SANTINI, GABRIELE The conductor Gabriele Santini (1886-1964) was
born in Perugia, where he undertook his musical studies
before continuing at Bologna Conservatorio. He made
his conducting début in 1906 but soon moved to South
America where he was employed at the Teatro Colón in
Buenos Aires for eight seasons before appearing in Rio
de Janeiro and Chicago. He then assisted Toscanini at La
Scala in Milan between 1925 and 1929, conducting Aida,
Madama Butterfly, Der Freischütz, Carmen, Gianni Schicchi, Tosca and Il Tabarro. He then worked at the
Opera in Rome during the years 1929-33. He returned to
La Scala in 1934 to conduct eight operas during the year.
Santini conducted the première of Mascagni’s Il re in
Rome in 1930. He returned to La Scala in 1943 to
conduct La Wally. He then became the artistic director of
the Rome Opera during the years 1944 and 1947 and then
was music director until 1962. He directed the première
of Alfano’s Dottor Antonio in Rome in 1949, in addition
to conducting the first Italian performances of L’heure
espagnole (Rome, 1929) and Milhaud’s Christophe
Colomb (Rome, 1954). Santini recorded a number of
complete operas between the years 1952 and 1964. Sadly
he collapsed during a recording of Tosca in 1964 which
resulted in the project being aborted. Santini died in
November that year in Rome.
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