Marie Carandini, Marchioness of Sarzano (born Maria Burgess; 1 February 1826 – 13 April 1894) was an English-Australian opera singer.

Early life

Maria Burgess was born in

Brixton Brixton is an area of South London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th century ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

, the daughter of coachman James Burgess (died 1835) and Martha Burgess ( Medwin). Her mother was a cousin of

Thomas Medwin Thomas Medwin (20 March 1788 –2 August 1869) was an early 19th-century English writer, poet and translator. He is known chiefly for his biography of his cousin, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and for published recollections of his friend, Lord Byron. ...

Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...

's companion and biographer, and her father claimed a close relationship to Shelley. She was brought by her parents to

Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania during the European exploration of Australia, European exploration and colonisation of Australia in the 19th century. The Aboriginal Tasmanians, Aboriginal-inhabited island wa ...

(now

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

) in 1833. At the age of 17, she married an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

nobleman, Jerome Carandini, the

Marquis A marquess (; ) is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife (or wido ...

of Sarzano (1803–1870), who was a political refugee. Her musical training and first performances were in Hobart.

Career

The Carandinis came to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

around 1845 and studied under

Isaac Nathan Isaac Nathan (179215 January 1864) was an English composer, musicologist, journalist and self-publicist, who has been called the "father of Australian music", having assisted the careers of numerous colonial musicians during his twenty year resi ...

, Sara Flower and Lewis Henry Lavenu. Ann K. Wentze
Carandini, Marie (1826-1894)
''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

'', Vol. 3, MUP, 1969, pp. 351-352; retrieved 25 April 2010 Marie soon established a reputation as a concert singer and operatic prima donna, both in Sydney and

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, and was a popular favourite in many other centres in Australia. She was frequently billed as "The Australian

Jenny Lind Johanna Maria Lind (Madame Goldschmidt) (6 October 18202 November 1887) was a Swedish opera singer, often called the "Swedish Nightingale". One of the most highly regarded singers of the 19th century, she performed in soprano roles in opera in ...

". She has the distinction of having been Australia's first Adalgisa in Bellini's opera ''Norma'' (1852,

Royal Victoria Theatre, Sydney The Royal Victoria Theatre, often referred to as the Victoria Theatre or The Old Vic, was a theatre in Sydney, Australia, the first large theatre in the city. It opened in 1838; operas, plays, pantomimes and other events were held, and leading en ...

) beside the Norma of Sara Flower. Her husband, having received a pardon from the Italian government, went to Italy in 1870, but died at

Modena Modena (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It has 184,739 inhabitants as of 2025. A town, and seat of an archbis ...

of gastric fever and inflammation of the lungs soon after his arrival. Madame Carandini continued to sing in concerts for some years in Australia and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, with visits to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. In November 1858 Carandini sang Leonora in

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 ...

's '' Il trovatore'' in a twenty-seven performance season at the

Princess Theatre, Melbourne The Princess Theatre, originally Princess's Theatre, is a 1452-seat theatre in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1854 and rebuilt in 1886 to a design by noted Melbourne architect William Pitt, it is the oldest surviving entertain ...

. The Carandini troupe performed what may have been New Zealand's first full opera production when they performed Henry Bishop's ''

Guy Mannering ''Guy Mannering; or, The Astrologer'' is the second of the Waverley novels by Walter Scott, published anonymously in 1815. According to an introduction that Scott wrote in 1829, he had originally intended to write a story of the supernatural, ...

'' at Dunedin's Princess Theatre in September 1862.

Late life and legacy

Carandini's last Australian appearance was in farewell concert on 3 February 1892 at the

Melbourne Town Hall Melbourne Town Hall, often referred to as simply Town Hall, is the administrative seat of the local municipality of the City of Melbourne and the primary offices of the Lord Mayor and city councillors of Melbourne. Located on the northeast co ...

; she sang "Jessie the flower of Dumblane" with a strong voice for her age. Soon afterwards she left for England. In her late life, Carandini lived at Richmond Hill, near Bath, with her daughter; she died there on 13 April 1894, aged 68.

Family

Carandini had eight children, of whom five daughters were musical and took part in her tours. Her eldest daughter

Rosina Palmer Rosina Martha Hosanah Palmer (; 27 August 1844 – 16 June 1932) was an Australian opera singer. Born in Hobart, she developed a soprano voice early on and accompanied her mother, opera singer Marie Carandini, on tours, singing with her family t ...

was a notable Australian soprano, while her son

Christie Palmerston Cristofero Palmerston Carandini or Christopher "Christie" Palmerston (c. 1850 – 15 January 1897) was an Australian explorer and prospecting, prospector in North Queensland. He led several expeditions during the last quarter of the 19th century ...

was an explorer and prospector in northern Queensland. Her great-grandson (by her daughter, Countess Estelle Marie (''née'' Carandini di Sarzano); (1889–1981)) was actor Sir

Christopher Lee Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee (27 May 1922 – 7 June 2015) was an English actor and singer. In a career spanning more than sixty years, Lee became known as an actor with a deep and commanding voice who often portrayed villains in horr ...

and her great-great-granddaughter is Dame

Harriet Walter Dame Harriet Mary Walter is an English actress. She has received an Olivier Award and nominations for a Tony Award, five Emmy Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2011, Walter was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British E ...

. She was also the great-grandmother of the actress

Hermione Hannen Hermione Hannen (26 January 1913 – 1 October 1983) was an English theatre and film actress. She was born in London, the daughter of Nicholas "Beau" Hannen, who was also an actor on the stage and in film. Biography Hermione Hannen was born on ...

through her daughter Fanny Ellen Hannah Louisa Carandini, who married Sir Henry Morland.

Tribute

A street in the

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

suburb of Melba is named in her honour.

References

External links

Marie Carandini at Project Gutenberg Australia
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carandini, Marie 1826 births 1894 deaths

Marie Marie may refer to the following. People Given name * Marie (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** List of people named Marie * Marie (Japanese given name) Surname * Jean Gabriel-Marie, French compo ...

English emigrants to colonial Australia English operatic sopranos People from Brixton Musicians from Tasmania Singers from the London Borough of Lambeth Singers from Sydney Women of the Victorian era 19th-century English musicians