Born in Palermo, Frasconà must have emigrated to Los Angeles already as a child with his parents. He started singing
as a baritone, no later than in 1902; his moment of glory came on 3 January 1911, when he sang his single performance with the
Metropolitan Opera Company at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, as Alfio on an evening that featured Riccardo Martin as Turiddu, Enrico
Caruso as Canio, Alma Gluck as Nedda, Antonio Scotti as Tonio and Vincenzo Reschiglian as Silvio.
It would seem that he sang more in musical comedy and in all sorts of concerts and variety shows than on the operatic stage. He also
taught voice in Los Angeles, where he resided.
In the late 1910s, Frasconà switched to tenor, and appeared in Havana and Guadalajara, for instance, other than forming a concert
duo with contralto Olivia Monona, a chorister and comprimario singer at the Chicago Grand Opera.
He obtained US citizenship only in 1939. He is buried, together with his father, on Calvary Cemetery in Los Angeles.
Reference 1: Los Angeles Graphic, 29 November 1913 & 7 October 1916; reference 2: Los Angeles Herald, 26 January 1917;
reference 4: Fresno Bee, 5 January 1912; reference 5; reference 6: Forgotten Opera Singers; reference 7
Portrait picture source, grave picture source
I wish to thank Anton Bieber for the recording and label scan.
