Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1921-08-02

years Il CclepIIty III tlC "oiiu VI 9N'5'
the tenor with "the golden voice
idolized by millions N America and
abroad, had an artistic career as we'll
known as that of any famous states
man or military leader. He was born
in Naples, Italy, February rs, 1881
the son of Marcelius Caruso, a me-
chanic, who detested music but was
persuaded to permit his son, when /
years old, to sing in the churches
of his native city. An unpromising
pupil, for three years he studied I'm
der Guglielmo Vergine, pledging his
teacher that when ready for a pro-
fesisonal career he should pay him
one-quarter of his earnings for the
following five years.
lie made his debut in 81 AMIGO
Francesca" at the Nuovo theater,
Naples, in 1894, later toured Italy
and Sicily and was engaged for four
seasons at La Scala, Milan. Subse-
quently he sang in st. Petersburg,
Moscow, Warsaw, Rome, Lisbon, Par
is, London, and leading cities of Ger
man. When he came to the Metro
politan Opera House in New York on
November %, 1908, the critics did
| not go into ecstacies over him. One
| of them wrote, on the opening night
"S;gnor Caruso las the Duke in
RlgolettoD has many of the tire
some Italian vocal affections and
when he neglects to cover his tones,
as he always does when he becomes
strenuous, his voice becomes pallid"
1t is interesting to observe that
when Caruso made his Naples debut
he sang the title role four times for
which he received 100 francs, a pair
OF stage shoes, a suit of fleshings and
a neckGlchief. Some years later
Maurice Grau, the impresario, neg
otlated with him to sing in America
for 500 month but thought the
salary excessive and the deal fell
through. Grau was quick to per-
ceive the opportunity he had lost and
finally engaged Caruso for SO per-
formances at $1,000 night. But Mr..
Grau became i'll and Caruso, when
singing in Lisbon, received woAl that
again he must abandon his hope of
singing in America Heinrich Con-
reid, who followed Mr.. Grau at the
, metropolitan, Spwever, cabled CaruSo
an offer to cross the Atlantic and his
ambition at last was realized.
Although no official statement of
| his earning was ever made public, it
is known that Caruso, at the height
of his Metropolitan career, was re
ceiving $4,000 for each performance
| On special occasions, such as his 1920
season in Havana, he was paid $10,-
900 a night.
The list of Italian and French OPP
eras in which the noted tenor's name
| figures since he first sang in New
York revealed an amazing versatile
! ty. In f6 years he sang no less than
! $40 times, in one season, 1907-08
making 81 appearances, great tess
of endurance for any voice. He was
unsparing, if not reckless, of his vo-
cal powers. No grand opera tenor
in America, from the days of
Brignoli, Campanini, Ravelli, Tamag
no and Jean de Reszke, it is recorded
ever reigned SO long in popular ia
vor.
Caruso, after his strenuous opera
seasons, some times had trouble with
his throat, which he usually overcame
with little rest and care and at cer-
tain intervals, rumors that "Caruso
will never sing again were frequent
ly printed. In the winter Of 1920,
however, he suffered a serious afflic-
tion when a small blood vessel in his
throat burst while he was singing IN
"E'lisie d'Amore" in the Brooklyn
Academy of Music. Recovered from
this mishap, Caruso was stricken with
pleurisy. After his recovery last
spring he sailed with his family for
Naples, where he died
During his indispositicn, Caruso
was the object of devoted attention
by his wife, formerly Miss Dorothy
Benjamin, of New York, whom he
married in 1918. One child was born
| to them. Caruso had a son by a
former wife, singer name Ada Cia-
chetti, with whom he had been as
+ sociated in opera at Treyiso and Bo-
logna.
Caruso's repertoire in America in
cluded the following: tItalian)
Aida, . 'sRigoletto," "La Boheme,
III Africaine," La Faoorita,' La
Somnanbula, la Traviata," Les
Huguenots,n Fedora "Adrienne
/ I an<,S,xyra,,,%s, ava1f;arsa ppc4;