Ramón Vinay (August 31, 1911 – January 4, 1996) was a famous Chileanoperatictenor with a powerful, dramatic voice. He is probably best remembered for his appearances in the title role ofGiuseppe Verdi's tragic operaOtello.
He started his operatic career as abaritone in Mexico in 1938. He later switched totenor, making a second debut in 1943 and forging a successful international career afterWorld War II. Vinay eventually returned to the baritone fold in 1962 and retired from the stage in 1969.
Even as a tenor, however, his vocal timbre retained its dark, baritonal colouration.
He was the son of Jean Vinay Robert and Rosa Sepúlveda. Born inChillán, Chile, Vinay trained with famed Lamperti student, José Pierson, in Mexico. Vinay earned particular renown throughout the operatic world for his interpretation of the role of Otello. For a time, he made the part his own. Perhaps his most significant appearance as Otello occurred in 1947, in a radio broadcast of the opera under the baton ofArturo Toscanini. His colleagues on this occasion wereHerva Nelli,Giuseppe Valdengo andNan Merriman, together with theNBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. This performance was subsequently issued byRCA Victor on bothLP andCD. In recent years, it has appeared on CDs issued by other companies, notably on the Guild label. Many critics consider it the best completeOtello ever recorded.
A fine actor, Vinay was also the first tenor to sing the role of Otello on television. That was in 1948, in the initial telecast of an entire opera from the Met. He also sang Otello atLa Scala, inSalzburg and at theRoyal Opera House,Covent Garden. In all, he performed it hundreds of times. He is said to be one of the two opera singers to have sung both Otello and Iago (the baritone villain) in Verdi's tragic masterpiece during the course of a career (the other beingCarlos Guichandut).
Vinay's overall tenor repertoire was comparatively ample. It also embraced heavyWagnerian roles (he sang at theBayreuth Festival in 1952–57), as well as Canio inLeoncavallo'sPagliacci, Don José inBizet'sCarmen and Samson inSaint-Saëns'sSamson et Dalila. Apart from Iago, the baritone parts which he performed included Telramund, Bartolo, Falstaff and Scarpia. In 1971, he also briefly returned from retirement to perform as the Grand Inquisitor in Verdi'sDon Carlo, a role originally written for the bass voice.[1]
He was a National Patron ofDelta Omicron, an international professional music fraternity.[2][failed verification]
He died in Mexico, aged 84.
Vinay was married toOklahoma-born sopranoTessie Mobley.[3]
Dirigent: Clemens Krauss; Festspielhaus Bayreuth, 1953
Dirigent: Wolfgang Sawallisch; Festspielhaus Bayreuth, 1962
Dirigent: Wolfgang Sawallisch; Festspielhaus Bayreuth, 1962
To the list of the selected recordings, could be added theDie Walkure production of 1957, with the Orchester der Bayreuth Festspiele conducted by Hans Knappertsbusch. Ramon Vinay sings Siegmund with Birgit Nillson as Sieglinde. This latter became known as the "Legendary 1957 Bayreuth Production".
