Maria Labia

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Maria Labia (born February 14, 1880 in Verona , † February 10, 1953 in Malcesine ) was an Italian opera singer (soprano).

Like her older sister Fausta , Maria Labia had her first singing lessons from her mother, the Contessa Cecilia Labia . She first appeared as a concert singer and made her debut at the Royal Opera in Stockholm in 1905 as Mimi in Giacomo Puccini's La Bohème . In 1906 she engaged Hans Gregor at the Komische Oper Berlin , where she appeared until 1911 and had great success as Tosca , Martha in Tiefland by Eugen d'Albert and as Carmen .

She was equally successful at the Manhattan Opera House in New York (1908-10) as Tosca, Carmen, as Amelia in Giuseppe Verdi's Un ballo in maschera and Rita in the first performance of   Jan Blockx 's La Princesse d'Auberge (1909). She made guest appearances at the Paris Opera in 1909 and at the Vienna Court Opera in 1911 and sang the title role in Richard Strauss ' opera Salome at La Scala in Milan in 1913 . After appearing at the major opera houses in Italy, she was arrested during the First World War on charges of alleged espionage for Germany. After the accusation proved completely unfounded, it was released but did not appear in Italy during the war.

In 1919 she sang the role of Giorgetta at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome in the European premiere of Puccini's Il tabarro . At La Scala in Milan she was heard as Alice Ford in Verdi's Falstaff , Felicitá in the world premiere of Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari's I quattro rusteghi (1922) and Cathérine in Umberto Giordano's Madame Sans-Gêne (1923). In the early 1930s she made guest appearances in Germany and Poland.

After retiring from the stage in 1936, Labia first taught at the Warsaw Conservatory , later at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena, in Rome and finally in her villa on Lake Garda. In 1950 she published her autobiography Guardare indietro: che fatica . She has received recordings from Odeon (including duets with Hermann Jadlowker ), Edison cylinders and records, and recordings from Victor.

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personal data
SURNAME Labia, Maria
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian opera singer (soprano)
DATE OF BIRTH February 14, 1880
PLACE OF BIRTH Verona
DATE OF DEATH February 10, 1953
Place of death Malcesine