Stamp of the Month: January 2025

Richard Tucker

The American tenor Richard Tucker (actually Ruvn Ticker) was born on August 28, 1913 in Brooklyn. He died on January 8, 1975 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. January 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of his death.
 
Tucker’s musical talent was discovered early and he sang in the synagogue choir as a child. He became cantor at the Brooklyn Jewish Center before beginning to study singing in 1940 to become an opera singer.

USA 10.9.1997

After several unsuccessful auditions at the Metropolitan Opera, he got a contract and made his debut on January 25, 1945 as Enzo in “La Gioconda” at the MET, whose ensemble he was a member of until his death and sang 30 roles in 715 performances. In 1949, Arturo Toscanini chose the still little-known tenor for the role of Radames in his famous recording of Giuseppe Verdi’s “Aida”. His few guest tours took him to the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the Vienna State Opera and La Scala in Milan, among others.
Richard Tucker is considered the last great MET tenor. He is the only one whose funeral has ever taken place on the MET stage.
 

The video shows Richard Tucker with the aria “Guardate pazzo son” from Puccini’s opera “Manon Lescaut” in a live television recording on September 1, 1966.