Mathilde Marchesi de Castrone

Mathilde Marchesi de Castrone (born March 24, 1821, Frankfurt am Main—died Nov. 17, 1913, London) was an operatic soprano whose teaching transmitted the 18th-century bel canto style of singing to the 20th century.

She studied in Paris under Manuel García, the foremost teacher of singing of the 19th century, and made her debut as a singer in 1849. In 1854 she began teaching. She taught at the conservatories of Vienna and Cologne as well as in London and Paris. In 1852 she married the baritone Salvatore Marchesi (1822–1908), with whom she made concert tours.

Her teaching stressed the purity and precision and sound vocal technique taught by García, who was the central figure in the preservation of the bel canto style. Her own pupils included most of the leading female singers of the early 20th century, among them Nellie Melba, Emma Calvé, and Emma Eames. She published works on the technique of singing and, in 1897, reminiscences, Marchesi and Music. Her daughter, Blanche (1863–1940), was a Wagnerian singer and a teacher.

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