4 - June 2012 GRAPEVINE GRAPEVINE June 2012 - 5 Puccini's Enchantress: Margaret Burke-Sheridan by Francis Pettitt friend complained it was who was born in Bombay. (Conductors ob- played the part of the heroine in Madame Verme theatre (Milan) in 1919. This was hard for her, an English so- viously do not have the same problems as Butterfly, Puccini was completely be- followed by La Bohème and Mephisto- prano, to pursue a career on singers, and Mehta continues to direct the witched by her voice and preferred it pheles, the latter with the protagonist sung Italy's operatic stage. She had Maggio Musicale Fiorentino; indeed, has above all others for this role. As he wrote by De Angelis. A been made an honorary citizen of the city in one of his letters: "she is full of charis- She continued at the San Carlo theatre sung in several works (including Nabucco) and received praiseworthy re- of the lily.) matic intensity and childlike appeal." It is with Madame Butterfly and La Wally, an views in the newspapers (an intense de- It was not always so. Two of the greatest also said that an Italian, rejected in love by opera by another great lucchese, Alfredo light for the audience) but her difficulties Puccini singers came from the British Margaret, shot himself in the head during Catalani. It was with La Wally that she remained. As the 2012 Torre del Lago op- Isles. I refer to Eva Turner and Margaret a performance at La Scala and that, after made her debut at La Scala on April 6, era season approaches us I can only think Sheridan. The latter was of Irish descent this tragedy, Sheridan never again sang in 1922. In 1923, she sang in Andrea of Rosalind Plowright, who first sang and was Puccini's favourite Cio-Cio-San. public. She died, almost forgotten, a resi- Chenier with Gigli in Rimini. Gigli made Puccini's Manon Lescaut there in 1980, as Years ago, in a second-hand shop in a dent of the Shelbourne Hotel Dublin, in his debut at Covent Garden with this a living English singer who "made it" with murky London suburb, I found an album 1958 (exactly 100 years after the birth of work in 1930 together with Sheridan. Italian audiences. of 78 rpm discs – a complete recording, on Puccini) and was buried in Glasnevin cem- In 1923 the world premiere of Respighi's It remains true, without a doubt, that thirty-four sides, of Madame Butterfly. etery in that city. I have been told that Belfagor took place at La Scala with most Italians want their own compatriots Listening to these discs through the siz- Margaret Sheridan expired during the Sheridan, Merli and Stabile. Margaret was to sing their operatic repertoire. The oppo- zling noise of shellac under the needle of Italian opera season of Dublin and that the also invited to sing in America but never site (i.e. for Italian singers to perform in an old gramophone player, I detected an singers from Italy in the company sang a took up this offer. To sum up, "Maggie England) is, fortunately, not true. extraordinarily beautiful voice singing the requiem (perhaps Puccini's Requiem?) at from Mayo" was highly thought of in Italy Otherwise, there would have been no part of Cio-Cio-San; a voice which be- her funeral service at a Franciscan church for several years and sang with most of the Callas, Freni or Bartoli on the Covent longed to Margaret Burke-Sheridan. out of respect for a star they had known best known tenors of that era: Gigli, Pertile, Garden stage, to mention only three Burke-Sheridan was born on October and esteemed as "one of them" for so Lauri-Volpi, Smirnoff, Zanelli, Merli, names – to say nothing of the Italian cas- 15, 1889 in Castlebar, Co. Mayo, Ireland, many years. Hackett and Borgioli. trati that took the London operatic stage the youngest of five children. Her mother "Maggie from Mayo" was certainly one Sheridan's repertoire was not very ex- by storm in the eighteenth century! died when she was four and her father of the principal soprano voices in the twen- tensive and comprised just twelve roles. The problem is that the majority of when she was eleven, and Margaret was ties of the last century. Unfortunately, she The quality of her voice may be described If you have an ADSL connection there Butler Yeats and even Arturo Toscanini, Italians consider that bel canto is the ex- then brought up in an orphanage in began her vocal studies rather late for an as pure and ardent at the same time. It's are several internet pages and sound links who was unable to resist her Gaelic clusive property of their nation. In short, a Dublin. Fortunately for her, a musical nun opera singer and her career, as already very lucky that we can still hear it in sev- to Margaret Burke-Sheridan, particularly beauty and whose quarrelsome nature al- voice from another country doesn't do at there, Mother Clement, realized the great mentioned, was relatively short. Sheridan eral recordings. Arguably the most impor- on youtube. For starters, I would suggest ways lost out to her sharp wit. all. Few are the "foreign" singers who have potential of her voice and sent her to the made her very successful debut in 1918 in tant is the second complete Madame the following magnificent rendering of Margaret Sheridan was a singer who been successful in Italy. In the last century London for voice-training. Subsequently Rome in La Bohème. The following year Butterfly, recorded in 1929-30 with the the famous aria Un bel dì vedremo: began her relatively short opera career / there was, of course, Joan Sutherland, La she studied in Italy. Nick-named "Maggie she sang for the first time in Madame part of Pinkerton taken by Lionello Cecil http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJ9mS0L__Qc rather late but, who, at the same time, stupenda, weaned from Wagner and from Mayo", "La Sheridan" is still consid- Butterfly at Covent Garden. She also sang and under the direction of Carlo Sabajno. (Readers can listen to this piece by clicking on the made exquisite recordings, of which above photograph on Grapevine’s website.) Richard Strauss by her husband, the con- ered the second greatest Irish prima the part of Mimi in La Bohème with Tom (The first complete recording was in 1929 / Madame Butterfly remains unequalled, ductor and coach Richard Bonynge, to in- donna, after Catherine Hayes (1818- Burke as Rodolfo, and this was followed with Rosetta Pampanini and conducted by Margaret counted not only Giacomo always very listenable, very close to terpret authentically and completely for 1861) who was the first in that part of the by the English premiere of Mascagni's Lorenzo Molajoli). Puccini among her friends but also Puccini's original concept, and very won- the first time, after years of neglect, the bel world to sing at la Scala. Iris. Her performances were always admi- It is also worth mentioning that Guglielmo Marconi (who, hearing her derful. Let us hope, therefore, that British canto repertoire (especially Bellini and Sheridan, a soprano, was the idol of the rably received and praised by enthusiastic Margaret Sheridan recorded many tradi- sing, declared "yours is the voice I've been and Irish singers will again find a place in Donizetti) and also to sing a magnificent public at La Scala and Covent Garden for audiences. Sheridan returned to Italy to tional Irish songs that are still available in waiting to hear all my life" and brought the bel paese's operatic stage that they Turandot under the baton of Zubin Mehta, a period of twelve years. When "Maggie" make her debut in Butterfly at the dal specialized record catalogues. her to Italy to train further), William truly deserve. << home .