Sir Colin Davis

Colin Rex Davis was born on September 25th, 1927, in Weybridge, Surrey, England, and was known for his exceptional interpretations of a wide range of classical and contemporary repertoire. His early exposure to music was through the clarinet, which he started playing at a young age. His interest in conducting developed during his time at […]

Stephen Grady Gould

As a prolific heldentenor, Stephen Gould was a frequent artist on the Bayreuth Festival stage, appearing in almost 100 performances over a period of 18 years. Stephen Grady Gould was born on January 24th, 1962 in Roanoke, Virginia. He is the son of Loren and Annie Gould. He studied at the New England Conservatory of […]

Karl Böhm

Karl Böhm was born on August 28th, 1894, in Graz, Austria. He displayed a strong interest in music from a young age and began his musical education with piano lessons. He also studied violin, which gave him a solid foundation in instrumental technique. Böhm’s formal education in music continued when he enrolled at the Vienna […]

Renata Scotto

Internationally acclaimed for her sense of style and musicality, but also for remarkable acting skills, Renata Scotto is considered by the public and the critics one of the most preeminent singers of her generation. Born in Savona, Italy on February 24th, 1934, Renata Scotto made her operatic debut at the age of 18, in her […]

Riccardo Muti

Riccardo Muti’s career started in 1967, when he won the Guido Cantelli Conducting Competition in Milan and, immediately after, in 1968, he became the principal conductor of Maggio Musical Fiorentino, a position he held until 1980. Certainly, Muti”s career is full of highlights that couldn’t be all not mentioned in a single article and one […]

Tito Gobbi

Tito Gobbi was born on October 24th, 1913, in Bassano del Grappa, a town in the Veneto region of Italy. He grew up in a musically-inclined family, and his parents recognized his early talents and interest in singing. As a child, he received encouragement and support from his family to pursue his passion for music. […]

Herbert von Karajan

Herbert von Karajan, whose birth name was Heribert Ritter von Karajan, was born on April 5th, 1908, in Salzburg, Austria. As a child, Karajan showed exceptional musical talent and began piano lessons at the age of four. He demonstrated remarkable progress, and by the age of six, he was already performing in public concerts. His […]

Grace Bumbry

“To strive for excellence, that’s the answer. If you strive for excellence, that means that you are determined. You will find a way to get to your goal, even if it means having to turn down some really great offers. You have to live with that, as you have to live with yourself.” (Grace Bumbry) […]

Franco Zeffirelli

Gian Franco Corsi Zeffirelli was an Italian film director, producer, screenwriter, and stage director. He was born on February 12th, 1923, in Florence, Italy, and passed away on June 15th, 2019 in Rome, at the age of 96. His mother died when he was just six years old, and he grew up under the auspices […]

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf

Soprano Elisabeth Schwarzkopf is one of the most celebrated and iconic opera singers of the 20th century. Born in 1915 in Jarocin, Poland, she grew up in a musical family, with her father being a conductor and her mother a pianist. As a child, she sang in choirs and studied the violin, but soon realized […]