Barihunk Duo Touring Agrippina with Joyce DiDonato

Luca Pisaroni, Joyce DiDonato and Andrea Mastroni

Barihunk Luca Pisaroni and bass-barihunk Andrea Mastroni are hitting the road with "honorary barihunk" Joyce DiDonato in Handel's Agrippina.

Pisaroni is singing Claudio, Mastroni is taking on Pallante and DiDonato is singing the title role. Also in the cast are Elsa Benoit as Poppea, Franco Fagioli as Nerone, Xavier Sabata as Ottone, Carlo Vistoli as Narciso and Biago Pizzuti as Lesbo.

The opera opened yesterday at the Philharmonie Luxembourg and now heads to the Teatro Real in Madrid on May 16, The Liceu in Barcelona on May 18, the Theatre des Champs-Elysees in Paris on May 29, London's Barbican Centre on May 31 and the Turku Concert Hall on June 2.

Rising mezzo star Samantha Hankey will sing the title role on the final stop of the tour in Turku and countertneor Jakub Józef Orliński will take over as Narciso.

Barihunk Damien Pass sings and (strips for) the aria "La mia sorte":

In 1707-1708, Agrippina gave the young Handel his big chance to establish his reputation as an opera composer in Italy. The commission came from the famous Teatro San Giovanni Crisostomo in Venice, which was funded by the influential Grimani family. The Venetians were extremely demanding when it came to music, but Handel succeeded in creating a wise, gripping and entertaining opera on the basis of the humorous libretto about lust for power and sexual desires in Ancient Rome. The success was overwhelming.

 Joyce DiDonato and a sexy dancer perform "Pensieri, voi mi tormentate":

The story takes place in Rome, 54 A.D. where Agrippina is married to the Roman Emperor Claudio, who is currently away on a crusade. When the rumor surfaces that he has been killed in battle, she tries to make her son Nerone, the result of an earlier liaison with another man, emperor. It turns out, however, that Claudio is not dead, but was saved by Ottone, one of his generals. Out of gratitude, Claudio has made him his heir. Consequently, there are now two heirs. The situation is made even more complicated by the fact that Claudio, Nerone and Ottone are all in love with the same woman: Poppea. Who will win the woman and the throne? Agrippina schemes, sometimes successfully, sometimes less so. In the end, Ottone wins Poppea – for the time being – and Nerone is heir to the throne. But as we know from history and Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea things are not going to remain this way for long. 

Andrea Mastroni sings bass lead in new opera Aquagranda

Andrea Mastroni (photo: Nicodemo Luca Lucà)

Italian bass Andrea Mastroni will open the new season at La Fenice on November 4th  with the world premiere of Filippo Perocco's new opera Aquagranda. The opera recalls the 1966 tragedy when the sea level rose 194 cm (6.4 feet) and flooded Venice.

Librettists Roberto Bianchin and Luigi Cerantola set the opera on the island Pellestrina, which was hit the hardest by the rains and winds. The opera marks the 50th anniversary of the floods that caused 3,000 people to flee the city.

Mastroni sings the lead role of Fortunato in the opera, which was written for a true bass. It includes a madrigal for Fortunato, Acque, atroci acque, which is one of the emotional highlights of the piece. Mastroni's character also has a scene where he tells his son Ernesto that people cannot escape due to the rising tides.

Venice, as city of canals, has regularly been affected by rising sea levels, known as Acqua alta, but the 1966 levels were almost unprecedented and devastated much of the city. The flood left thousands of residents without homes and caused over six million dollars worth of damage to the various art throughout Venice. The city remained isolated for 24 hours with more than 75% of businesses, shops, and artisans' studios either seriously damaged or destroyed completely.

Performance run until November 13 and tickets are available online.

Mastroni returns to the Metropolitcan Opera after his run in Venice, where he will sing Sparafucile in Verdi's Rigoletto. Performances are on January 20, 26, 30 and February 4th and tickets and cast information is available online.

The 2017 Barihunks in Bed calendar is now on sale. Purchase your copy here. 

Andrea Mastroni releases filmed version of Erlkönig

Andrea Mastroni

Bass-barihunk Andrea Mastroni has released a filmed version of Franz Schubert's Erlkönig directed by Nicola Garzetti.

