Opera Scotland

Gianandrea Gavazzeni Suggest updates

Born Bergamo, 27 July 1909.

Died.

Italian conductor.

Gianandrea Gavazzeni enjoyed a long career conducting in the major Italian opera houses, and was artistic director of La Scala Milan in the sixties. He was particularly associated with verismo opera and revivals of little-known works of the bel canto era. He was also a composer in his early years.

He studied at the Santa Cecilia Academy in Rome and at the Conservatory in Milan. He started working as a conductor in 1940, and soon gave up composition altogether. He appeared at La Scala from 1948 until his retirement, and was artistic director from 1965 to 1968.

He appeared occasionally outside Italy, including the Bolshoy in Moscow. In the USA he made his debut in 1957, conducting La bohème in Chicago. His debut at the New York Met was in 1976, with Il trovatore.

It was with La Scala that he made his British debut at Edinburgh in 1957. He was unable to appear for a scheduled return with the Palermo company in 1972. His only other operatic appearance in Britain was for Anna Bolena at Glyndebourne in 1965.

His many operatic recordings include Il turco in Italia, made at La Scala with Callas. Madama Butterfly with Victoria de los Angeles and Giuseppe di Stefano, Il pirata with Montserrat Caballé and Simon Boccanegra, recorded with Cappuccilli and Domingo.