Carlo ventre

Tenor
Carlo Ventre has quietly established himself over the last few years as one of his generation’s leading lyricospinto tenors with regular guest appearances and stunning success at the most prestigious theaters in Europe, Japan and the United States. Receiving high acclaim for his dramatic abilities, beauty of tone and vocal security especially in the top register, the tenor is now in great demand for his portrayals of Puccini and Verdi heroes. Present seasons are witnessing the tenor in exciting role debuts in Manon Lescaut, Don Carlo, Otello, and Adriana Lecouvreur.

Carlo Ventre made his operatic debut in 1994 in an appearance as the Duke in Rigoletto at La Scala di Milano under the direction of Riccardo Muti. Born in Montevideo, the artist was the winner of the Gino Bechi Prize at the Francisco Viñas Competition and the Pavarotti International Voice Competition.

His appearance in Claus Guth’s new production of Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera at the Oper Frankfurt in 2005 was a turning point in his career which brought him considerable international attention. Some highlights of subsequent seasons include interpretations of ‘Arrigo’ in I vespri siciliani in 2007 in Tokyo, Andrea Chénier at Barcelona’s Liceo, Tosca at the Frankfurt Opera, Hamburg State Opera, San Francisco Opera and Arena di Verona, Germania at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Il tabarro in Frankfurt, Simon Boccanegra at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Carmen in Lausanne, Cavalleria Rusticana with Lyric Opera of Chicago, Madama Butterfly and Aida at the San Diego Opera, Le Villi / L’Oracolo at the Frankfurt Opera. To note, he is especially on demand as ‘Radames’ in Verdi’s Aida, a role he has sung the first time at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, many times in other theatres and recently at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden.

Among his most important commitments between 2010 and 2012 it is important to note his debut in the title role of Verdi’s Don Carlos at the Oper Frankfurt, Madame Butterfly, and Aida, his debut at the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich with Aida, the revival of Franchetti’s Germania at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Turandot at the San Diego Opera, the debut at the Opéra Bastille in Paris with Tosca, Tosca at the Canadian Opera Company Toronto, the above mentioned debut at the Covent Garden London in Aida, again Aida at the Chorégies d’Orange and at the Teatro Liceo Barcelona.

His first highly acclaimed Otello was at the Opera Frankfurt (December 2011) and his first Maurizio in Adriana Lecouvreur at the Liceu Barcelona whilst his first Des Grieux in Manon Lescaut was at the Staatsoper Hamburg.

FABIO SARTORI

Tenor
Born in Treviso, Fabio Sartori graduated in singing at the Conservatoire Benedetto Marcello in Venice, under the guidance of M. Leone Magiera. In 1996 he debuted in La Bohème at La Fenice of Venice. He took part in the opening of the 1997-98 season at Teatro alla Scala, in Macbeth under Riccardo Muti’s conduction. He later returned there to perform in Verdi’s Messa di Requiem, again with M. Riccardo Muti. During the same season he sang in the opening productions of La Fenice of Venice and of Teatro Comunale of Bologna. In 1998 he debuted in two important Verdi roles: Gabriele Adorno in Simon Boccanegra at Teatro Comunale of Bologna and in Don Carlo, again in Bologna and at the Teatro Regio of Parma.

He debuted in Simon Boccanegra in Berlin in 1999, under M. Claudio Abbado’s baton. In the same year he debuted at the Vienna Staatsoper in Linda di Chamounix, and at the Chicago Lyric Opera in I Capuleti e i Montecchi. In 2009 he returned to Teatro Alla Scala in I due Foscari and he sang in Simon Boccanegra in Zurich, Berlin and Vienna.

Recently he sang in Simon Boccanegra in Berlin, Milan and Madrid, with Adriana Lecouvreur in Florence, in a tour to Buenos Aires with Teatro alla Scala with Verdi’s Messa di Requiem. He sang Attila in Milan and China, in concert with M° Zubin Mehta and the Orchestra of Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Mombay, debuted in I Masnadieri at Zurich Opernhaus and in Norma in Las Palmas and in Rome. During the Verdi celebrations in 2013 he had great success in Oberto, Conte di San Bonifacio at the Teatro alla Scala, Aida at the Arena di Verona and Don Carlo, again in Milan and Zurich. His participation in Verdi's Messa da Requiem conducted by Gianandrea Noseda in a tour with Teatro Regio in Turin at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg was considerable, as well as that in the a new production of Tosca, conducted by Daniel Barenboim at the Staatsoper in Berlin. A regular guest at the Teatro alla Scala, he returned there with Simon Boccanegra, a title that will also be represented in Australia during the of theatre’s tour in 2016 and Aida conducted by Zubin Mehta.

