NEWS

CARLO COLOMBARA RETURNS TO THE MET IN NEW YORK

Carlo Colombara debuted at the Metropolitan Opera House in 1995 with Ramfis in Aida and has since returned to New York on various occasions, some of which to perform the same Giuseppe Verdi character for an American audience (in 1997, 2007 and most recently in 2010). In the upcoming opera season the Italian bass will once again return to the Met for a special engagement: he will perform the role of Zaccaria, from Verdi's Nabucco for the first time in New York. This is one of his favourite characters and one of the more often performed roles of the singer's career.

Colombara, debuted the role of Zaccaria in 1994 at the Teatro Principal in Palma de Majorca, with Ana María Sánchez and Valeri Alexeev. He later performed the role at venues such as Verona Arena (on various occasions, most recently in the 2007 season for the festival opening and alongside Leo Nucci as Nabucco, the performance was distributed on DVD by Decca), and the opera houses of Geneva. Ravenna, Vienna, Zurich, Milan (conducted by Riccardo Muti), Naples, Bologna, Savonlinna, Berlin and Reggio Emilia.

In the performances at the Met (on September 27th, October 1st, 5th, 8th, 12th, 15th, 20th and November 2nd and 17th) the singer will be conducted by Paolo Carignani and will sing with great voices from the international opera scene such as Maria Guleghina (Abigaille), Renée Tatum (Fenena), Yonghoon Lee (Ismael) and Željko Lucic (Nabucco).

CARLO COLOMBARA IS DON GIOVANNI IN THE SAVONLINNA OPERA FESTIVAL

The new production of Don Giovanni which will be performed this summer in the Savonlinna Opera Festival will have the bass Carlo Colombara, with his powerful, expansive and agile voice, in the lead role. The singer debuted this character with great success last October in the Teatro del Giglio in Lucca and in July he will sing the role once again for the audience of one of the most important opera festivals in northern Europe. The popular Mozart opera will mark the opening of the Finnish festival on the 1st July, with performances continuing on until the 19th of the same month. Will Humburg will be conducting, and the Belgian Paul-Emile Fourny is the director. The singers Carlo Lepore (Leporello), Alyson Cambridge (Donna Elvira), Jennifer Rowley (Donna Anna) and Michele Angelini (Don Ottavio) will also be perfoming in the production. Carlo Colombara will also give a concert of arias by Tosti, Denza, De Curtis, Verdi, Falvo, Di Capua, Tagliaferri and Rossini on the 12th July, also at the Savonlinna Festival.

THE BASS CARLO COLOMBARA WILL SING ZACCARIA, IN NABUCCO, AT LA MONNAIE

Last season, and after his performance in Macbeth at La Monnaie in Brussels, the bass Carlo Colombara was defined by the critic in Le Figaró as "the best Verdian bass of our time". In 2011 the Italian singer will return to Brussels to sing in another great Verdi opera, Nabucco, which will be performed in concert format on the 26th, 28th and 30th of April. The cast includes Andrzej Dobber (Nabucco), Zoran Todorovich (Ismaele), Marianne Cornetti (Abigaille) and Catherine Keen (Fenena), with Julian Reynolds conducting.

Colombara debuted at La Monnaie in 1991 with another Verdi piece, the Misa da Requiem; after some years' absence he returned to Brussels in 2008 for La Forza del destino, which was a great personal success for him.

The character of Zaccaria, in Nabucco, is one of Colombara's favourites; he debuted it in 1994 in Majorca and since then has sung it in some of the most important opera arenas in the world, the most outstanding of which include the Arena de Verona Festival, Zurich Opera House, La Scala in Milan and the San Carlo Theatre in Naples; this year he will also sing this role in the Metropolitan Opera House in New York (September).

CARLO COLOMBARA IN FOUR OPERAS AT THE ZURICH OPERNHAUS

Carlo Colombara will take lead roles in four operas in the 2010/2011 season at the Zurich Opernhaus. The Italian bass, recognized as an exemplary performer of Verdian repertoire, will interpret Massimiliano, Count of Moor in Verdi's opera I Masnadieri, which will be running from December to January (performances on the 5th, 8th, 11th, 15th, 19th, 22nd, 26th, and 29th December and January 2nd). The cast of this new production includes Isabel Rey (Amalia), Fabio Sartori (Carlo), Thomas Hampson (Francesco) and Boiko Zvetanov (Arminio), it will be conducted by Adam Fischer and directed by Guy Joosten.

