Jaume Aragall i Garriga (Catalan pronunciation:[ˈʒawməəɾəˈɣaʎ]; born 6 June 1939), better known asGiacomo Aragall, is a Spanish operatic tenor. He became known for his role singing Rodolfo in Puccini'sLa bohème in the late 1960s, and it would become one of the most frequently performed of his career. In 1994 he founded the Giacomo Aragall International Singing Competition.
Aragall was born on 6 June 1939 inBarcelona. He became a member of the Choir of the Basilica of Santa Maria del Mar at the age of nine,[1] and at the age of 19 he began his singing studies. He made his debut at theGran Teatre del Liceu in the 1961-1962 season in the roles of Arlecchino inPagliacci byRuggero Leoncavallo and Arturo inLucia di Lammermoor byGaetano Donizetti.[2][1]
Aragall’s professional debut was at the Gran Teatro La Fenice,Venice, on 24 September 1963, inVerdi's operaGerusalemme. The same year, he appeared at theTeatro alla Scala in Milan inL'amico Fritz byPietro Mascagni, and signed a three-year contract with the theatre.[1] In 1964 he performed at theBavarian State Opera in Munich, and began performing in cities such as Berlin, Budapest, Venice, Genoa, Modena, Turin, Naples and Rome. In 1966 he received acclaim for his role singing Rodolfo in Puccini'sLa bohème at theVerona Arena and went on to sing this role in London's Covent Garden and the Metropolitan in 1968, at Buenos Aires'sTeatro Colón in 1970 and in San Francisco in 1973.[1] Rodolfo became one of his most frequently performed roles.[2] In 1966, Aragall sang Romeo in Bellini’sI Capuleti e i Montecchi at La Scala withRenata Scotto andLuciano Pavarotti.[1]
In 1974, Aragall featured in Massenet'sEsclarmonde withJoan Sutherland andRichard Bonynge in San Francisco and resumed his role singing Rodolfo in Covent Garden in 1979. In 1994 he founded the Giacomo Aragall International Singing Competition. In 1997 he toured Germany and sang the role of Pedro in Manuel de Falla’s operaLa vida breve at the reopening of Madrid'sTeatro Real. TheVienna State Opera awarded him thekammersänger.[1]