His upcoming engagements include his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York with Turandot and his debut at Covent Garden London with Pagliacci. He will also have collaborations with the Vienna State Opera where he will return in Aida, with the Deutsche Oper Berlin that will see him as interpreter of Turandot, Tosca and Norma. He will also perform in Simon Boccanegra at the Liceu in Barcelona.

At the Teatro Filarmonico he sang for the first time in 2008 Verdi’s Oberto, Conte di San Bonifacio and Attila.

At the Arena di Verona he debuted in 2007 with Nabucco by Verdi and La Bohème by Puccini.

In 2013 he participated for the new edition of Aida, then he sang Verdi’s Requiem and took part in the event The Show is about to begin live on Italian TV channel Rai Uno with Antonella Clerici.
In 2014 he was Radamès in Aida and returns for the 2015 Opera Festival again as Radamès.

DARIO DI VIETRI

Tenor
Dario Di Vietri was born in Bari. He began singing very young together with Vittorio Terranova, and then improving with worldwide famous artists as Jaume Aragall, Luciano Pavarotti and Bruna Baglioni. He is currently studying with Bruna Baglioni and with Sergio La Stella for the repertoire. In 2008 he obtained his qualification in music, under the guide of Vittorio Terranova, at the Conservatorio di Milano. During the 2009-2011 season, he studied at “Scuola dell'Opera Italiana” of “Teatro Comunale di Bologna”.

In 2009 he played the role of Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly in the “Circuito Lirico Lombardo” theatres. In 2010 he was Pinkerton at “Teatro Consorziale di Budrio”, and at Theatre G. Verdi of Brindisi, in collaboration with Fondazione “Pergolesi” of Jesi. In 2012 He sang Macbeth for Fondazione Pergolesi Spontini of Jesi, and debuted the protagonist role of Erri Sette Bellizze in Napoli Millionaria of Nino Rota at the Theatres of Pisa, Livorno and Lucca. In October 2013 he was Macduff in Macbeth at Teatro Coccia of Novara. In the winter of the 2013/2014 season he sang Don Josè in Carmen at the Theatres of Livorno, Lucca, Pisa and Fano. In May 2014 he played the protagonist role of Samson in Samson et Dalila at Seoul Arts Center of Seoul in a coproduction with Praha Opera of State. He was winner of Una Voce per l’Arena in 2014 in collaboration with Italian television and the Fondazione Arena di Verona. During the summer of 2014 he was engaged by Fondazione Arena di Verona for different roles as Riccardo in Un Ballo in maschera conducted by Battistoni, directed by Pizzi and Calaf in Turandot, conducted by Oren , directed by Zeffirelli. He opened the season of Verona Lirica with Orchestra and Choir of Fondazione Arena di Verona. In December 2014 he sang a Three Tenors Concert at Teatro Sociale of Rovigo - Italy and in Rabat and Casablanca - Maroc for the Italian Institute of Culture as representative of Italian music and culture in the world. In December 2014 he debuted Cavaradossi in Tosca at Kazan Opera Tartastan conducted by Marco Boemi. He opened the New Year with the Three Tenors Concerts in China - Shanghai - Guangzhou with Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra and GuangZhou Orchestra. In January he was again Samson in Samson et Dalila in an important Production at the Opera of Oviedo Spain. In February 2015 he debuted as Radamès in Aida at Kazan Festival conducted by Boemi. In March 2015 he was Turiddu in Cavalleria Rusticana at the Teatro Filarmonico of Verona and Calaf in Turandot at the Teatro San Carlo of Naples conducted by Juraj Valcuha and directed by Bruno De Simone. In April/ May 2015 he was Radames at Opera di Roma conducted by Jader Bignamini and directed by Micha Van Hoecke. In May 2015 he played the protagonist role of El Greco, written by George Hatzinassios directed by Vassilis Anastassiu and conducted by Dariusz Mikulski at Municipal Theatre of Piraeus Greece as First World Première. During the 2014-15 season he sang Concerts for the Fondazione Arena di Verona and Unicredit Bank at the Italian Embassy of Berlin, in Rome, Seoul, Zagabria and Zeist. In September 2015 he will debut as Manrico in Trovatore at the Kazan Opera - Tartastan, also at the Kazan Opera he is confirmed as Calaf, Don Josè for the 2015-2016 season.

