RINA DE TATA
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Rina De Tata, a lyric soprano, a strong-willed and tenacious woman who in the early 1940s had the courage to overthrow the chastened culture of women, embarking on the study of singing with sacrifice and passion, despite coming from a less wealthy background.
From a young age, she was chosen for school plays and performances, but the first to recognize her talent was her father, Pasquale De Tata, a Carabinieri Marshal who was killed on duty by a madman. Pasquale was in love with opera and also with his daughter Rina's voice, so he took her to study privately with illustrious teachers in Naples and then at the Conservatory.
The eldest of seven children, Rina tried to avoid burdening the family with expenses, so to get to the Conservatory she hopped on horse-drawn carts that transported hay from one village to another. She even sewed her own clothes, inspired by the ideas of Scarlett O'Hara in "Gone with the Wind." In fact, when her mother changed the curtains, Rina took the opportunity to make new clothes to match the Conservatory atmosphere. She said, in fact, that in those days, the Conservatory teachers were very anxious and suggestive; they dressed in dark, elegant suits and bow ties and addressed everyone formally, even young boys.
He made his debut at the Frattamaggiore theatre at just 13 years old with “Cenerentola”, the comic drama by Gioachino Rossini, and already then showed great mastery of the stage.
After earning her teaching diploma, she attended the San Pietro a Majella Conservatory in Naples, where she honed her voice, becoming increasingly well-known in Frattamaggiore and throughout the Neapolitan hinterland, until she gradually became a sought-after soprano. In 1945, she married Francesco Marchese, secretary general of the Province of Naples, who became her first supporter, not only supporting her career but also acting as her manager. This happy marriage produced three children, Mario, Genni, and Milena, for whom she decided to leave Italy in the 1960s to pursue a career abroad.
In the early 1990s, her husband Francesco Marchese dedicated a book to her, titled “Goodbye Chicago,” which recounts the events surrounding Rina's artistic career and, above all, the vicissitudes surrounding a contract with the impresario Ermenegildo Ziccardi, Founder President of the Infant Christ Association of Chicago America, who was so impressed by the quality and technique of Rina's voice, as well as her stage presence, that he proposed a contract that would have seen her spend many months in America in the early 1960s. All the documents were sent by plane, which unfortunately crashed, ruining Chicago and all the opportunities it offered.
The tragic event did not affect Rina, who, as a good Neapolitan, believed it was a sign of destiny that should not be forced; in reality, Rina, deep down, although she dreamed of America, did not want to leave her homeland or her family. After the war, Rina began a career studded with successes. She sang a vast operatic repertoire, but her acclaimed masterpiece was Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor," which she even mentioned shortly before her death.
Until 1970 he played leading solo roles, appearing on the stages of many important theatres in Italy including the San Carlo in Naples, the Verdi in Salerno, the Petruzzelli in Bari, the Eliseo in Rome, the Massimo in Palermo, and the Teatro Nuovo (La Scala) in Milan.
She worked with renowned colleagues including Maestro Patanè (conductor), Beniamino Gigli (tenor), Cesare Valletti (tenor), Franco Corelli (tenor), Nunzio Todisco (tenor), Toti Dal Monte (soprano), Benvenuto Franci (baritone), Ugo Savarese (baritone), and Maestro Pasquarello (conductor). From 1970 to 1985, she continued her concert career, dedicating herself primarily to teaching bel canto. She was a highly regarded singing teacher, successfully introducing young singers from the Campania region to a life of art and a love of opera. Rina De Tata is also remembered as a very generous woman, sensitive to the problems of the poor, the sick, and children in need. He also financially supported cloistered nuns and young men who wanted to become priests. He did a lot of charity, but he said he didn't publicize this because "... good is done, but not shown off..."
She had only three great loves in her life: music, family, and God. She loved and was loved by ordinary people, by students both at the schools where she taught and at the Conservatory, and also by those who still perform in important theaters and continue to remember her with recognition and infinite love. Rina De Tata was a serious and talented artist, a faithful and attentive wife, a loving and generous mother, a tender and irreplaceable grandmother and great-grandmother.
