Rosa Raisa; "Mercè, diletti amiche"; I VESPRI SICILIANI; Giuseppe Verdi

This channel is the re-establishment of previous channels that have been sadly terminated. Rosa Raisa--soprano no recording information ==================== "Rosa Raisa (30 May 1893 – 28 September 1963) was a Polish-born and Italian-trained Russian-Jewish dramatic operatic soprano who became a naturalized American.[1] She possessed a voice of remarkable power and was the creator of the title role of Puccini&last opera, Turandot, at La Scala, Milan. She was born as Raitza Burchstein, the daughter of Herschel and Frieda Leah Burchstein, in Białystok (Tsarist Russia, now Poland) in 1893. Some of family fled Russia when she was 14 due to the pogroms, emigrating to Italy. There Raitza met Dario Ascarelli, who recognized her talent and potential and sponsored her at the Naples Conservatory (San Pietro a Majella). Her teacher at the conservatory, the contralto Barbara Marchisio (1833–1919), had been one of the most prominent Italian singers of the mid-19th century.[2] Raisa made her La Scala debut as Francesca upon her return from South America. She performed many Francesca&and Aida&as well as Lida in Verdi&rare early opera La battaglia di Legnano at the Scala. It was after her Francesca at La Scala that she encountered Giacomo Puccini, who visited her after the performance. He was very taken with her performance and potential, Raisa later told the press, that when she asked him which of his operas he thought best for her to tackle, Puccini said: "there is no opera I have...