A busy life for Katia Ricciarelli, who at 75 is preparing for a new television adventure. In her career she has trod the most important stages in the world, but she has not limited herself only to opera. She also worked as an actress, and is now a famous character in Italian television.
Who is Katia Ricciarelli
Katia Ricciarelli, alias of Catiuscia Maria Stella Ricciarelli, was born in Rovigo in 1946. She did not grow up in a wealthy family: her mother, abandoned by her husband who enrolled as a volunteer in the Russian countryside, was forced to raise her three daughters alone. Katia, the youngest, is the result of the relationship her mother had with another man she met in Germany.
Since she was a child she has shown a great passion for singing, and in her youth she carried out various jobs to support herself, including the worker in a record-eater factory.
He then manages to enroll in the Benedetto Marcello Conservatory of Venice, where he has the opportunity to study with Iris Adami Corradetti, famous soprano.
Katia Ricciarelli: career in opera
His debut as a singer takes place in 1969 in Mantua, with La Boheme. In 1971 he won the Rai Verdian Voices International Competition performing an aria from The corsair. Thanks to this experience he acquired a certain notoriety and from that moment his career took off.
He performs in the most famous theaters in the world, such as Lyric Opera in Chicago (1972), Teatro alla Scala (1973), Royal Opera House in London (1974), Metropolitan Opera (1975), with a highly respected repertoire: Puccini, Verdi , Rossini, Donizetti and many others. The second half of the 70s is the peak of his career, and the moment in which he gives the best performances.
Unfortunately, from the eighties, it begins to manifest a certain vocal decline, the cause of some failures, especially in roles too pushed for his voice. Despite this, in 1994, for the twenty-five years of her career, she was awarded the title of Kammersängerin in Vienna and of Grand Officer of the Italian Republic.
Katia Ricciarelli: television career
While always remaining in the opera field from the 2000s he began to devote himself to career as an actress and TV personality. He takes part in several TV series, such as Don Matteo 4 Carabinieri 7, One step from heaven, Like a mother. He also stars in several films, including The second wedding night, for which he receives the Nastro d’Argento, and in some musicals, such as Caruso and Gloriosa. He then participated in various television programs, such as Sabato in, The masked singer and Lo zecchino d’oro. From 13 September 2021 he is among the competitors of the Big Brother Vip, led by Alfonso Signorini. In this regard, ready for this new experience, Katia said:
I’m not interested in getting to the bottom, I’m interested in having fun and feeling good with everyone and myself.
Katia Ricciarelli: private life
His romantic relationships are also known to the public. Katia has been romantically linked with her colleague for 13 years José Carreras. After ending this relationship, Ricciarelli married, on January 18, 1986, with the well-known TV presenter Pippo Baudo. After a long marriage, the couple separated in 2004, and divorced in 2007. The Venetian soprano and actress has no children and currently lives in Rome.