Coleman Hawkins and opera

[l p]

in the hawkins biography from 10-15 years ago, it said that he listened to opera recordings a lot. anyone remember if any particular operas were mentioned?

it must have been this bio

The song of the Hawk: the life and recordings of Coleman Hawkins.    
by Chilton, John, 
Ann Arbor : University of Michigan Press, 1990.
 

Edited May 20, 2016 by l p

[fasstrack]

I don't have the answer, but it's interesting that opera was mentioned. In a book of interviews with Lee Konitz, FWIW (and it may not be much) he described Hawkin's sound as 'operatic'...

[JSngry]

Caruso was basically a pop star back in the day, was he not?

[l p]

like l. armstrong, hawkins carried a record player with him on all his travels, but unlike armstrong who listened only to his own recordings, hawkins prefered opera. 

[JSngry]

I heard, maybe also in the Chilton bio, that he liked practicing cello music on the tenor.