His real name was Àngel Feliu Font i Serra; he called himself Constantí after his birthplace.
Early on, he wanted to become a singer, but couldn't afford to take voice lessons. A grant by the Catalan province finally
enabled him to study at the conservatory in Barcelona, but it was so scarcely funded that he had to break off his studies and
earn his living again. Only in 1895, he was able to return to the conservatory, and complete his course.
He made his debut on 13 September 1895 in La Dolores by Breton at the Teatre Tivoli in Barcelona, under the name Feliu
Font de Constantí. He was so successful that he continued to appear in that production for almost one year or more than
100 performances. The same season and at the same theater, he also sang in the world premiere of Aurora by José
Espí Ulrich.
In 1896, he sang Éléazar at the Teatre Principal in Valencia, in Alicante, and at the Jardín Español
in Barcelona; in 1897, Turiddu and Canio in Sabadell. In 1898, he was at the Teatro Novedades in Barcelona, where he added new
roles like Don José to his repertory; from now on, he appeared as Àngel Constantí. In fall, he sang at the
Teatro Lírico in the same city (Edgardo, Alfredo, Turiddu and Canio), then in Málaga as Radames, and on 11
December, he made his debut at the Liceu in Barcelona as Canio (with Emilia Corsi). He was successful, and returned a few times
until 1900.
In 1900 and 1901, he was at yet another Barcelona theater, the Nuevo Retiro, and in May 1900 at the Teatro Arriaga in Bilbao.
It's not known what he did next, but in winter 1902/03, he was part of the troupe of the Teatre Principal in Maó (island
of Menorca). He sang Turiddu, Don José, Edgardo and Corentin (Dinorah) in November and December, but then he had
to back out and could not finish the season "for delicate personal matters". It's probable that he had health issues since he
didn't sing again until September 1903 (La Dolores at the Teatro de las Artes in Barcelona), and during his absence from
the stage, some newspapers reported him dead (which he immediately corrected in letters to the editors).
However, after La Dolores, he disappeared again until August 1904, when he sang Canio in Valencia. And then he resurfaced
only on one single occasion, a banquet in his honor in 1907, where he sang a few arias, and was obviously in less than optimal
vocal condition. About the rest of his life, there is no information.
Constantí's voice is preserved on cylinders made by the industrialist Ruperto Regordosa, who built a collection of more
than 350 cylinders of professional musicians (mostly opera and zarzuela singers) that he all recorded himself on his amateur
equipment, mostly at his home.
Reference and picture source: the fantastic website Intèrprets catalans històrics
Source for the recordings: Biblioteca de Catalunya
