![[Verdi, Giuseppe. (1813–1901)] Patti, Adelina. (1843–1919) Signed Photograph to Giuseppe Verdi](http://www.schubertiademusic.com/cdn/shop/files/Patti_SP_to_Verdi_12587.jpg?v=1722188369)
[Verdi, Giuseppe. (1813–1901)] Patti, Adelina. (1843–1919). Signed Photograph to Giuseppe Verdi. Original CDV photograph of the great soprano, inscribed and signed by her to the composer Giuseppe Verdi, who called her the greatest soprano he'd ever heard: "Auguri a l'illustre Verdi de sa toute devoué Adelina Patti / Paris 1er Janvier 1867." In an ornate brass tabletop frame of the period, likely the original frame.
Adelina Patti (1843-1919) was one of the most important singers of the late nineteenth century, as well as a fascinating character in the public eye. Born in Italy, she began her career as a child prodigy, making several US tours as a teenager. Her European debut came in 1861, at the age of 18, when she stunned Covent Garden audiences with her prodigious talent as Amina in La Sonnambula. She was the reigning soprano of Covent Garden for a quarter-century, as well as performing at La Scala, the Met, the Paris Opéra, and other major houses. Her admirers included Queen Victoria, Napoleon III, and Leo Tolstoy; her marriage to a French aristocrat, their separation and her subsequent relationship with tenor Ernest Nicolini were the talk of all Europe.
Giuseppe Verdi was a great admirer of Patti, who was particularly well-regarded in her Verdi roles. She was the first to play the role of Aida in London in 1876, and also appeared in La traviata at La Scala in 1877. After seeing her in this performance, Verdi wrote to the music publisher Giulio Ricordi: "A success, then... a great success... It was bound to be! You heard her ten years ago, and now you exclaim: 'How she has changed!' But you are mistaken! Patti was then the same as she is now: a perfect blend of singer and actress... a born artist in every sense of the word. [...] she knows, and knows very well, that I did not wait for her Milan success, but that from the very first I heard her in London (she was almost a girl), I considered her a remarkable singer and actress, something exceptional in our art." (Quoted in Marcello Conati, Encounters with Verdi, pp. 50-51).
[Verdi, Giuseppe. (1813–1901)] Patti, Adelina. (1843–1919). Signed Photograph to Giuseppe Verdi. Original CDV photograph of the great soprano, inscribed and signed by her to the composer Giuseppe Verdi, who called her the greatest soprano he'd ever heard: "Auguri a l'illustre Verdi de sa toute devoué Adelina Patti / Paris 1er Janvier 1867." In an ornate brass tabletop frame of the period, likely the original frame.
Adelina Patti (1843-1919) was one of the most important singers of the late nineteenth century, as well as a fascinating character in the public eye. Born in Italy, she began her career as a child prodigy, making several US tours as a teenager. Her European debut came in 1861, at the age of 18, when she stunned Covent Garden audiences with her prodigious talent as Amina in La Sonnambula. She was the reigning soprano of Covent Garden for a quarter-century, as well as performing at La Scala, the Met, the Paris Opéra, and other major houses. Her admirers included Queen Victoria, Napoleon III, and Leo Tolstoy; her marriage to a French aristocrat, their separation and her subsequent relationship with tenor Ernest Nicolini were the talk of all Europe.
Giuseppe Verdi was a great admirer of Patti, who was particularly well-regarded in her Verdi roles. She was the first to play the role of Aida in London in 1876, and also appeared in La traviata at La Scala in 1877. After seeing her in this performance, Verdi wrote to the music publisher Giulio Ricordi: "A success, then... a great success... It was bound to be! You heard her ten years ago, and now you exclaim: 'How she has changed!' But you are mistaken! Patti was then the same as she is now: a perfect blend of singer and actress... a born artist in every sense of the word. [...] she knows, and knows very well, that I did not wait for her Milan success, but that from the very first I heard her in London (she was almost a girl), I considered her a remarkable singer and actress, something exceptional in our art." (Quoted in Marcello Conati, Encounters with Verdi, pp. 50-51).