Edward Johnson | |
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.jpg) Edward Johnson, c. 1905 | |
| General Manager of theMetropolitan Opera | |
| In office 1935–1950 | |
| Preceded by | Herbert Witherspoon |
| Succeeded by | Rudolf Bing |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Edward Patrick Johnson (1878-08-22)22 August 1878 Guelph, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | 20 April 1959(1959-04-20) (aged 80) Guelph Memorial Gardens, Guelph, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation |
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Edward Patrick Johnson,CBE (22 August 1878 – 20 April 1959) was a Canadian operatic tenor who was billed outside North America asEdoardo Di Giovanni. He became general manager of theMetropolitan Opera inManhattan, New York City from 1935 to 1950.
Born inGuelph, Ontario, Canada, Johnson was the son of James Johnson and the former Margaret Jane Brown. The young tenor sang in his local church choir and at events in the Guelph area. At a concert inStratford, Ontario in 1897, contraltoEdith Miller encouraged him to move to New York and pursue a singing career. He sang as a soloist with several church choirs in the New York area. After this period he did much concert work, touring through the Mid-West with theChicago Symphony Orchestra and singing in many Music Festivals throughout the country.[1] After a peripatetic existence for some years, working in a variety of venues and training with several masters, he made his concert debut atCarnegie Hall in 1904.
Johnson sang the lead role in the North American premiere ofOscar Straus'sA Waltz Dream in 1907. In 1908 he moved to Paris, France and began training underRichard Barthélemy. He married Beatrice d'Arneiro, in London, in August 1909. His only child, Fiorenza, was born 21 December 1910. She marriedGeorge Drew who later becamePremier of Ontario and FederalLeader of the Opposition, and died in 1965.
Johnson went to Italy in 1909, studying voice with Vincenzo Lombardi, in Florence.[1] When singing outside North America, Johnson called himselfEdoardo Di Giovanni. He made his opera debut on 10 January 1912 asAndrea Chénier atPadua'sTeatro Verdi. After his début in Padua, he became leading tenor at La Scala, Milan, for five consecutive seasons. In Rome he spent four seasons at theCostanzi Theatre, where, among other roles, he sang Luigi and Rinuccio in the Italian premiere ofIl trittico.[1][2] In 1914 he sang the title role in the first performance in Italian ofRichard Wagner'sParsifal, under the baton ofArturo Toscanini.[3] He sang in Madrid, Rio de Janeiro, and Buenos Aires. His London debut was inGounod'sFaust, alongsideNellie Melba.[3]
Johnson made his North American opera debut on 20 November 1919 as Loris inGiordano'sFedora with theChicago Opera. He remained in Chicago for three years. Johnson made his Metropolitan Opera debut on 16 November 1922, as Avito inItalo Montemezzi'sL'amore dei tre re. He remained with the Met for thirteen years as a singer. He notably created the title role in the world premiere ofDeems Taylor'sThe King's Henchman in 1927. His last performance was on 20 March 1935.
Johnson was engaged for performances in the Elwyn Artists Series; giving a national concert tour in 1926 with the Metropolitan Opera sopranoJoan Ruth.[4] Performing "coast to coast", the duo gave concerts of operatic arias and duets.[5] The pair wore costumes in presentation of scenes from various operas; including scenes fromCharles Gounod'sRoméo et Juliette andGiuseppe Verdi'sRigoletto.[6] In the midst of their tour, they were told by representatives ofGiacomo Puccini's estate that they were not allowed to perform his music fromLa bohème in costume unless they were accompanied by a full orchestra. Since they did not have a large orchestra with them on tour, Johnson and Ruth changed into concert dress for those selections beginning with their stop in Washington D.C.[7]
Some of the stops on the lengthy Elwyn Artists tour included concerts in Boston (Symphony Hall),[8]Garden City, New York,[9]Amsterdam, New York,[10]Washington D.C. (Washington Auditorium),[7][11]Toronto, Canada,[12]Los Angeles (Shrine Auditorium),[6]San Francisco (San Francisco Exposition Auditorium),[13]Oakland, California (Oakland Civic Auditorium),[14]Portland, Oregon (Portland Civic Auditorium),[15]Oak Park, Illinois,[16]Cleveland (Masonic Hall),[17][18] andAkron, Ohio.[9] In the midst of this tour Ruth, Johnson, and the pianistElmer Zoller performed a concert of music broadcast nationally on radio across fifteen different radio stations on March 14, 1926.[19][20]
In May 1935, Johnson became general manager of the Metropolitan Opera, succeedingHerbert Witherspoon, who died just six weeks into his tenure.[21] Johnson held the position for fifteen years. During this time, in 1943, he became a member ofThe Lambs.[22]
Johnson retired from the Met on 15 June 1950 and was succeeded byRudolf Bing.[23] He returned to Guelph, promoting musical education and serving as chairman of the board of theRoyal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. He established the Edward Johnson Music Foundation, sponsor of the annualGuelph Spring Festival.
He suffered a heart attack and died while attending aNational Ballet recital at theGuelph Memorial Gardens.
"If you get right down to the bottom, there are in reality not so many singing rules to learn. You sing on the five vowels, and when you can do them loudly, softly, and with mezzo voce, you have a foundation upon which to build vocal mastery. And yet some people study eight, ten years without really laying the foundation. Why should it take the singer such a long time to master the material of his equipment? A lawyer or doctor, after leaving college, devotes three or four years only to preparing himself for his profession, receives his diploma, then sets up in business. It ought not to be so much more difficult to learn to sing than to learn these other professions." Edward Johnson[1]
"Of course the ear is the most important factor, our greatest ally. It helps us imitate. Imitation forms a large part of our study. We hear a beautiful tone; we try to imitate it; we try in various ways, with various placements, until we succeed in producing the sound we have been seeking. Then we endeavor to remember the sensations experienced in order that we may repeat the tone at will. So you see Listening, Imitation and Memory are very important factors in the student's development." Edward Johnson[1]
"The old Italian operas cultivate the bel canto, that is—beautiful singing. Of course it is well for the singer to cultivate this first of all, for it is excellent, and necessary for the voice. But modern Italian opera portrays the real men and women of to-day, who live, enjoy, suffer, are angry and repentant. Bel canto will not express these emotions. When a man is jealous or in a rage, he will not stand quietly in the middle of the stage and sing beautiful tones." Edward Johnson[1]
"I feel that if I have worked out a characterization, I must stick to my idea, in spite of what others say. It is my own conception, and I must either stand or fall by it. At times I have tried to follow the suggestions of this or that critic and have changed my interpretation to suit their taste. But it always rendered me self conscious, made my work unnatural and caused me speedily to return to my own conception." Edward Johnson[1]
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Herbert Witherspoon, the new general manager of the Metropolitan Opera, died suddenly yesterday afternoon in the executive offices at the opera house that he had occupied for only two weeks, since the departure of Giulio Gatti-Casazza. ...
Edward Johnson will vacate the office of the general manager of the Metropolitan Opera tomorrow after occupying it for fifteen years. Though his contract expired on May 31, he remained at his post to complete his final report ...
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| Preceded by | General Manager of theMetropolitan Opera 1935–1950 | Succeeded by |