The new year will begin with Nabucco, in which Colombara will play a role that has brought him a lot of acclaim, the high priest Zaccaria. This time he will share the stage with Angeles Blancas (Abigaille), Stefania Kaluza (Fenena), Liuba Chuchrova (Anna) and Leo Nucci (Nabucco). Jonathan Miller is the director and Nello Santi will conduct the Zurich Orchestra.

Colombara will return in March with two performances of Simon Boccanegra, (March 24th and 26th) in the role of Jacopo Fiesco which he sang for the first time in the Zurich Opernhaus back in 2006. The cast includes Ailyn Perez (Maria Boccanegra/Amelia Grimaldi), Leo Nucci (Simon Boccanegra) and Fabio Sartori (Gabriele Adorno), and the production will be directed by Giancarlo del Monaco and conducted by Carlo Rizzi.

Finally, Colombara will be King Enric VIII of Anna Bolena by Donizetti in May (25th and 28th) and June (2nd, 8th and 10th). Conductor Karel Mark Chichon, who worked with him last year in his debut as Escamillo of Carmen in Rome, will weild the baton: Eva Mei will play Anna Bolena, Elina Garanca Giovanna Seymour and Celso Albelo Lord Percy.

CARLO COLOMBARA IN REQUIEM AT PALAIS PRINCIER, MONTECARLO

On 17 and 18 of July at the Palais Princier of Monaco the Orchestre Philharmonique of Montecarlo will perform the Verdi's Requiem alongside four of the best performers of Opera: Fiorenza Cedolins, Sonia Ganassi, Piotr Beczala and Carlo Colombara, considered to be an exemplar for bass repertoire. The musical direction will be of Yakov Kreizberg, and the orchestre will be accompanied by the Chour Philharmonique Tchèque de Brno.
Carlo Colombara incursions into romantic bel canto and into the French creative scene have received unanimous applause from audience and critics alike. Some of his most acclaimed triumphs have been for his work performing Verdi as he is recognised as one of the most perfect interpreters of the Italian composer's music. As well as his operatic activity, Carlo Colombara is well known for giving concerts, having performed Verdi's Messa da Requiem more than a hundred times in cities such as Florence, Rome, London, Naples, Paris and Modena (this last one was in memory of Luciano Pavarotti, which whom he shared the stage the last time the famous tenor sang this work).

CARLO COLOMBARA IN MACBETH AT LA MONNAIE/DE MUNT

Italian Bass Carlo Colombara will be Banco in the production of Macbeth that La Monnaie will present to his audience on the days 11, 13, 15, 17, 19, 22, 25, 27, 29 & 30 of June. Colombara will sing alongside Scott Hendricks (Macbeth), Iano Tamar & Lisa Houben (Lady Macbeth), Andrew Richards (Macduff), Benjamin Bernheim (Malcolm) with the musical direction of Paul Daniel and the staging of Warlikowski.
Colombara has been singing at La Monnaie many times in these last years: in 2008 he was Padre Guardiano in La forza del destino, last year he sung in Verdi's Requiem, that he also performed in 1997 with Antonio Pappano direction. Also, Colombara has sung Macbeth in some of the most important theaters of the world, among them La Scala (directed by Riccardo Muti), Teatro Comunale di Bologna (his hometown), Festival de Ópera of La Coruña, Teatro San Carlo of Naples, and in Tokyo with Shirley Verret that will be edited in DVD in the near future.
More info:
http://www.lamonnaie.be/demunt-1.0/programma/productie.jsp?id=11129&seizoen=2009

CARLO COLOMBARA IN NORMA AT THE TEATRO REAL

After Aida at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, Italian bass Carlo Colombara returns to his country of adoption, Spain, for three performances of Bellini's Norma (concert version).
The Italian bass will play the role of Oroveso in Madrid with the musical direction of Massimo Zanetti, and with him in the cast Roberto Aronica (Pollione), Violeta Urmana (Norma), Sonia Ganassi (Adalgisa), Sandra Ferrández (Clotilde) and Francisco Corujo (Flavio).
Colombara debuted the role in Catania in 1990 and has sung in Norma in many theaters, among others in Paris, Venice, Genoa, Tokyo, Bologna, Houston, Chicago and Verona (where he opened the festival in 1994).
Link to the Teatro Real:
http://www.teatro-real.es/Programación/Detalle/?posicion1=3329

CARLO COLOMBARA IS BACK AT THE METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE

