Franco Corelli and a Revolution in Singing: Fifty-four Tenors Spanning 200 Years, vol. 2

On the “Rome Walkout”: "Callas was a little sick, and that didn’t permit her to sing at her best. Some in the audience heckled her. When she came offstage after Act I she was completely calm, but then she began to stew and announced she was canceling. The management went to her, to push her to continue the performance. She became a lioness and began to scream. She threw some vases and a chair. Little by little she lost her voice. When she left the theater, however, she looked elegant, as if nothing had happened.... She was in possession of a fabulous voice and an excellent technique. As late as 1958 she always was able to sing. She could have continued."

On rivalry among costars: "There’s always rivalry onstage. To go up against Nilsson I had to learn how to put forth 110 percent of the voice that I had. At La Scala in 1964 they screamed “hams” at us because we held high notes so long, trying to outdo each other in Turandot. Nilsson was born dominant—her voice was, too.... In the Faust recording Ghiaurov screamed and was only good in the laugh. Sutherland hooted. I was the only one who truly sang, with a free voice and an expressive top."

On his appearance: "Besides voice, musicality and physique du rôle are important.... If I hadn’t had my voice my appearance wouldn’t have helped. But if I were a hunchback I would not have had the career that I did."

Also: Corelli’s personal life and how it affected his singing, including interviews with his wife and mistresses; a look at unsatisfactory Corelli biographies; Corelli's no-holds-barred rivalry with Mario Del Monaco and more. Written with the help of The Metropolitan Opera Archives, the three volumes are a collector's item with 350 lithographs and photographs, many published for the first time, of tenors from the 1820s to today.