Giorgio Ronconi

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Giorgio Ronconi (1810-1890) was an Italian baritone vocalist. He learnt to sing from his father Domenico, who had been a celebrated tenor in his time, and made his debut in 1831 in Pavia. After singing in Italy for some years with ever-growing success, he appeared for the first time in England, in 1842, as Henry Ashton in Lucia di Laminermoor. His success was immediate, and he continued to be one of the most popular artists on the lyric stage until his retirement in 1866. His voice was neither extensive in compass nor fine in quality, but the genius of his acting and the strength of his personality fully atoned for his vocal defects. He was equally at home in comedy and tragedy, and the two parts by which he is best remembered, Rigoletto and Figaro, showed the range of his talent. In his later years, Ronconi founded a school of singing at Granada, and he also accepted the post of professor of singing at the Madrid Conservatoire.