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I first heard the magical voice of the supeb tenor Enrico Caruso in 1939 or 1940. This was on my father's gramophone in our home in Bratislava, Slovakia. So, at the tender age of 4 or perhaps 5, I became a fan of an unknown singer from a land far from our own, and singing in the lyrical Italian language. And I even remember the name of that first magical song, 'Core n'grato'. I also recall that my father would occasionally take time out from playing the works of his beloved Mozart to play 'Core n'grato' on his Bosendorfer piano.
Years later, when I was 19 years old, and in the bloom of my first love affair, another Italian [who was actually part Greek] would serenade me with the strains of 'Core n'grato'. Gregg's voice was perhaps not as powerful as Caruso's, but certainly just as beautifully lyrical and passionate. Unfortunately my father died when I was 6, and my beloved Gregg died when I was 22. But listening to Caruso brings their memories alive once more.
It was with a bit of melancholic nostalgia, intertwined with joy, that I found a wonderful website devoted in its entirety to Caruso today. And curiously it was put together in Denmark. Further proof of the universality of music.
Do check out Enrico Caruso.dk for one of the most complete internet sites on Caruso. Not just words, but LOTS of music. Even has some downloadable MP3s.
Thank you for the link to that great new Caruso website! I was surfing around looking for information about him, and thanks to you I found the site.
Posted by: Marie Lamb | June 04, 2008 at 08:52 AM