Tenor Piero Pretti has an international career focusing on core Italian opera repertory. He is a rare example of a successful opera singer who did not attend a major conservatory. Pretti made his professional debut in 1996 as Rodolfo in a touring production of Puccini's La bohème. The 2011-2012 season saw Pretti break through into major Italian opera houses, including the Teatro Regio in Turin. In 2020, he was seen and heard in an acclaimed concert presentation of Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Riccardo Muti. Pretti made his major-role recording debut in 2022 when the Muti/Chicago Symphony Cavalleria Rusticana was released by the Symphony's CSO Resound label.