B0126. (FRANCO CORELLI) René Seghers.   Franco Corelli – Prince of Tenors. New York, Amadeus, 2008. 526pp. Index; Bibliography; Exhaustive Chronology; Photos; DJ. - 884088162023

CRITIC REVIEWS:

“With the operatic world at his feet, Corelli’s insecurity was such that at times the fate of this whole world seemed to hang on a feud with the dentist, the health of his pet dog, the inadvertent reference to a rival tenor. The omnipresent wife, watchful and vociferous, is both the guardian of sanity and the promoter of farce. Sometimes it seems that life offstage is a demented extension of the absurdities on….In the midst of all this it must be said that there is one person who keeps his reason and preserves a fair sense of balance, and that is the author. Corelli is a very emotive subject….as we follow him in the late chapters of his book we realise that we are going to care a great deal what becomes of this extraordinary man as his decline approaches….There is a genuine human involvement in this book.”

- John Steane, GRAMOPHONE, Sept., 2008



“This book improves considerably on a previously-published biography….It is a scrupulously researched, chronological account of Corelli’s life….The standard of research…is precisely what makes this biography superior to its predecessor….Seghers has been extraordinarily energetic and fastidious in seeking factual detail for his portrait….This is as estimable a biography of a singer as one could imagine. Authors of such works often find it hard to resist a partisanship, and few have approached their task in as scholarly a way as René Seghers….the book deserves a wide and appreciative audience.”

- Richard Nicholson, THE RECORD COLLECTOR, 2008