Pablo Elvira (September 24, 1937 – February 5, 2000) was a Puerto Rican baritone. He performed with the New York City Opera and the Metropolitan Opera, and he was a strong supporter of opera in the state of Montana, where he co-founded the Intermountain Opera in Bozeman.
Life
editElvira was born on September 24, 1937, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico.[1] He began his musical career playing jazz trumpet there, with his uncle, Rafael Elvira, in his orchestra, he continued in his father's band and later started his own band who played at the Hotel San Juan. In 1966, he joined the voice faculty of the Indiana University School of Music; during his eight years there he performed baritone roles in many of the school's opera productions.[2]
In 1974, Elvira made his first appearance with the New York City Opera. He debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 1978 and performed there over 100 times during the next 12 years in works by Rossini, Donizetti, Verdi, Puccini, Berlioz and Leoncavallo. Elvira was a strong supporter of opera in the state of Montana. With Anthony Stivanello and Joe Bostick, he co-founded the Intermountain Opera Association of Montana in Bozeman, Montana, in 1979.[3][4]
Elvira married Signe Landoe in 1975, and they moved to Bozeman, Montana, one year later.[1] They had a son, Pablo.[1] Elvira died on February 5, 2000, in Bozeman, Montana. He's ashes were deposited in a niche in the San Vicente de Paul Parish in San Juan, Puerto Rico.[1][5]
Discography
edit- Casals: El Pessebre (Iglesias, Forrester; Casals; 1974) COL
- Montemezzi: L'amore dei tre re (Moffo, Domingo, Siepi; Santi, 1976) RCA
- Mascagni: Cavalleria rusticana (Scotto, Domingo; Levine, 1978) RCA
Videos
edit- Puccini: Manon Lescaut (Scotto, Domingo; Levine, Menotti, 1980) [live]
- Donizetti: Lucia di Lammermoor (Sutherland, Kraus, Plishka; Bonynge, Donnell, 1982) [live]
References
edit- ^ a b c d "Pablo Elvira Jr". The Billings Gazette. Billings, Gazette. February 9, 2000. p. 4. Retrieved March 8, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Harris, Edward. "The Genesis of the Rimrock Opera". Rimrock Opera. Archived from the original on October 1, 2011. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
- ^ McClure, Alice (March 18, 1979). "International opera star aids effort to revive state's opera". The Montana Standard. Butte, Montana. p. 20. Retrieved March 8, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Bozeman Opera takes roots". The Independent-Record. Helena, Montana. March 30, 1979. p. 30. Retrieved March 8, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Tommasini, Anthony (February 11, 2000). "Pablo Elvira, 62, Baritone Known To New York Opera Audiences". New York Times. Retrieved August 9, 2011.
External links
edit- Interview with Pablo Elvira by Bruce Duffie, November 23, 1985