Jun 5, 2013

Following a triumphant turn in L'elisir d'amore at Barcelona's Teatre del Liceu, Rolando Villazón looks ahead to the second leg of the Verdi tour, which resumes June 12 at Amsterdam's Concertgebouw with conductor Guerassim Voronkov and the Czech National Symphony. Rolando's Verdi tour has won critical acclaim, with the Austrian Press Agency hailing him as an "ideal Verdi-performer" and Osterreich affirming his "exceptional talent in story-telling and emotional expression." Having reached over 12,500 listeners so far, the Verdi tour reaches new audiences with additional concerts in Stuttgart (June 15), Nuremberg (June 18), Baden-Baden (June 21), Toulouse (June 24), and Barcelona (June 27), where Rolando will make his debut at the Catalonian capital's Palau de la Música.

The Verdi tour caps off a momentous season for Rolando, who last fall released the Deutsche Grammophon album Villazón Verdi, a musical homage to the operatic genius. This summer, the Mexican French tenor guests in the open-air Klassik am Odeonsplatz concert (July 6) and sings the title role of Mozart's Lucio Silla at the Salzburg Festival (July 27 to August 4) and Musikfest Bremen (August 25 & 27). Highlights of Rolando's 2013-14 season include returns to the Metropolitan Opera, Staatsoper Berlin, Wiener Staatsoper, Bayerische Staatsoper, and Teatro alla Scala, as well as a Mozart Arias concert tour across Europe. Discover the full season here.

May 29, 2013

Monday saw the first of four sold-out performances of Donizetti's comic masterpiece L'elisir d'amore at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, starring Rolando Villazón, Alexandra Kurzak, and Ambrogio Maestri. The Barcelona audience feted Monday's performance with standing ovations, and critics hailed the evening as "a great night at the opera" (ABC), singling out Rolando's "vocal beauty, depth and versatility."

Three performances are scheduled for May 30, June 2, and June 5, with Rolando returning to Barcelona on June 27 for the culmination of his Verdi tour, a landmark performance that will also be his debut at the Catalonian capital's Palau de la Música.

May 23, 2013

From May 27 to June 5, Rolando Villazón stars in Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore as the lovestruck Nemorino at Barcelona's Gran Teatre del Liceu. Donizetti's melodrama giocoso follows Nemorino as he pursues his beloved Adina. But with the arrival of the dashing soldier Belcore and the medicine man Dulcamara, Nemorino acts decisively to win Adina's love. The performances, conducted by Daniele Callegari, take place May 27 & 30, June 2 & 5.