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Armando Gill

Michele Testa (23 July 1877 – 1 January 1945), best known as Armando Gill, was an Italian singer, songwriter, actor, playwright and poet.

Born in Naples, the son of a small distillery's owner, Testa was the third of six children. After the death of his mother, he was put in a boarding school where he started showing his artistic skills in composing brief poems.

Moved to Rome to study Law, starting from 1896 Testa approached the show biz, performing as a singer and an improvising poet. In 1898, he composed and recorded his first song, "Fenesta 'nchiusa". Shortly later, to not embarrass his bourgeois family, Testa adopted his stage name. He then left the university and devoted himself to the music hall, signing a contract with the Salone Margherita in Rome as an actor, singer, playwright and songwriter.

In 1910, Gill got his first hit with the song "Bel suldatin", followed by other successes including ″'O zampugnaro nnammurato″, ″Nun so' geluso″ and ″Varca d'ammore″. At the outbreak of war, he was conscripted and then reported missing as the ship on which he was traveling was reported sunk. Returned to Italy, he joked about the news with the revue Gill l'affondato (i.e. "The sunken Gill").

In 1918, Gill got his major success with the song "Come pioveva", which immediately became an instant classic in Italy. He maintained a large popularity through the 1920s, and was eventually active until 1943.

Birth and Death Data: Born July 23, 1877 (Naples), Died January 1, 1945 (Naples)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1910 - 1936

Roles Represented in DAHR: lyricist, composer, vocalist, songwriter

See Also: Testa, Michele

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 26-38 of 38 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
OKeh W402548 10-in. August 1929 Ammunito e survigliato Nicola Smeragliuolo Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist, composer  
OKeh W402550 10-in. August 1929 'O rre e'o guappe Nicola Smeragliuolo Male vocal solo, with orchestra composer, lyricist  
OKeh W402567 10-in. Aug. 1929 Canzone antiche Itala Dea Female vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist, composer  
OKeh W402929 10-in. Sept. 1929 Dichiaramento 'a Fronn' 'e Limone Nicola Smeragliuolo Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist, composer  
OKeh W403679 10-in. 1/24/1930 Stornelli dell' aviatore Giuseppe Godono Male vocal solo, with orchestra composer, lyricist  
Brunswick E19535 10-in. 6/10/1926 Stornelli montagnoli Isa Kremer Female vocal solo, with piano lyricist  
Brunswick E19355-E19356 10-in. 5/26/1926 Stornelli montagnoli Isa Kremer Female vocal solo, with piano lyricist  
Brunswick E25733-E25734 10-in. 12/22/1927 Bella biondina Giuseppe De Vita Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist, composer  
Brunswick E25982-E25983 10-in. 1/12/1928 E allora Roberto Ciaramella ; Romano Romani Male vocal solo, with orchestra composer  
Edison 924 10-in. approximately Dec. 1911 Stornelli montagnoli Gennaro Pasquariello Tenor vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Edison 928 10-in. approximately Dec. 1911 Canti d'estate Gennaro Pasquariello Tenor vocal solo, with orchestra composer  
Gramophone [Gra cat HN929B] 10-in. Before 5/10/1936 Stornelli neri Renzo Mori ; Dino Olivieri Male vocal solo, with male vocal ensemble and orchestra lyricist  
Gramophone 2707ah 10-in. 3/22/1913 Stornelli del cuòre Franco de Gregorio Male vocal solo composer  
(Results 26-38 of 38 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Gill, Armando," accessed April 18, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/107584.

Gill, Armando. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved April 18, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/107584.

"Gill, Armando." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 18 April 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/107584

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