an empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, and Gepids, among others, in Central Europe, C ...

'' and '' I vespri siciliani'', under

Riccardo Muti Riccardo Muti (; born 28 July 1941) is an Italian conductor. He is current music director of the Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini. Muti has previously held posts at the Maggio Musicale in Florence, the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, the ...

. On the international scene, he performed in major cities including

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, and Zurich. He also sang at the festivals of Orange, in 1982 as Posa in '' Don Carlo'', and

Bregenz Bregenz (; ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost states of Austria, state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switzerland in the wes ...

, in 1985 as Riccardo in ''I puritani'' opposite Edita Gruberova and Salvatore Fisichella. He made his debut at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...

in 1982, as Renato in '' Un ballo in maschera'', one of his best roles. He also appeared at the

San Francisco Opera The San Francisco Opera (SFO) is an American opera company founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola (1881–1953) based in San Francisco, California. History Gaetano Merola (1923–1953) Merola's road to prominence in the Bay Area began in 1906 wh ...

and the

Dallas Opera The Dallas Opera is an American opera company located in Dallas, Texas. The company performs at the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, one venue of the AT&T Performing Arts Center. History The company was founded in 1957 as the Dallas Civic ...

. Zancanaro sang almost every major baritone role of the Italian repertory, and his Verdi roles show his beautiful and evenly produced voice, brilliant upper register, and stylish singing to best effect. Largely ignored by the recording companies, he can still be heard or seen in the following official recordings: *'' Il cappello di paglia di Firenze'' with Ugo Benelli, Alfredo Mariotti, Viorica Cortez, Daniela Mazzucato RCA 1975 *'' Il trovatore'' (video) with Raina Kabaivanska, Franco Bonisolli, Viorica Cortez, dir. Bruno Bartoletti Eurodisc 1975 *'' Il trovatore'' with Raina Kabaivanska, Franco Bonisolli, Viorica Cortez, dir. Bruno Bartoletti Acanta / Arts Music 1975 *''Il trovatore'' with

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French, ...

, Rosalind Plowright,

Brigitte Fassbaender Brigitte Fassbaender (; born 3 July 1939), is a German mezzo-soprano opera singer and a stage director. From 1999 to 2012 she was Theater manager, intendant (managing director) of the Tyrolean State Theatre in Innsbruck, Austria. She holds the ti ...

, Evgeny Nesterenko, dir. Carlo Maria Giulini DG 1983 *''Don Carlo'' (DVD) with Luis Lima, Ileana Cotrubas, Robert Lloyd, Bruna Baglioni, dir.

Bernard Haitink Bernard Johan Herman Haitink (; 4 March 1929 – 21 October 2021) was a Dutch conductor and violinist. He was the principal conductor of several international orchestras, beginning with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in 1961. He moved to Lond ...

Castle Vision 1985 *'' Andrea Chenier'' with Plácido Domingo, Anna Tomowa-Sintow, dir. Humphrey Burton, Covent Garden 1985 *''Andrea Chenier'' with

José Carreras Josep Maria Carreras Coll (; born 5 December 1946), better known as José Carreras (, ), is a Catalan operatic tenor from Spain who is particularly known for his performances in the operas of Donizetti, Verdi and Puccini. Born in Barcelona, ...

, Eva Marton, dir. Giuseppe Patanè CBS 1985 *'' La forza del destino'' with

Mirella Freni Mirella Freni (born Mirella Fregni, 27February 19359February 2020) was an Italian operatic soprano who had a career of 50 years and appeared at major international opera houses. She received international attention at the Glyndebourne Festiva ...

, Plácido Domingo, Paul Plishka,

Sesto Bruscantini Sesto Bruscantini (10 December 1919 – 4 May 2003) was an Italian baritone, one of the greatest buffo singers of the post-war era, especially renowned in Mozart and Rossini. Biography and career Bruscantini was born in Civitanova Marche, M ...

, dir. Riccardo Muti EMI 1986 *''

Madama Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story " Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Lu ...

'' (DVD) with Yasuko Hayashi, Peter Dvorský, dir. Keita Asart Pioneer Artist 1986 *'' Guglielmo Tell'' with Chris Merritt, Cheryl Studer, Luigi Roni, dir. Riccardo Muti Philips 1988 *''

Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play '' Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had c ...

'' with

Daniela Dessì Daniela Dessì (14 May 1957 – 20 August 2016) was an Italian operatic soprano. Life and career Born in Genoa, Italy, Dessì completed her studies at the Arrigo Boito Conservatory in Parma and the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena. She ...

, Vincenzo La Scola, Paata Burchuladze, dir. Riccardo Muti EMI 1988 *''I vespri siciliani'' with Chris Merritt, Cheryl Studer, Ferruccio Furlanetto, dir. Riccardo Muti EMI 1989 *''Attila'' with

Samuel Ramey Samuel Ramey (born March 28, 1942) is an American operatic bass. At the height of his career, he was greatly admired for his range and versatility, having possessed a sufficiently accomplished bel canto technique which enabled him to sing the mu ...

, Cheryl Studer, Neil Shicoff, dir. Riccardo Muti EMI 1990 *''Attila'' (DVD) with

, Cheryl Studer, Kaludi Kaludov, dir. Riccardo Muti Fonit-Cetra 1991 *''La traviata'' (DVD) with Edita Gruberova, Neil Shicoff, dir. Carlo Rizzi Teldec 1992 *''

Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...

'' with Carol Vaness, Giuseppe Giacomini, dir. Riccardo Muti Philips 1992 *''Falstaff'' with Walter Berry, Francisco Araiza, dir.

Lorin Maazel Lorin Varencove Maazel (; March 6, 1930 – July 13, 2014) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He began conducting at the age of eight and by 1953 had decided to pursue a career in music. He had established a reputation in t ...

Orfeo 2009 (1983 live performance)

General sources

* ''Le guide de l'opéra, les indispensables de la musique'', R. Mancini & J-J. Rouveroux, (Fayard, 1995),

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zancanaro, Giorgio 1939 births Living people Musicians from Verona Italian operatic baritones 20th-century Italian male opera singers