One of the protagonists of Italian opera, with a solid international career behind him, Carlo Colombara returns to the Metropolitan Opera in New York after a couple of years (the last performance was in 2007). He will be singing the role of the high priest Ramfis of Giuseppe Verdi's Aida for three dates, 26, 31 March and 3 of April.
The cast includes Hui He (Aida ), Dolora Zajick (Amneris), Salvatore Licitra (Radames), Carlo Guelfi (Amonasro) and Stefan Kocna (the King), with the conduction of Marco Armiliato.
Link to the Metropolitan Opera page:
http://www.metoperafamily.org/metopera/season/production.aspx?id=10396

CARLO COLOMBARA IN NABUCCO AT THE ZURICH OPERNHAUS

After concluding 2009 with the success of La Favorita at the Teatro de La Maestranza of Seville, Carlo Colombara begins the new year in Zurich singing in Nabucco at the Opernhaus. The cast includes Maria Guleghina as Abigaille and Juan Pons as Nabucco, directed by Nello Santi. After Zurich Colombara will be back in his home city Bologna to teach a Masterclass at the School of the Teatro Comunale.
More info:
http://opernhaus.ch/d/index.php
http://www.tcbo.it/home.html

CARLO COLOMBARA IN LA FAVORITE AT THE TEATRO DE LA MAESTRANZA IN SEVILLE

After receiving in Cremona the Premio Monteverdi, Carlo Colombara will be singing at the Teatro de La Maestranza in the role of Balthazar of the opera La Favorite, by Gaetano Donizetti. The cast includes Vladimir Stoyanov as Alfonso XI, José Bros as Fernando and Sonia Ganassi as Leonor de Guzmán, all directed by Roberto Rizzi Brignoli and with the stage direction of Hugo de Ana.
Colombara debuted the role in 2006 at the Zürich Opernhaus, when his interpretation was defined impressive and limpeccable (Marianne Zelger-Vogt, NZZ). The opera was also recorded by RCA in a CD: he was defined "a solid as Balthazar" (Arkiv Music), with a "solid vocal underpinning" (Joel Kasow, Andante) and a splendid singing: "Carlo Colombara continuing to impress with both his rich bass voice and fine sense for drama" (Robert Cummings, Classical Net).
More info: www.teatromaestranza.com

PREMIO MONTEVERDI TO THE ITALIAN BASS CARLO COLOMBARA

This year the prize "Claudio Monteverdi", given by the Association "Amici della lirica" of Cremona, Italy, will be given for the first time to a bass singer, Carlo Colombara. Carlo Colombara is today considered to be an exemplar for bass repertoire. His incursions into romantic bel canto and into the French creative scene have received unanimous applause from audience and critics alike. His tone is powerful, wide, dark, agile and has a sensitive power to communicate and this, coupled with his convincing acting skills, has brought him to the top of the contemporary operatic scene. The first edition of the Prize was in 1969, when Ennio Gerelli won it: afterwards some of the the most important singer of opera received it, among them Mirella Freni, Raina Kabaiwanska, Mariella Devia, Dimitra Theodossiou, José Carreras and Leo Nucci. The ceremony will take place on 17th November at the Teatro Ponchielli of Cremona, Italy. More info: www.teatroponchielli.it

CARLO COLOMBARA AT THE GRAFENEGG FESTIVAL (AUSTRIA)

After the big success of the Mefistofele by Arrigo Boito at the Savonlinna Festival, on 18 July bass Carlo Colombara will sing at the third edition of the International Music Festival of Grafenegg, Austria, with the Messa da Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi, work of the Italiano composer that Colombara has sung many times and always with great success. Carlo Colombara will be singing with Marina Poplavskaya (soprano), Daniela Barcellona (mezzosoprano), Francesco Meli (tenor) and the Coro del Teatro Regio di Torino, with the music of the Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederö - österreich and Gianandrea Noseda as conductor. The show will take place at the Wolkenturm, an open-air stage, which slots into the landscaped gardens like a giant pavilion: it is a sculpture which ranges a good 15 metres into the sky, with a spectacular view of the historic castle in its romantic setting.

CARLO COLOMBARA MAKES HIS DEBUT AS ESCAMILLO IN ROME

After a two decade long career and having worked with the most important conductors and directors in the international panorama, Carlo Colombara continues to widen his repertoire. This summer the Italian bass will debut in the role of Escamillo at the Festival Terme di Caracalla, in Rome. The first performance of Carmen will be July 29th (repeated performances with Carlo Colombara will be the 1, 5 and 8 of August). Colombara is today considered to be an exemplar for bass repertoire. His incursions into romantic bel canto and into the French creative scene have received unanimous applause from audience and critics alike. After Rome he will be singing in Zürich (Ernani), and Spain (a tour of Verdi's Requiem and La Favorite at the Teatro de la La Maestranza in Seville).