Emmy La Grua, Lithographie by August Prinzhofer, 1854

Emmy La Grua (also Emma, Emmi or Emilia) (born 15 May 1831 in Palermo; died after 1869)[1] was a 19th-century Italian opera singer (soprano) who performed successfully internationally.

Biography

Emmy La Grua was the daughter of the royal Saxon chamber musician Friederike Funk and the Italian tenorist Luigi La Grua. In 1837, she moved with her mother to Dresden. She received singing lessons from her mother as well as from Pauline Viardot-García and Caroline Ungher-Sabatier in Paris.[2]

In December 1850, Emmy La Grua made her debut in Dresden as Alice in "Robert the Devil" by Giacomo Meyerbeer.[3] Other roles included Donna Anna from Mozart's "Don Giovanni" and Rosine in The Barber of Seville by Gioachino Rossini. In the following years Emmy La Grua made guest appearances at the Paris Opera,[4] from October 1853 as prima donna at the Vienna Court Opera,[5] from 1854 in Turin and as well as further guest appearances in Vienna, Dresden and Lyon.[6] In 1855, together with Cavaliere Antonio Porto, she undertook a two-year concert tour (with high fees) to Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires.[7] Afterwards she gave performances again in Paris, Vienna as well as Pest (today Budapest), in Saint Petersburg, Berlin and Munich.[8] In the meantime she lived again in Dresden in 1859.[9] In 1862 the singer gave guest performances in Barcelona,[10] in 1864 in London[11] and in 1865 in Italy and Spain.

In 1867 she married in Palermo the colonel respectively general Giacinto Carini (1821–1880),[12] an aide-de-camp of Giuseppe Garibaldi,[13] and retired from the public sphere.

References

  1. Karl-Josef Kutsch & Leo Riemens: Großes Sängerlexikon, 4. vol., 4th edition, München 2003, p. 2577
  2. Siehe Neue Zeitschrift für Musik from 17 January 1851, p. 26 (Numerized); Wiener Zeitung from 23 August 1851, 2nd column (Numerized).
  3. Marie Börner-Sandrini: Erinnerungen einer alten Dresdnerin, Neue Folge, Dresden 1879 [1876], p. 19 (Numerized); Signale für die musikalische Welt 8. Jg., Nr. 50, December 1850, p. 482 (Numerized).
  4. Signale für die musikalische Welt 9. Jg., Nr. 4, January 1851, p. 38 (Numerized).
  5. Signale für die musikalische Welt 11. Jg., Nr. 29, July 1853, p. 229 (Numerized); Signale für die musikalische Welt 11. Jg., Nr. 42, October 1853, p. 335 (Numerized).
  6. Signale für die musikalische Welt 12. Jg., Nr. 51, December 1854, p. 423 (Numerized); Süddeutsche Musik-Zeitung 13 March 1854, p. 44 (Numerized) and 17 April 1854, p. 64 (Numerized).
  7. Signale für die musikalische Welt 13. Jg., Nr. 22, May 1855, p. 173 (Numerized); Berliner Musikzeitung 16 May 1855, p. 159 (Numerized); Süddeutsche Musik-Zeitung 12 October 1857, p. 164 (Numerized).
  8. Der Zwischen-Akt 26 May 1859, 2nd column (Numerized); Berliner Musikzeitung 1 June 1859, p. 175 (Numerized); Blätter für Musik, Theater und Kunst 11 October 1859, p. 324 (Numerized); Fremden-Blatt 6 January 1860 (Numerized); Ost-Deutsche Post 10 July 1860 (Numerized); Signale für die musikalische Welt 19. Jg., Nr. 25, May 1861, p. 334 (Numerized); Fremden-Blatt 11 July 1861 (Numerized).
  9. Fremden-Blatt 18. August 1859 (Numerized).
  10. Der Zwischen-Akt 22 June 1862 (Numerized).
  11. Berliner Musikzeitung 20 April 1864, p. 127 (Numerized).
  12. (Linzer) Tages-Post 31 January 1880, p. 2 (Numerized).
  13. Neue Zeitschrift für Musik 5 July 1867, p. 247 (Numerized); Neue Freie Presse 16 June 1867 (Numerized).
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