Barihunk duo in Opera Danube's Orpheus in the Underworld

Jan Capiński (Photo: Ash Mills) and Matt Buswell (Photo: Chris Christodoulou)

Once again Twitter provided us a path to our latest post when Jake Arditti responded to a tweet from Opera Danube introducing the men of their cast for their upcoming performance of Offenbach's Orpheus in the Underworld. He correctly predicted that we'd be onto them in no time. For the record, if we ever start a site dedicated to hunky countertenors Arditti will be our first post.

Performing in the cast are barihunks Jan Capiński and Matt Buswell, the latter who is new to the site. Opera Danube was founded in 2013 to provide emerging artists a showcase for their talents with full orchestra. As the name implies, their primary focus is operetta and in prior years they have performed Johann Strauss' Die Fledermaus and Franz Lèhar's The Merry Widow. Performances of Orpheus will be on January 29, 30 and 31 at St. John's, Smith Square and additional cast and ticket information is available online.

The "Oracle of Arditti" speaks!

We introduced Jan Capiński a year ago when it was announced that he was singing Armando in Donizetti's The Siege of Calais with the English Touring Opera. The Polish native studied at the Academy of Music and the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama. He went on to train at the ENO Opera Works professional development program and is a recipient of the Silver Medal of the Worshipful Company of Musicians, as well as the Garsington Opera Simon Sandbach Award. He recently completed two tours of the U.K. with Mid Wales Opera and English Touring Opera as Moralès in Jonathan Miller's new production of Carmen. According to his website, Capiński stays in shape by white-water kayaking, stand-up-paddleboarding and hiking.

Offenbach's Can Can at Opera Danube's gala:

Bass-barihunk Matt Buswell trained at the Royal College of Music where he graduated with honours. Upcoming performances include performances with with the Brandenberg Choral Festival in Mozart's Requiem and Solemn Vespers. He has previously performed Cadmus and Somnus in Handel's Semele with the London Early Opera, Il Sonno in Handel's Arianna in Creta and Licaone in Handel's Giove in Argo at the Royal College of Music International Opera School & London Handel Festival, Wilfred in Gilbert & Sullivan's The Yeomen of the Guard with Portsmouth Guildhall, Calmon in Jonathan Dove's The Little Green Swallow with the British Youth Opera and  Figaro in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro with the Mid-Wales Opera Young Artist Program. When not performing, he also teaches voice.

You can follow Jan Capiński on Twitter @jancapinski, Matt Buswell at @MattBuswell,  Jake Arditti at @JakeArditti and Opera Danube at @OperaDanube.

Introducing British barihunk Felix Kemp

Felix Kemp showing his Wagnerian side

We discover new barihunks in a variety of ways, with the most common way still being from readers. It used to come almost exclusively from emails and Facebook, but lately we're seeing more suggestions appear on Twitter.

That's how British barihunk Felix Kemp came to our attention. In fact, it came from fellow barihunk James Newby, who we introduced to readers in August 2013 and recently featured on the site.

Kemp lives in London and studies singing with Neil Baker at postgraduate level at Trinity Laban, where he's supported by the Kathleen Roberts vocal scholarship. He also receives coaching from mezzo soprano Wendy Dawn Thompson.

Felix Kemp

Recent concerts have include the bass solos in Bach's St John Passion in Oslo, Bach's Magnificat in London and Bach's Christmas Oratorio in the English town of Leighton Buzzard. Last summer he  performed as part of the Grange Park chorus in Britten's Peter Grimes and Tchaikovsky's Queen of Spades. He also participated in masterclasses with British Youth Opera.

In 2014, Felix won the audience prize at the John Kerr Award for English Song competition, and performed in a masterclass with Sir John Eliot Gardiner as part of the Greenwich International Early Music Festival.

Engagements this season include bass solos in Mozart's Coronation Mass and Solemn Vespers Tunbridge Wells, Dvorak's Stabat Mater in Leeds, and Wagner's Parsifal in Valencia with the Philharmonia Chorus as part of their Professional Singers' Scheme. He returns to Grange Park Opera this Summer to appear in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin and Fiddler on the Roof alongside Bryn Terfel.

You can follow both James Newby (@jamesn103) and Felix Kemp (@Felix_Kemp) on Twitter.

Schrott seeks tenor soul via Twitter

Erwin Schrott tweets to Charles Castronovo

There are few opera singers who we enjoy more on social media than Erwin Schrott. His posts on Facebook, Twitter and his blog are a great way to follow his career and enjoy a few laughs along the way. This tweet to Charles Castronovo, who was Faust to Schrott's Méphistophélès in Gounod's opera in Baden-Baden, is classic Erwin. The duo were joined by fellow barihunk Jacque Imbrailo, who was Valentin.

Upcoming appearances for Schrott include a July 12 concert with soprano Nino Machaidze in Linz and the Count in Le nozze di Figaro in Munich. The all-star cast includes Gerald Finley as Figaro, Christine Schäfer as Cherubino and Véronique Gens as the Countess. Performances run from July 17-24 and tickets are available online. On December 4th, he'll take his Count to the Metropolitan Opera alongside fellow barihunk Mariusz Kwiecien as Figaro.

