Minghetti started into professional life as a sculptor; that he used to sing while working ultimately led to (brief) vocal studies
with various teachers in Bologna, above all with Emilia Corsi. He made his debut on 23 March 1913 in Salò as Turiddu, with
good success; the same year, he appeared in Soresina and Como.
He opened the year 1914 with his debut at the Teatro Rossini in Venice on January 1st; the rest of the year was spent in Cremona,
Bergamo, Modena and – his first major success – Manon Lescaut alongside Claudia Muzio in Ravenna. 1915 saw him in
Milano for the first time, at the Teatro Carcano as Pinkerton, then he sang in Lugo and La Valletta (Malta). Upon return to Italy, he
was drafted into the army for more than two years.
He returned to the concert podium in March 1918 in Asso and Milano, and to the stage in April at the Teatro della Pergola in Florence,
followed by appearances in Ferrara, Livorno, Genova (triumphs as Duca di Mantova and Pinkerton), La Spezia, Verona (Teatro Ristori),
and ultimately at the Teatro Comunale in his native Bologna, where he sang into January 1919. Then it was Piacenza's turn, before he
traveled to Spain (Bilbao, Santander, San Sebastián) and the USA, where he sang in Newark, but not only – he also met
soprano Lulu Hayes there, who almost instantly became his wife.
In 1920, Minghetti sang in Lisbon in January, then he went to Genova and to Palermo (Teatro Massimo, Cavalleria rusticana and
La rondine), to Carpi, Mirandola, Naples (Politeama), Modena, Bologna (where he helped premiere Nemici by Guido Guerini)
and Piacenza. 1921 brought about a decisive debut for him: at the Costanzi in Rome on January 29th (as Duca), followed by another,
equally important one at the San Carlo in Naples on March 15th (as Puccini's des Grieux); then he went back to the Costanzi before
setting sail to South America in late May: Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Rosario, Córdoba and Montevideo.
Minghetti sang more than 50 performances in three months, and had great success. Back to Italy, he was also back to the Costanzi for
another three months. In 1922, he also sang at the San Carlo and in Bergamo, and in September sailed to the USA, heading for Chicago,
this time. He made his debut there as Rodolfo, and had enormous success (to which his physique made a more than peripheral
contribution). He sang in Chicago into January 1923, then he went on to Boston and Washington D.C.
On 2 June 1923, he sang at La Scala for the first time (Rodolfo), and it became probably his greatest triumph that far. That year, he
also appeared in Venice (Teatro Malibran, this time), Carpi and Correggio, on several occasions together with his wife Lulu. And in
fall, it was time for his return to Chicago, followed by a long tour: Boston, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Chattanooga, Houston,
Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Denver. The casts were quite prominent – Raisa, Muzio and Shaljapin
joined the troupe. Eventually, Minghetti and his wife returned to Newark, not only to meet the in-laws but also to appear in opera,
plus our tenor gave a concert in New York City (Aeolian Hall).
It was May 1924 until Minghetti and Hayes left the US – not for Europe, but for Buenos Aires, where they both made their debuts
at the Teatro Colón. Reviews of his tremendous successes never failed to stress just how handsome he was; this goes also for
Buenos Aires. He also appeared in Rosario and Montevideo before traveling on to Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.
Upon return to Bologna, Minghetti rested for a few months before singing opera there in December, concerts in Ravenna and Cento, and
Alfredo in Parma at the very end of the year. In 1925, he graced the stages in Genova, Milano (La Scala), Catania, Bergamo, Parma and
Ferrara, and then went on another South America tour with the Mocchi company: Rosario, Santa Fe, Córdoba, Buenos Aires (Teatro
Coliseo), Montevideo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Santos (La bohème with Ninon Vallin); in December, he was in
Bologna and Piacenza again, and then sang at the three most important Italian opera theaters: Costanzi, San Carlo and La Scala. In
March 1926, he was in Monte Carlo for the first time, in April he returned to Catania, and in May made another important international
debut: at Covent Garden as Rodolfo, somewhat less successfully than elsewhere. In September, he arrived in Santiago de Chile for a
thirty-performance season; he also appeared in Concepción. At the end of the year, he was back to Italy and sang Cavaradossi
in Naples.
