Elisir damore rolando villazon biography

Some words about the Opéra de Monte-Carlo…

It is a special and beautiful theatre, and it is comfortable to sing there. More importantly, there is a rare intimacy between the audience and performers because of its size. In this space you can maintain a very close connection between the staging and the music. And admittedly, it is a little surreal to enter a grand casino and arrive at a beautiful little jewel like this…

What are the differences between your two professions as an opera director and a singer? 

The are totally different: as a director you must create a clear universe of a production, first in your own mind, then to make it work from the point-of-view of each character. As a singer, I am aware of my own needs and those of my character, but as a director, I must also understand the requirements of my entire universe. 

What are you going to sing for us at your recital in Monte Carlo? 

I am proposing a journey through the lyrical tenor repertoire from the baroque era to the early 20th century. The first half of the concert contains pieces by Handel, Mozart, Haydn and Verdi, which make you understand how form and style developed gradually while remaining palpable in the music of such contrasting periods. In the second half of the evening we explore French and Spanish connections, with Offenbach serving as the pivot between the Romantic and “lighter” repertoire. One of my favourite songs by Tosti closes the evening. 

You sing a repertoire that ranges from the 17th century to Wagner.  Is there any field you would still like to tackle? 

I do not think in this way, really. What I need is a character or piece that kindles my excitement. It is true, that I would like to do more neoclassical or contemporary works, for instance. But at the moment I am also totally in love with Renaissance music! I feel privileged and happy with what I have done and what I am being offered to do in t

Mexican tenor (born 1972)

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Villazón and the second or maternal family name is Mauleón.

Rolando Villazón Mauleón (born 22 February 1972) is a Mexican operatic tenor, stage director, author, radio and television personality, and artistic director. He now lives in France, receiving citizenship in 2007.

Villazón has published several books, including the novels Malabares and Paladas de sombra contra la oscuridad which have been translated into French and German. He is a member of the Collège de 'Pataphysique in Paris.

Early life

He was raised in Fuentes de Satélite, a suburban area of Greater Mexico City, Mexico. In an interview for Mexican television, Villazón recounted how he was discovered as a tenor. He said that one day, as he was getting out of the shower in his apartment in Mexico City, somebody came knocking on his door; it was baritone Arturo Nieto, a friend of his neighbour, who had heard him singing while in the shower. He told Rolando he had an amazing voice and invited him to his music academy to develop his voice; it was there that Villazón fell in love with opera.

Career

Late 1990s and early 2000s

Villazón came to international attention in 1999 when he won second prize in Plácido Domingo's Operalia competition (losing to Bulgarian bass Orlin Anastassov), as well as the first Zarzuela prize and the audience prize. The same year he sang for the first time in Italy as des Grieux in Manon at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa. In 2000 he appeared for the first time at the Berlin State Opera, as Macduff in Macbeth. Over the years he has presented many of his best roles there, among them José in Carmen and des Grieux in Manon.

In Munich in 2000 he sang Rodolfo in La bohème and in 2002 in Los Angeles, Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi. In 2003 he sang Rod

Biographie

Durch seine einzigartig fesselnden Auftritte auf den wichtigsten Bühnen der Welt hat sich Rolando Villazón als einer der gefeiertsten und beliebtesten Stars der Musikwelt und als einer der führenden Künstler unserer Zeit etabliert. Kritiker preisen ihn als „den charmantesten der heutigen Diven“ (The Times) mit „einer wunderbar virilen Stimme… Grandezza, Eleganz und Kraft“ (Süddeutsche Zeitung). Rolando Villazóns künstlerische Vielseitigkeit ist konkurrenzlos, neben seiner Bühnenkarriere ist er auch als Regisseur, Autor, künstlerischer Leiter der Stiftung Mozarteum sowie als Radio- und Fernsehpersönlichkeit erfolgreich.

In der Saison 2024/25 gibt Rolando Villazón sein Debüt in der Titelrolle von Mozarts Idomeneo in der Inszenierung von David McVicar an der Staatsoper Berlin unter der Leitung von Alessandro de Marchi. Seine gefeierte Darstellung von Monteverdis L’Orfeo in Nikolaus Habjans Inszenierung bringt er zur Salzburger Mozartwoche 2025 und übernimmt am Theater St. Gallen erstmals die Rolle des Gabriel Eisenstein in Johann Strauss‘ Die Fledermaus. Im April feiert Rolando Villazón das 250-jährige Jubiläum von Mozarts Il re pastore, indem er eine seiner bekanntesten Rollen, Alessandro, in einer einzigen konzertanten Vorstellung am Ort der Uraufführung der Oper in Salzburg singt.

Auf dem Konzertpodium präsentieren Rolando Villazón und die lautten compagney BERLIN ihr neues Konzertprogramm Viaggio dell’anima u.a. beim Merano Festival, in der Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, bei den Dresdner Musikfestspielen sowie in Salzburg, Gütersloh, Weingarten, Neuruppin und Schaffhausen. Villazón und die Mezzosopranistin Kate Lindsey präsentieren ihr umjubeltes Programm Amore e Follia in der Tonhalle Zürich, im Wiener Konzerthaus, im Prager Smetana-Saal und beim Festival der Nationen in Bad Wörishofen. Der Tenor kehrt für Konzerte in Mexiko-Stadt, Torreon und Guadalajara in se

When Donizetti’s comedy, updated to the mid-20th century by the Uruguayan-born director Mario Gas, was mounted at Barcelona’s magnificent Liceu opera house in 2005, Opera News wrote that: The absolute hit of the production was… Rolando Villazón, a commanding, vulnerable and hilarious Nemorino. His stage presence dominated
every scene he was in… [and] his lovable innocence was a joy to behold. Villazón’s perfect technique and creamy, malleable voice conquered the audience . . . His athletic and expressive body language midway between Cantinflas and Mr. Bean fits this role and this production perfectly. The Mexican tenor, making his debut at the
Liceu, was called upon the encore the opera s most famous aria, the plaintive Una furtiva lagrima . Rolando Villazón can already be seen and heard as Nemorino on another Virgin Classics DVD, released in 2006. His partners in that more traditionally rustic production from Vienna were Anna Netrebko, Leo Nucci and Ildebrando d’Arcangelo; here they are Spanish soprano Maria Bayo as the wealthy and capricious Adina, Italian baritone Bruno Praticò as Dulcamara, the pedlar of the so-called elixir of love in fact just red wine in disguise and French baritone Jean-Luc Chaignaud as the swaggering sergeant Belcore.