"Urna fatale", "Credo in un Dio crudel", "Tremin gl'insani", "Buona Zazà, del mio buon tempo", "Nemico della patria" and the "Prologo" from Pagliacci. All these recordings can be heard on CD collections issued by the Pearl and Preiser labels. Unusual for his era, Ruffo was never under exclusive contract to any one opera company; he was an operatic freelancer, a nomadic star in his own right and received top billing—and top fees—wherever he sang. Ruffo was the only male opera singer of his time who could compete, in terms of celebrity and fees, with Caruso. Surprisingly, they sang together infrequently and made only one commercially issued recording: an electrifying 1914 performance of the Oath Duet from Giuseppe Verdi's Otello. Two explanations have been adduced by historians for this happenstance. First, professional jealousy: neither Ruffo nor Caruso liked sharing the glory with another extravagantly gifted star (though virtually all intimates of Caruso have denied this). Secondly, few opera houses could have afforded to pay both singers' enormous fees in conjunction, especially if there was an expensive diva appearing in the same production. Ruffo refused to teach voice after his retirement, stating: "I never knew how to sing; that is why my voice went by the time I was fifty. I have no right to capitalize on my former name and reputation and try to teach youngsters something I never knew how to do myself." However, as Ruffo's decline started around 1924–25, this means that he had a very respectable 26–27 years in good form, which is remarkable in any case. Bibliography Farkas, Andrew (Ed.),Titta Ruffo: An Anthology (Greenwood Press 1984). Hamilton, David, ed., The Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia (Simon & Schuster, New York 1987). Pleasants, Henry, The Great Singers (Simon & Schuster, New York 1966). Scott, Michael, The Record of Singing, Volume One (Duckworth, London, 1977.) Seltsam, William H., Metropolitan Opera Annals (H.W. Wilson Co., New York 1947). Steane, J.B., The Grand Tradition (Amadeus Press, Portland 1993). Tuggle, Robert. The Golden Age of Opera (Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1983). Mouchon, Jean-Pierre, "Les Enregistrements du Baryton Titta Ruffo. Guide Analytique". Foreword and Chronology by Dr. Ruffo Titta Jr (Académie Régionale de Chant Lyrique, Marseilles, France, first edition, 1990, 2nd and 3r ed. 1991, 538 pp., ill.) References External links https://tittaruffo.com/en/ - the first official website dedicated to the italian baritone History of the Tenor / Titta Ruffo / Sound Clips and Narration Titta