He made his debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in London in 1866, as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, without great success due to the pronounced vibrato that marred his singing.
Five years later he returned to London to sing in Faust and Robert le diable at Drury Lane, and from 1872 appeared every season at the Royal Opera House until 1884; his roles there included Pery in Il Guarany, Radames in Aida, and the title role in Lohengrin.