Geltrude Righetti

Geltrude Righetti (born Bologna 1793 - died Bologna 1862) was an Italian contralto closely associated with the operas of Gioachino Rossini. (Her name is also sometimes given as Giorghi-Righetti or Righetti-Giorghi, Giorghi being the name of her husband.)

Born in Bologna, she also studied and made her debut there in 1814. The following year she created the important role of Rosina in "The Barber of Seville" and in 1817 she was the first heroine of "La Cenerentola", both in Rome. Her career was short and she retired from the stage in 1822.

In 1823 she made a famous response to an article by Stendhal, entitled "Cenni d'una donna già cantante sopra il Maestro Rossini...", which includes an account of the première of "The Barber of Seville".

ources

*Cagli, Bruno (1992), 'Righetti, Geltrude' in "The New Grove Dictionary of Opera", ed. Stanley Sadie (London) ISBN 0-333-73432-7
*Warrack, John and West, Ewan (1992), "The Oxford Dictionary of Opera", 782 pages, ISBN 0-19-869164-5