Mostyn Thomas
Encyclopedia
Mostyn Thomas born Thomas James Thomas (January 14, 1896 - August 17, 1984) was a Welsh opera
tic baritone
, prominent in the first half of the 20th century.
, Monmouthshire
to Thomas and Ann. At the age of 13 he went to work underground in the local colliery.
Milan
. Mostyn has his debut as Tonio
in Pagliacci
(Leoncavallo) in 1929.
He sang leading baritone roles all over the world, settled in America and married a wealthy American widow. On February 13, 1923, Mostyn Thomas sang Dafydd y Garreg Wen
to inaugurate the first radio broadcast by BBC Wales
.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
tic baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
, prominent in the first half of the 20th century.
Early life
He was born in BlainaBlaina
Blaina is a small town, situated deep within the South Wales Valleys between Brynmawr and Abertillery in the unitary authority of Blaenau Gwent, ancient parish of Aberystruth, preserved county of Gwent and historic county of Monmouthshire.-Notable people:...
, Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire (historic)
Monmouthshire , also known as the County of Monmouth , is one of thirteen ancient counties of Wales and a former administrative county....
to Thomas and Ann. At the age of 13 he went to work underground in the local colliery.
Voice
His voice was discovered at the Ammanford Eisteddfod, and the local community of Blaina collected money for him to be trained at La ScalaLa Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. Mostyn has his debut as Tonio
Tonio
Tonio may refer to:*Tonio K*Tonio Selwart*Tonio Kröger*Tonio Borg*Tonio Garcia-Romero*The Vocaloid Tonio...
in Pagliacci
Pagliacci
Pagliacci , sometimes incorrectly rendered with a definite article as I Pagliacci, is an opera consisting of a prologue and two acts written and composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo. It recounts the tragedy of a jealous husband in a commedia dell'arte troupe...
(Leoncavallo) in 1929.
He sang leading baritone roles all over the world, settled in America and married a wealthy American widow. On February 13, 1923, Mostyn Thomas sang Dafydd y Garreg Wen
Dafydd y Garreg Wen
Dafydd y Garreg Wen is a traditional Welsh air and folk song.David Owen, the famous blind harper and composer, lived near Porthmadog in Caernarfonshire, Wales in the first half of the 18th century, who was known locally as Dafydd y Garreg Wen,...
to inaugurate the first radio broadcast by BBC Wales
BBC Wales
BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the British Broadcasting Corporation for Wales. Based at Broadcasting House in the Llandaff area of Cardiff, it directly employs over 1200 people, and produces a broad range of television, radio and online services in both the Welsh and English languages.Outside...
.