The testimonials printed here, from singers at all levels of endeavor, indicate the truth of the above dictum. These testimonials also tell of the gratitude these singers feel at having the privilege of working with—and being guided by—Maestro George Trovillo, surely the undisputed dean emeritus of American accompanists.
Born in Lawrence, Kansas on November 6, 1913, Trovillo celebrates his birthday this month by sharing with Classical Singer some of his wisdom, slowly gained through years of painstaking and loving work with the great singers and teachers of his time. Jussi Bjoerling, Licia Albanese, Gladys Swarthout and many others all would freely acknowledge his contributions to the very greatness they have achieved.
A farmboy with the usual Midwestern schooling, Trovillo was encouraged by his mother to study piano. In early childhood, she taught him to read music and saw to it that he received proper piano lessons from a neighboring teacher. The family lived on a farm in Illinois, probably the only farm in its vicinity with a large collection of recordings by the opera singers of the day: Galli-Curci, Caruso, Melba and the like. By playing for singers all through high school, Trovillo developed his natural gift for accompaniment and his feeling for the repertoire. He attended Kansas University, achieved his degree and set his sights for The Juilliard School in New York. From the beginning, it was obvious that accompanying was his special strength, and he was successful at it, beginning a five-year professional association with singer Jerome Swinford while still at Juilliard. This work, private coaching in his apartment and playing for singers in the studio of vocal coach Sarah Lawrence, was interrupted by the draft in 1942. Assigned to infantry communications, Trovillo didn’t touch a piano for four years. Feeling that he was learning to play all over again, he used his GI Bill to study French literature and art song with Eva Gautier, the oratorio repertoire with Charles Baker and the German repertoire with Conrad Bos, the Gerald Moore of his day.
The study paid off handsomely, and in 1949 Trovillo entered the professional “big time” with a two-year contract with tenor James Melton which included both concerts all across America and appearances in the then-fledgling medium of television, in which Melton was an early believer.
In order to accept this extremely prestigious engagement, Trovillo had to get out of a contract with the young Eileen Farrell, temporarily thwarting what eventually was to become one of the longest and most artistically fruitful associations of both of their long careers. When he and Farrell finally got together in 1951, their association, which lasted until 1966, took them to the world’s great concert halls and left a series of very important art song recordings. During his time with Farrell, in 1954 Trovillo began an association that continues to this day with Roberta Peters, then approaching the height of her tremendous fame. Their association took them to Russia in 1960 for a state-sponsored concert tour that took on historical implications in those days of the cold war.
Maestro Trovillo moved from New York to San Diego in 1966, he resides there to this day. Although Mr. Trovillo is not currently taking any new students, he is still playing, still coaching and inspiring the next generation of great singers.