In 1927, he was at the Regio in Torino in January and at La Scala in February; in April in Nice for the first time, in May back in
Genova, then in Ferrara, Modena, Piacenza, Bologna; in Nice again in late fall, and in Piacenza at the end of the year. January 1928
found him in Cairo; there and in Alexandria, he spent almost three months, then he appeared at La Scala again before departing for
Australia, where he arrived in mid-May, and stayed for more than half a year, singing with an Italian troupe in Melbourne, Sydney,
Adelaide (where he partnered Nellie Melba as Rodolfo in her definitive stage farewell) and Perth. In Sydney, his wife Lulu gave birth
to their second son.
In 1929, Minghetti appeared in Parma, Rome (where he sang with Claudia Muzio in Tosca, Traviata and Cavalleria
rusticana), Padova, Naples (among others in the world premiere of Maggiolata veneziana by Rito Selvaggi) and Florence;
in July, he made his debut at the Arena di Verona, and in autumn sang in Cento, at the Liceu in Barcelona (an enormous success) and
in Forlì. He began his 1930 activity immediately on January 1st, in Naples, then he returned to La Scala and the Liceu,
appeared in Pavia and stayed at Covent Garden for a while, this time to great public approval, and with several private concerts at
the mansions of London's haut monde. In August at Torre del Lago, he was Rodolfo in the very first performance of the Carro di Tespi,
the high-quality touring opera troupe founded and funded by Italy's fascist government; followed by further government-patronized
Bohème performances abroad, in Antwerp and Liège. His stops for the rest of the year were Livorno, Ferrara,
Alessandria, Cremona and Naples.
He began 1931 in Nice, then Genova as Andrea Chénier, to not entirely favorable reviews (the part being obviously too dramatic
for him). Then he appeared at La Scala in Le maschere under Mascagni's baton, and went on to Rome, Pavia, Trieste, Zürich,
Basel, and participated in another Carro di Tespi tour with La bohème and Madama Butterfly, interrupted by a
return to the Arena di Verona in August. In fall, he was in Genova (where Lulu Hayes had closed her career a few weeks earlier),
Perugia, Pisa, Parma and Livorno. 1932 started with guest appearances in Bucharest, then it was the turn of Torino, Rome and Florence,
followed by a long vacation and the next Carro di Tespi tour. He sang in Treviso in November, and at La Scala at the end of the year.
In 1933, he was first in Genova, Modena, Monte Carlo, Torino and Rome; in May, he returned to Covent Garden, and in summer was with
the Carro di Tespi once again. Venice, Berlin and Florence were on his autumn schedule, and in December, he appeared at the Teatro
Dal Verme in Milano for the very last performance at that theater (La bohème, 19 December), and in Genova. In January
1934, he first made a brief excursion to Latvia, then created Respighi's La fiamma at the Rome opera house (23 January).
Sanremo, Covent Garden, Oslo were his operatic stages for the spring, followed by concerts in Lisberg and Göteborg. Also that
summer belonged to the Carro di Tespi tour, the rest of the year was spent in Biella, Bozen, Meran, Bari, Bologna, Ferrara.
He appeared in La fiamma at La Scala on 9 February 1935 – his final Scala performance. His voice had deteriorated,
reviews were so-so. He reduced his appearances significantly now: Sanremo in spring, the Carro di Tespi tour in summer, and radio
opera in Torino in autumn were his entire program for the rest of the year. His career was now basically over, but he returned to the
stage on a handful of occasions: in Rome in 1936, in Venice in 1937, in Torino and Palermo in 1938, in Busto Arsizio and Livorno in
1939, and finally in 1940 in Milano and Bergamo, where he took his stage farewell with the world premiere of Principessa
prigioniera by Vincenzo Davico.
He retired to Milano, where he taught voice.
Primary reference: the excellent Minghetti biography penned by Bob Rideout; minor additions from Kutsch & Riemens