Erlkönig, known as Erl-King or Elf-King in English, was written by Schubert in 1815 when he was just 18. It is considered by many to be one of his greatest songs from the 600 settings that he composed. It is based on a 1782 poem of the same name by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

The text is a supernatural tale that was common in the Romantic era, and has its roots in a Scandinavian folktale. Goethe’s poem tells the story of a boy riding home on horseback in his father’s arms. He is frightened when he is courted by the Erl-King, a powerful and creepy supernatural being. The boy’s father, however, cannot see or hear the creature and tells the boy that his imagination is playing tricks on him. The boy grows increasingly terrified by what he hears from the Erl-King, but his father tells him that the things he thinks he sees and hears are only the sights and sounds of nature on a dark and stormy night. When the Erl-King eventually seizes the boy, the father spurs on his horse, but when he arrives home his son is dead.

Mastroni will be appearing at the Metropolitan Opera as Sparafucile in Verdi's Rigoletto on January 20, 26, 30 and February 4. He'll be joined by Željko Lučić in the title role, Olga Peretyatko as Gilda, Stephen Costello as the Duke of Mantua and Oksana Volkova as  Maddelena. Tickets are available online.

Andrea Mastroni in Verona's glorious Aida

Andrea Mastroni (top) and Verona's Aida (bottom)

Italian bass-barihunk Andrea Mastroni opens on August 10th as Ramfis and the King in the popular production of Verdi's Aida at the Arena di Verona in Italy. Last season at the Arena, Mastroni's sinister and dark Sparafucile in Verdi's Rigoletto was a big hit singing opposite Leo Nucci and Aleksandra Kurzak. Performances run through September 7th with rotating casts (Cast lists for daily performances can be found HERE).

We should also mention that Marco Vratogna, who has been featured on this site, is singing Amonasro. 

Andrea Mastroni sings "Quel vecchio maledivami" from Rigoletto;

Andrea Mastroni was born in Milan and originally studied the clarinet.  He then began studying voice with the great Italian soprano Lello Cuberli and Rita Antoniazzi. He graduated with honors from the Istituto Claudio Monteverdi in Cremona, while also obtaining a degree in Aesthetic Philosophy. In 2005, he won the Mario Basiola Prize and in 2007 took home both the Giuseppe Di Stefano Competition and the Bibiena Prize.

The current Verona season also includes Bizet's Carmen, Puccini's Madama Butterfly and Gounod's Romeo et Juliette.

On January 10, 21 and 23 next year, Mastroni will be appearing as Walter in Verdi's Luisa Miller at the Aalto-Musiktheater in Essen, Germany.

Introducing Photogenic Italian Bass-Barihunk Andrea Mastroni

Andrea Mastroni (photo: Nicodemo Luca Lucà)

We have a particular soft spot for basses in our pantheon of barihunks. When we saw pictures of Italian basso Andrea Mastroni by the great Milanese photographer Nicodemo Luca Lucà on Twitter we drawn to how seductive and sensuous he came across through the lens. 

Andrea Mastroni was born in Milan and originally studied the clarinet.  He then began studying voice with the great Italian soprano Lello Cuberli and Rita Antoniazzi. He graduated with honors from the Istituto Claudio Monteverdi in Cremona, while also obtaining a degree in Aesthetic Philosophy. In 2005, he won the Mario Basiola Prize and in 2007 took home both the Giuseppe Di Stefano Competition and the Bibiena Prize.

Andrea Mastroni

Andrea Mastroni

He is currently singing Colline in Puccini's La bohème at the Teatro La Fenice through May 30th. In July, he heads to Verona to tackle more Puccini when he sings Timur in Turandot at the famous arena. He then switches to Verdi, alternating the roles of the King and Rafis in Aida at the Arena di Verona. Last season, Mastroni's sinister and dark Sparafucile in Verdi's Rigoletto was a big hit singing opposite Leo Nucci and Aleksandra Kurzak.

Andrea Mastroni sings Pergolesi's "Quoniam tu solus sanctus": 

Mastroni has also focused on 19th century chamber music and lieder, performing such standards as Schubert's Die Schöne Müllerin and Winterreise, as well as Schumann's Dichterliebe. He can be heard on a number of recording and DVD's, including as Il Conte Vaudemont in Verdi's I Vespri Siciliani opposite Leo Nucci and Daniela Dessi, Oroe in Rossini's Semiramide and Frere Laurent in Gounod's Roméo et Juliette opposite Andrea Bocceli and Maite Alberola.