It takes a special artist to excel in the fiendishly difficult arias that are central to the landscape of Baroque and early bel canto opera.
Franco Fagioli is the leading virtuoso countertenor of our time. Renowned as much for his artistry as for the beauty of his voice, spanning three octaves and masterful technique, he is the first countertenor to sign an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon. The singer’s relationship with the Yellow Label reflects his status as one of the brightest stars of Baroque and early 19th-century bel canto opera. His solo début recording for the company, ‘Rossini’, with Armonia Atenea and George Petrou, his album of Handel Arias with Il Pomo d’Oro and his album of spectacular virtuoso arias by Leonardo Vinci, also with Il Pomo d’Oro, have all won universal critical acclaim.
Recent highlights on the stage have included Nerone Agrippina and Idamante Idomeneo for the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; The Hamburgische Bayerische Staatsopers, Munich; the title role in Rossini’s Sigismondo at the Teatr Słowackiego in Krakow; the title role in Cavalli’s Eliogabalo for the Opéra national de Paris and the Dutch National Opera; Arsace in Rossini’s Semiramide for the Opéra national de Lorraine; Andronico Tamerlano at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan; Ruggiero Alcina for the Hamburgische Staatsoper; the title role in Serse at the Staatstheater Karlsruhe; Adalgiso in Porpora’s Carlo il Calvo at the Bayreuth Baroque Opera Festival; Piacere in Handel’s Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno for the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, the Opéra de Lille and the Theatre de Caen and the title role in Handel’s Giulio Cesare for the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires and the Opernhaus Zurich. Most recently he has performed Ruggiero Alcina in a new production at the Opéra de Lausanne
He has also achieved distinction as a concert artist appearing at the Halle, Ludwigsburg, Innsbruck and Salzburg Festivals, collaborating regularly with such conductors as Rinaldo Alessandrini, Alan Curtis, Gabriel Garrido, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, René Jacobs, José Manuel Quintana, Marc Minkowski, Riccardo Muti and Christophe Rousset.
His impressive discography includes the title roles in Handel’s Serse and Gluck’s Orfeo and Ezio, Pergolesi’s Adriano in Syria, Handel’s Berenice and Teseo, Leonardo Vinci’s Artaserse and Catone in Utica, Caldara’s La Concordia de’ pianeti, Hasse’s Siroe, rè di Persia and the solo albums Arias for Caffarelli and Il maestro Porpora.
Fagioli has also just sung Giulio Cesare for Theatre des Champs-Elysées followed by a tour of Ariodante with the Pomo d’oro and his European debut as conductor in the Messiah in Versailles and Palau de la Musica Barcelona. He has undertaken a European tour of Mozart arias, which he performed with the Basel Kammerorchester and which has recently been released with Pentatone. Upcoming performances include Il trionfo del tempo e del disinganno with the Berlin Phil and Polifemo at the Theater an der Wien and Concertgebouw Amsterdam.
For the most up-to-date biography, please contact Askonas Holt.
R ROBINSON / FEB 2O23
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