Lost Divas

by André Tubeuf

This book tells all about a lost, authentically legendary the divas. They were the first movie stars before Pickford and Garbo, there was Geraldine Farrar, Lina Cavalieri, and Mary Garden. They were the most stunning opera singers, their personalities perhaps even bigger than their voices. Their success and their lives filled the gossip columns. Their fans loved them, grand dukes covered them in jewels. They represented both the splendorous excesses of an era of elegance and luxury, and its swan's song. There is almost nothing that survives of them today. Thankfully, their image remains and reveals all. Along with unpublished pictures of the greatest divas of this century, rediscover their voices in the accompanying CD produced specially for this publication.

120 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2005

About the author

André Tubeuf was a French writer, philosopher, and music critic.

Reviews

[Jeff Crompton]

I once forced an opera-loving niece to spend 45 minutes or so in my music room, listening to 78 RPM recordings from my collection - Caruso, Melba, Tetrazzini, Galli-Curci, Farrar, Gigli. She bore it with graciousness, and later gave me this book. I only really looked into it a couple of weeks ago, and was entranced. Tubeuf is one of the foremost collectors of photographs from the golden age of opera, and pictures from his collection form the heart of this book. The photographs are striking and beautiful. Each of the singers has a gossipy, one-page bio, and there is an excellently-remastered CD included. If you love opera, this is a wonderful book.