Frances Ingram Frances Ingram Elizabeth Frances Ingram (5 November 1888 – 12 April 1974) was an American operatic contralto of English birth who had an active career in North America during the 1910s and 1920s. Born in Liverpool, Ingram was a graduate of Normal College in New York City. From 1910–1912 she was a singing pupil of Victor Maurel. She made her professional opera debut on 2 December 1911 with the Chicago Grand Opera Company at the Metropolitan Opera House in Philadelphia as Lola in Pietro Mascagni's "Cavalleria rusticana". She remained with that company for two seasons, performing in both Chicago and
Arrigo Pola next three years in the Philippines. Among the roles Pola sang with the Manila Opera were Canio in "Pagliacci", Manrico in "Il trovatore", Rodolfo in "La bohème", and Turiddu in "Cavalleria rusticana". In 1954, Pola returned to Italy with the hopes of reviving his opera career in Italy; an attempt which never gained much momentum. That year, he was approached by a baker named Fernando Pavarotti who wanted to know whether the tenor voice of his 19-year-old son, Luciano, was good enough for training as a professional opera singer. Pola later reported that he knew, after an approximately 15-minute audition,