BARIHUNKS “BEST OF 2013”

It's time for for annual feature highlighting the best of the year on Barihunks. This is our most popular post every year and we spent weeks combing through the archives to present you the "BEST OF 2013"!!!

Christiaan Smith-Kotlarek and Zachary Gordin

1.     Hottest photos - Christiaan Smith-Kotlarek & Zachary Gordin: We can't even begin to tell you the chatter that these two photographs created. They are both featured in our 2014 Barihunks Charity Calendar and have instantly become fan favorites. For any of you doubters out there, these guys not only look hot, but they can sing! Christiaan Smith-Kotlarek recently wrapped up a run as Schaunard in La Bohème with Kentucky Opera and will be part of the Virginia Opera young artist program in 2014. Gordin is a popular singer and coach with San Francisco Bay Area audiences. He was a huge hit at the Olympic Music Festival in Washington last year singing Hahn and Schumann. He's been asked back this year to perform "Arias and Arguments: From Love to Loss in Four Acts."

Xavier Edgardo & Doug Carpenter

2.     Most Popular Barihunks: Doug Carpenter and Xavier Edgardo: It's almost impossible to gauge who the most popular barihunks are on the site. If you go purely by hits, any singer who showed a lot of skin onstage (especially if they went the full monty!), will generate a disproportionate amount of traffic. If we look at comments, emails and who we get asked about the most, then Puerto Rico's Xavier Edgardo and America's Doug Carpenter lead the pack. Edgardo, who was a standout as a young artist and choral performer in Puerto Rico is headed to San Francisco next year to further hone his talents. Carpenter won the prestigious Lotte Lenya Competition this year, which you can enjoy in its entirety HERE.

Romain Dayez

3.     Hottest Newcomer –  Romain Dayez: We introduced readers to this 24-year-old Belgian singer back in February and he's proved as fascinating as he is sexy. Although much of his early career was focused on oratorios and baroque repertoire, he is constantly involved in innovative new programming, including performances with the Parisian rappers Milk Coffee & Sugar. He is currently the director of the ALLIAGE Art Project. His most recent show with Alliage was "De Profundis" featuring the music of Philip Glass, Arvo Pärt and Solange Labbe. We tried to get him in the calendar this year, but couldn't get a Hi-Res photo. Keep your fingers crossed for 2015!

Evan Hughes

4.     Best Reader Submission – Evan Hughes: California native Evan Hughes came to our attention as a member of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist  program. He was a regional winner and a national Semi-Finalist in the 2010 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and was the grand prize in the Marilyn Horne Foundation Competition. A champion of contemporary music, he has performed Elliott Carter’s Syringa with the Met Chamber Ensemble at Zankel Hall and Tanglewood under James Levine, premiered Carter’s Three Explorations at Alice Tully Hall with the Axiom Ensemble and Jeffrey Milarsky and performed Carter’s On Conversing with Paradise as part of a festival of cultural exchange entitled Ascending Dragon in Los Angeles, Hanoi and in other parts of Vietnam.

Morgan Smith

5.      Best opera on DVD – Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick, San Francisco Opera & Morgan Smith: Composer Jake Heggie keeps turning out great operas and the San Francisco Opera captured an incredible performance of his latest piece, Moby-Dick. The all-star cast includes barihunk Morgan Smith, Jay Hunter Morris, Stephen Costello, Jonathan Lemalu, Talise Trevigne and is conducted by Patrick Summers. Smith plays the critical role of Captain Ahab's first mate Starbuck, the first mate and family man who tries desperately to dissuade Ahab from his single-minded, suicidal pursuit of Moby-Dick. The role includes more beautiful baritone music from Jake Heggie in the aria "Captain Ahab? I must Speak with you." Few, if any, composers have written for more baritone leads than Jake Heggie. For that, we are eternally grateful.

Duncan Rock, Curtis Sullivan and Kyle Ketelsen

6.     Best Live Performances - Duncan Rock (Rape of Lucretia – Glyndebourne); Curtis Sullivan (Abduction - Opera Atelier); Kyle Ketelsen (Faust -Méphistophélès): There were some amazingly hot performances from barihunks this year, but these three stood out for vocalism, characterization and critical acclaim. Financial Times music critic Andrew Clark, commented, "Musically and physically Duncan Rock’s Tarquinius has an imposing muscularity." Curtis Sullivan brought a sexiness to the role of Pasha Selim in the Opera Atelier's Abduction from the Seraglio which made us wonder why Konstanze wanted to be rescued. Kyle Ketelsen was the ultimate sexy, bad boy with his shirtless portrayal of Méphistophélès in Gounod's Faust in Zurich.

