at Pesaro, where he first met and sang with Renata Tebaldi, with whom he would form something of an operatic dream team of the 1950s. His early mentors as a singer included Arturo Melocchi, his teacher at Pesaro, and Cherubino Raffaelli, who recognized his talent and helped launch his career.

That career began in earnest with Del Monaco's debut on 31 December 1940 as Pinkerton at the