Di Vietri has given concerts all over the world in countries such as China, South Korea, Russia, Brasil, Turkey, USA.
At the Teatro Filarmonico di Verona he made his debut in 2015 as Turiddu in Cavalleria rusticana by Mascagni.
At the Arena di Verona he debuted in 2014 as Calaf in Puccini’s Turandot.
For the Opera Festival 2015 at the Arena di Verona he will be Radamès in Aida and Cavaradossi in Tosca.
GREGORY KUNDE

Tenor
Regarded as one of the most elegant and accomplished singers on the opera stage today, Gregory Kunde continues to earn acclaim for his sensitive phrasing, impeccable style and dramatic command of the most demanding Italian and French operatic roles. He has appeared regularly at the world’s most notable venues, including the Metropolitan Opera, Carnegie Hall, Houston Grand Opera, Opéra Bastille, Théatre du Châtelet, Théatre des Champs Elysées, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the Sydney Opera House. He has collaborated with many outstanding conductors and stage directors, including Bonynge, R. Abbado, Muti, Mehta, Plasson, Prêtre, Rattle, Pappano, Dutoit, Nelson, Gardiner, Davis, Ronconi, Pizzi, Vick and Loy.

Acclaimed throughout his career for his performances in French and Italian bel canto roles, Kunde has more recently earned a formidable reputation in Verdi and other dramatic repertoire. Since his critically acclaimed debut as Verdi’s Otello at La Fenice in 2012, he has performed this signature role in Valencia, Genoa, Salerno, Florence, Turin, Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Seoul, and São Paulo. Other Verdi debuts in recent seasons include Arrigo I Vespri Siciliani and Riccardo Un Ballo in maschera (Turin), Radames Aida (São Paulo), and Don Alvaro La Forza del destino (Valencia). In the 2012/13 season, Kunde earned the unique distinction of being the only tenor in recorded history to perform both Rossini’s Otello and Verdi’s Otello in the same season – a feat that he repeats both this season and next.

Other recent roles include Enée Les Troyens (La Scala), Peter Grimes in Santa Cecilia with Pappano, Vasco da Gama L'Africaine (La Fenice), Gualtiero Il Pirata (Gran Teatre del Liceu), Raoul Les Huguenots (Opéra national du Rhin), Rodrigo La Donna del lago (Theater an der Wien), and Faust La Damnation de Faust (with Maestro Dutoit in Amsterdam).

Highlights of the 2014/15 season include Verdi’s Otello in São Paulo, Peralada and Seville; Rossini’s Otello (La Scala); Radames Aida (Arena de Verona); Pollione Norma (Liceu and La Fenice); and role debuts as Rodolfo Luisa Miller (Liège), Manrico Il Trovatore (La Fenice), Turriddu Cavalleria Rusticana and Canio Pagliacci (Bilbao), and Roberto Devereux (Teatro Real Madrid).

Kunde’s rich discography includes Berlioz Les Troyens at the Théâtre du Châtelet, Berlioz Benvenuto Cellini, Benvenuto Cellini with Sir Colin Davis, and and Verdi’s Otello from the Palazzo Ducale in Venice.

STUART NEILL

Tenor
Through his successful performances in the world’s finest opera houses and concert halls with leading conductors and orchestras, Stuart A. Neill has established himself as one of the most important tenors in the classical singing world.

Mr. Neill has appeared at The Metropolitan Opera, Teatro alla Scala, Teatro La Fenice, Vienna Staatsoper, The Royal Opera Covent Garden, Teatro Colón, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Opera Company of Philadelphia, Dallas Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Israel Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Boston Symphony Orchestra and Dresden’s Staatskapelle.

Stuart Neill has collaborated with conductors Gustavo Dudamel, Daniel Barenboim, Zubin Mehta, James Levine, John Neshling, Pinchas Steinberg, Sir Andrew Davis, Lorin Maazel, Edoardo Müller, James Conlon, Michael Tilson Thomas, Sir Roger Norrington, Nello Santi, as well as the lates Carlo Maria Giulini, Sir Colin Davis, Wolfgang Sawalisch, Michelangelo Veltri, Giuseppe Sinopoli and Anton Guadagno.

Mr. Neill is internationally recognized for his interpretation of the tenor role in Verdi´s Requiem, having performed the role more than 200 times, including four recordings of the work.

Upcoming 2014/15 engagements for Mr. Neill include performances of the role of Radamès, Manrico, Cavaradossi, Canio, Turiddu and the debut role of Otello for the Theatre Municipal, Sao Paulo.

Mr. Neill received a formal education at The Academy of Vocal Arts, Philadelphia, PA where he was a student of Maestri Christofer Macatsoris, Richard Raub and William Schuman. Mr. Neill studied privately with Roberta Knie, Elizabeth N. Colson and the late Peter S. Harrower at Georgia State University - Atlanta.