Vesti la giubba

This was from a live concert when he was in his 50's already having suffered health problems which had halted his career. Still fabulous.

Dr. Thomas Lo Monaco 1922-2012

My mentor Dr. Thomas Lo Monaco was born in 1922 and is a graduate of Columbia University. He was the teacher of Jerry Hadley, Linda Strummer, Peter Strummer, Rufus Muller, William Joyner, Dorotha Roschman, Abe Polakov, Craig Sirianni, Héctor Palacio, Stephanie Sundhine, Victor De Renzi among many other singers with international careers.

Dr. Thomas Lo Monaco was a world class tenor in his own right. In 1953 Dr. Lo Monaco had stepped in as a last minute substitute for an ailing Salvatore Puma in the role of Canio from the opera Pagliacci. The following are reviews of that performance:

The Philadelphia Daily News stated, "A brilliant new tenor star was born last night at the Academy of Music, in the La Scala production of "Pagliacci". In true story-book fashion a last-minute substitute artist by the name of Thomas Lo Monaco stepped into the part made so famous by the great Caruso, and literally shook the rafters of the auditorium with the most thrilling and powerful tenor voice the younger generation has ever heard. His conception of the role contained all the savage pathos it demands and his singing of the familiar "Vesti la Giubba" was far-and-away the vocal highlight of the entire season. If Lo Monaco is heard in every dramatic tenor role with La Scala next season it will still not be enough for the enraptured audience of last night."