Antonio Cortis

Antonio Cortis (12 August 1891 - 2 April 1952) was an Spanish operatic tenor.

Cortis was born at sea but his birth place is often given as Valencia. He made his debut in 1915 as a comprimario singer but gradually worked his way up into larger roles.

His international career began in Rome in 1920. He sang in Chicago 1924-1925 and made his debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in 1931, as Calaf in Puccini's "Turandot". He was regarded as one of the best inter-war interpreters of verismo opera, including the role of Dick Johnson in Puccini's "La fanciulla del West", but sang Verdi roles, such as the Duke in "Rigoletto", with equal success.

Cortis spent the latter years of his career in Spain. He retired from the operatic stage in the mid-1930s, when his voice was still in fine condition. His decision to retire was reputedly influenced by the onset of the Spanish Civil War. He died at the age of 60 in Valencia.

Cortis made a number of recordings of operatic arias in the 1920s and '30s. These are now available on CD. Opera critics consider his potent, dark-toned voice to be one of the finest lyric-dramatic tenor instruments ever captured on disc. No mere 'belter', he sang with imagination and sound musicianship. In the sequence of the greatest 20th century Spanish tenors, he succeeded Francisco Viñas (1863-1933) and preceded Plácido Domingo (born 1941).

References

*Rosenthal, Harold; & Warrack, John (1979). "Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera" (second edition). London: Oxford University Press, p. 109