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Volume 55, number 2

June 2010

The June issue of The Record Collector (which was published at the end of June and is being mailed out now) may bring a surprise to many readers. Our subject is the flamboyant Marguerite D'Alvarez and, once again, we dispel a number of apocryphal "facts", this time associated with this singer. The biography is by Robert Bunyard, the author of the superb articles on Georges Thill, José Mardones and Lucien Muratore in previous issues. Robert has uncovered many hitherto unknown facts on the contralto, including full details of her début in opera, which have never been published before. The "surprise" is the extent of her operatic career, which covered many of the great opera houses of the world. Later, she became largely a concert singer and there are several accounts here of this colourful character's approach to concerts, which proved of enormous popularity and always had her listeners clamouring for more. As always, there is a complete discography, which has been compiled by David Mason. Robert Bunyard has also written an insightful appreciation of her recorded legacy.

 One of the most famous American tenors of the post-war years was Eugene Conley. Famed for the ease of his upper register, he was accorded the honour of being the first American tenor to open a season at La Scala. This was as Arrigo in I Vespri Siciliani, with none other than Maria Callas. Charles Hooey, one of our most prolific researchers, traces Conley's career from its earliest roots with the Salmaggi and Gallo opera companies to his début at the Met, where he covered himself with glory. Conley's career continued until the 1960s, when he became Professor of Voice at North Texas State University. However, he continued giving recitals until the 1970s. The associated discography gives details of not only his commercial recordings but the many live operas that are available.

 In the first issue of 2010 Alfred de Cock wrote an article on the extensive career of Lucien Fugère. We were delighted when, as a result of this article, our reader David Schmutz offered for publication a discography of the baritone. Here, for the first time, is a complete discography of the baritone, giving full details of the ultra-rare Zonophones and the legendary Pantophones, in addition to the more usually encountered Columbia recordings.

 Finally, there is a surprise: details of a major new CD project which will be published through the auspices of The Record Collector are disclosed in this issue. We are confident that this "first" will delight lovers of exciting voices.

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