Johan Jonatan "Jussi" Björling was a Swedish tenor. One of the leading operatic singers of the 20th century, Björling appeared for many years at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City and less frequently at the major European opera houses, including the Royal Opera House in London and La Scala in Milan. He sang the Italian, French and Russian opera repertory with taste.
Mario Del Monaco was an Italian operatic tenor.
Renata Tebaldi was an Italian lirico-spinto soprano popular in the post-war period, and especially prominent as one of the stars of La Scala, San Carlo and, especially, the Metropolitan Opera. Often considered among the great opera singers of the 20th century, she focused primarily on the verismo roles of the lyric and dramatic repertoires. Italian conductor Arturo Toscanini called her voice "la voce d'angelo", and La Scala music director Riccardo Muti called her "one of the greatest performers with one of the most extraordinary voices in the field of opera."
Carlo Bergonzi was an Italian operatic tenor. Although he performed and recorded some bel canto and verismo roles, he was above all associated with the operas of Giuseppe Verdi, including many of the composer's lesser known works he helped revive. He sang more than forty other roles throughout his career.
Anna Moffo was an American opera singer, television personality, and actress. One of the leading lyric-coloratura sopranos of her generation, she possessed a warm and radiant voice of considerable range and agility. Noted for her physical beauty, she was nicknamed "La Bellissima".
Giuseppe Di Stefano was an Italian operatic tenor who sang professionally from the mid-1940s until the early 1990s. Called Pippo by both fans and friends, he was known as the "Golden voice" or "The most beautiful voice", as the true successor of Beniamino Gigli. Luciano Pavarotti said he modeled himself after Di Stefano. In an interview Pavarotti said "Di Stefano is my idol. There is a solar voice...It was the most incredible, open voice you could hear. The musicality of Di Stefano is as natural and beautiful as the voice is phenomenal". Di Stefano was also the tenor who most inspired José Carreras. He died on 3 March 2008 as a result of injuries from an attack by unknown assailants.
Giuseppe Sabbatini is a lyric tenor, conductor, and double-bassist.
Lamberto Gardelli was a Swedish conductor of Italian birth, particularly associated with the Italian opera repertory, especially the works of Giuseppe Verdi.
Ferruccio Tagliavini was an Italian operatic tenor mainly active in the 1940s and 1950s. Tagliavini was hailed as the heir apparent to Tito Schipa and Beniamino Gigli in the lyric-opera repertory due to the exceptional beauty of his voice, but he did not sustain his great early promise across the full span of his career.
Kamen Tchanev / Kamen Chanev was a Bulgarian operatic tenor who enjoyed an international career.
Nils Grevillius was a Swedish conductor and violinist.
Joseph Hislop was a Scottish lyric tenor who appeared in opera and oratorio and gave concerts around the world. He sang at La Scala, Milan, the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London, and the Opéra-Comique, Paris, as well as forging a remarkable career in Denmark and Sweden, where he was made a Knight of the Dannebrog and a Knight of the Order of Vasa. He toured America, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand on several occasions and made a large number of recordings, some of which are available on CD re-issues. Hislop is notable for having been the final teacher of the Swedish tenor Jussi Björling and for developing a number of fine British singers through his post-War work at the Guildhall School of Music and at Sadler's Wells. After retiring to Fife, he taught the Scottish baritone Donald Maxwell.
Lucy Kelston was an American operatic soprano, primarily active in Italy during the 1950s.
Nino Sanzogno was an Italian conductor and composer.
Salvatore Fisichella is an Italian operatic tenor known for his roles in bel canto operas, especially those of Rossini, Donizetti and Bellini. He has been recognized for the ease and vocal brilliance of his singing, and for having sung more of the leading roles in Bellini's operas than any other 20th century tenor.
Carlo Colombara is an Italian operatic bass. He has sung leading roles in many major opera houses including Teatro alla Scala ; the Vienna State Opera ; the Real Teatro di San Carlo ; the Arena di Verona ; the Royal Opera House, and the Metropolitan Opera.
Hjördis Gunborg Schymberg was a Swedish coloratura and lyric soprano active on the opera stage and in concert halls between 1934 and 1968. One of the leading singers of the Royal Swedish Opera, she was awarded the title of Hovsångerska in 1943, and in her later years became a distinguished voice teacher.
Michael Weinius is a Swedish operatic tenor. After winning first prize at the 2008 international Wagner competition in Seattle, Weinius has quickly established himself as one of Europe's most sought after tenors.
Pier Giorgio Morandi is an Italian oboist and conductor, especially of Italian opera of the 19th and early 20th century, who has worked internationally. After having played as principal oboe at La Scala in Milan, he turned to conducting, holding positions at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, the Hungarian State Opera House in Budapest, and the Royal Swedish Opera. He recorded productions of Verdi's Il trovatore at the Verona Arena and Puccini's Madama Butterfly at the Metropolitan Opera.
Helga Görlin was a Swedish soprano and voice teacher. She performed as a resident leading soprano at the Royal Swedish Opera from 1926 to 1951, and later returned as a guest artist at that theatre for her final stage performance in 1954 as Cio-Cio San in Puccini's Madama Butterfly. A frequent romantic stage partner of tenor Jussi Björling during the 1930s and 1940s, she notably portrayed the role of Minnie in the Swedish premiere of Puccini's La fanciulla del West in 1934 with Björling as Dick Johnson. She also created roles in the world premieres of operas by Kurt Atterberg, Natanael Berg, and Hilding Rosenberg during her career.
