(1)
Soprano
Lydia Lipkowska
(1880-1955) studied at the St. Petersburg
Conservatory before making her debut (1907) at the Mariinsky Theatre as
Gilda (Rigoletto). The majority of her career was spent outside of
Russia. In addition to her appearances in St. Petersburg and Moscow, she
displayed her brilliant coloratura voice in Paris, Monte Carlo, London,
Vienna, New York, Boston and Chicago. In 1909, to satisfy an agreement
between the Boston Opera and Metropolitan Opera to exchange singers, she
made the first of her thirteen appearances at the Metropolitan Opera as
Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia. She was also seen there as
Violetta (Traviata) and Gilda (Rigoletto).
(2)
Lydia Lipkowska and son.
(3) Renowned Russian soprano
Felia Litvinne
(1860-1936). This remarkable woman was completely devoted to her craft from a
very early age. She made her debut (1877) as Amelia in Simon Boccanegra.
Possessed with a remarkable memory, she switched languages freely throughout a
performance depending on the tongue of the colleague with whom she was singing.
Litvinne's father was Russian and her mother French-Canadian. Playing no
favorites she was equally fond of and proficient in the French and Russian
repertories.
(4)
Felia Litvinne
in Gluck's Armide.
(5) Edmond Louis as Escamillo in
Carmen.
(6) English tenor Edward Lloyd
(1845-1927) had a tremendous concert and oratorio career that lasted over thirty
years. He sang in the world premiere of Elgar's Dream of Gerontius in
1900, the year he retired.
(7) Adolf Löltgen
as Lohengrin.
(8) Adolf Löltgen in Parsifal.
(9) Peter
Lordmann as Falstaff in Nicolai's Die Lustigen Weiber von Windsor.
(10)
Russian bass
Vladimir Lossky
as Méphistophélès. He had a successful singing career and was noted for his
fine acting, especially in the role of Don Basilio in Le Nozze di Figaro.
However, he is most appreciated for the time and effort he spent training
young singers. He was also a producer at Savva Mamontov's Moscow Private Opera
during the 1890s.
(11) French tenor Léon Laffitte (Saint-Geniès:
1875 - Paris: 1938) in Le Troyens. He made his debut
(1898) at the Paris Opéra as David in Die Meistersinger. He sang for
fifteen seasons at the Monnaie in Brussels where he was a great favorite.
In 1904, with piano accompaniment, Lafitte sang excerpts from Sylvio Lazzari's
opera-in-progress, Armor, for Prince Albert. The Prince, who was not at
all pleased at what he heard, promptly dismissed the opera. Laffitte was not a
top-tier tenor, showing, at times, unevenness in his singing.
