Barberini was advised by
Giuseppe Verdi to pursue an opera career after he heard her sing while visiting her home town of
Tabiano Terme. She then entered the
Milan Conservatory where she studied singing with
Teresa Brambilla. She made her debut as Marguerite in
Charles Gounod's
Faust. Among the theatres she appeared at were
La Scala, the
Bolshoi Theatre, the
Liceu, the
Mariinsky Theatre, the
Prague National Theatre, the
Royal Opera House, Valletta, the
São João National Theatre, the
Teatro Carlo Felice, the
Teatro Costanzi, the
Teatro Nacional de São Carlos, the
Teatro Real, the
Teatro Regio di Torino, and the
Theater an der Wien. At the behest of
Gustav Mahler she performed at the
Odessa Opera. One of the highlights of her career was singing Margherita in
Arrigo Boito's
Mefistofele under the baton of
Arturo Toscanini. She sang opposite tenor
Francesco Tamagno in several productions. After giving her farewell opera performance at the
Opéra de Monte-Carlo, she taught singing out of her home in Milan. She died there in 1932 at the age of 70. ==References==