Richard Tucker
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- This article is about the American operatic tenor. For other uses see Richard Tucker (disambiguation).
Richard Tucker (August 28, 1913 – January 8, 1975) was an American operatic tenor.
Tucker was born Ruvn Ticker in Brooklyn, New York, and his musical aptitude was discovered early. His first job was as a boy alto at the Lower East Side Manhattan Synagogue. He sang often for weddings and Bar Mitzvahs and eventually became a cantor at the Brooklyn Jewish Center. He participated in the Metropolitan Opera auditions in 1941, but did not win. However, when Met general manager Edward Johnson heard him sing at the synagogue, he offered him a contract on the spot. His debut was as Enzo in La Gioconda in 1945. This led to a long career with the Metropolitan. He performed over 30 roles on its stage. In 1949 Tucker was selected by Arturo Toscanini to sing the role of Radames for the NBC simulcasts of the complete Aida opposite Herva Nelli in the title role, an event heard and seen on radio and television, and eventually released on LP, CD, VHS, and DVD. This was the first full opera to ever be telecast live on television.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s Tucker appeared under the direction of Alfredo Antonini in a series of Puccini Night open air concerts at the landmark Lewisohn Stadium in New York City. This series of concerts also featured arias from the standard Italian operatic repertoire and often attracted audiences of over 13,000 enthusiastic guests[1] [2] [3] [4].
He was always deeply religious and even at the height of his fame, Tucker regularly conducted synagogue services on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur.
Tucker married the sister of tenor Jan Peerce, Sarah Perelmuth, who always attended Tucker's performances. Peerce and Tucker were famously rivals of each other.
Tucker had a propensity for playing pranks on his fellow singers, often provoking a smile at some inappropriate moment in a performance; once during a performance of La Forza del Destino with Robert Merrill, he had sneaked a nude photograph into the trunk that Merrill was supposed to open.
He died of a heart attack while preparing for a concert with Robert Merrill in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He is the only person who has ever had his funeral on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera.
Richard Tucker Square, across the street from Lincoln Center, is named after him.
[edit] References
- ^ The New York Times, May 19, 1959, pg. 28
- ^ The New York Times,June 18, 1959, pg. 32
- ^ The New York Times, July 2, 1959, pg. 16
- ^ The New York Times, June 27, 1964, pg. 15
[edit] External links
- Richard Tucker at the Internet Movie Database.
- Richard Tucker Music Foundation - "Dedicated to the support and advancement of the careers of promising and talented American opera singers"
- Discography (Capon's Lists of Opera Recordings)
