Guido Salsilli

Career Trajectory

Guido G. Salmaggi's seven-decade arc traced a singular American operatic trajectory: from his 1937 debut in La Traviata through the founding of two regional opera companies that democratized the art form beyond New York's elite circles. A tenor of considerable stamina and patriotic commitment, he became the nation's unofficial ceremonial voice, performing the national anthem for ten presidents and establishing himself as an indispensable fixture at state occasions and sporting events. His 2019 death at 102 marked the end of an era in American opera—one defined not by Metropolitan Opera stardom but by tireless entrepreneurship and a belief that opera belonged to everyone.