The Italian tenor Marcello Giordani, a mainstay of New York’s Metropolitan Opera, has died at the age of 56. The cause of his death has been attributed to a heart attack, announced by his manager, Katherine Olsen.

Marcello Giordani

The tenor, who appeared more than 240 times with the Met in 27 roles, was born in Augusta, Sicily, on January 25, 1963. Although he initially worked in banking, Giordani was encouraged by his opera-loving father to pursue a career in music. The tenor’s first success came when he sang the Duke of Mantua at the Spoleto Festival in 1986, the year that also saw him tackle his first Cavaradossi, aged 23. Giordani’s La Scala debut followed just two years later in performances of La Bohème, as did his American debut at Portland Opera in the role of Nadir in Bizet’s Les Pêcheurs de Perles. Appearances with San Francisco, Seattle, Los Angeles and Philadelphia’s opera companies came in swift succession, along with significant engagements such as Giordani’s 1995 Covent Garden performances of Alfredo in La Traviata under the baton of Georg Solti.

The Met called in the summer of 1993, with Giordani appearing as Nemorino...