 During his career as a cellist, he appeared frequently in chamber music concerts with leading artistes such as Joachim, Wieniawski and Saint-Saëns At the same time, vocal art attracted him greatly and he studied voice on the side.His first attempt as an opera singer was in "Un ballo in maschera" at the Teatro Dal Verme in Milan in 1880.After singing in the leading Italian cities, he went to Spain.