Left photo: Wes Mason, Michael Mayes, John Boehr & Anthony Reed. Right Photo: Jonathan Estabrooks, Philip Kalmanovitch, Cairan Ryan, Andrey Andreychik, & Pierre Rancourt

7.     Best group photos - Barihunks lunch in Ft. Worth; The "5 Barihunks" at "Jeunes ambassadeurs lyriques": Some group photos are serious, some not so serious. As our regular readers know, we occasionally host a Barihunks Lunch when a number of singers are in one location at any given time. The gatherings in Ft. Worth are always raucous and entertaining, especially when Michael Mayes and Wes Mason are at the table. Mason kept the group entertained with some amazing impesonations, while Michael Mayes was...well, he was Michael Mayes, as intense and entertaining off-stage and on-stage. (And you gotta love those Barihunk tee shirts!). Jonathan Estabrooks gathered five barihunks at the recent "Jeunes ambassadeurs lyriques" benefit gala. We can't think of a better way to warm up on a cold Canadian evening. 

Top: Muhammad Ali and Soloman Howard; Bottom: Emile Griffith and Aubrey Allicock

8.     Hottest Opera singer playing an Athlete– Soloman Howard as Muhammad Ali; Aubrey Allicock as boxer Emile Griffith: There were two sexy barihunks portraying boxers this summer, continuing the trend of librettos being based on contemporary subject from the news. These are usually dubbed CNN Operas, but perhaps the term ESPN Opera should be coined, as there are at least two operas in the works about baseball. Bass-Barihunk Soloman Howard portrayed Muhammad Ali in the world premiere of composer D.J. Sparr's "Approaching Ali" at the Washington National Opera and drew rave reviews for his portrayal. Aubrey Allicock took on the story of the lesser known boxer Emile Griffith in Tereence Blanchard' s Champion at the Opera Theatre of St. Louis. The bisexual boxer who killed boxer Benny Paret in a 1962 title match, died five weeks after the premier of the opera.

9.     Hottest Athlete playing an opera singer Justin Tucker: Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has some major accomplishments under his belt for only being 23 years old. He has a Super Bowl ring and while playing for the University of Texas in 2011, he kicked the game winning field goal against arch rival Texas A&M University as the clock expired. Tucker hasn't just made a name for himself with his legs, he also has a serious set of pipes. A music major at the University of Texas, Tucker claims he can sing opera in seven different languages (English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Latin and Russian). He showed off his Italian skills recently by singing "Deh vieni alla finestra" from Mozart's Don Giovanni for Dr. Pepper's "1 of a Kind" web campaign, which debuted on YouTube.

10.  Best barihunks on Twitter – Luca Pisaroni & James Newby: We discovered James Newby via some Twitter messages going back and forth between friends suggesting one should be on Barihunks. 20-year-old James Newby then tweeted, "...this accolade could complete me as a human being!" We checked out Newby, who is in his second year of study at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, London and figured that we'd complete him as a human being. His tweets also led us to discover his barbershop quartet Short, Back and Sides singing "To Russia With (Gay) Love.” The video is intended to show the worldwide support for LGBT Russians from people across the globe.

      Luca Pisaroni is a big star with a big presence on Twitter. He regularly posts updates about the cities he's visiting, the music he's performing, concerts with his father-in-law Thomas Hampson, and adventures with his dogs Lenny and Tristan. His wife Cate Pisaroni is also worth following. She is clearly his biggest fan and adds great content and commentary. In the age of self-marketing on the internet, this duo is the best.

11.  Best Barihunk Feature – Approval Matrix NY Magazine & Buzzfeed feature: In the Summer, Barihunks made the NY Magazine's "Approval Matrix" for the week of August 19th. The site landed in the HIGHBROW and BRILLIANT quadrant! We were joined by a pretty illustrious group that includes Orson Welles' rediscovered film "Too Much Johnson," PBS' "Judy & Gwen" all-female co-anchor team, Hanya Yanagihara's novel "The People in the Trees," Jeff Bezos, new owner of the Washington Post, Alissa Quart's "Republic of Outsiders" and Sophie Fontanel's "French spinster by choice."

      We weren't completely sure what "highbrow" really meant, but Virginia Woolf said, "There can be no two opinions as to what a highbrow is. He is the man or woman of thoroughbred intelligence who rides his mind at a gallop across country in pursuit of an idea." We'll take it.

Barihunk Xavier Edgardo and the Urban Dictionary

12.  Biggest Barihunk news – Urban Dictionary: August was a pretty heady month for us, as we also were entered into the Urban Dictionary.  

      BARIHUNK DEFINITION: A handsome or pretty baritone. Especially, but not exclusively,  one who removes his shirt for the sake of opera.  EXAMPLE: I'm going to the Marriage of Figaro because I like the opera but also to see the barihunks on display.

Sam Dundas: Yes, he sings in the shower

13.  Hottest Barihunk Singing in the Shower – Sam Dundas: We generally reserve our "skin shots" to pictures from productions, but when we saw this photo of Sam Dundas by Herald Sun photographer Craig Borrow we knew that we had to post it for readers. Dundas is one of the biggest talents from "Down Under" and he recently won the coveted $42,000 Lady Fairfax New York Scholarship. The prize allowed Dundas to come to the United States for six weeks of work on the opera skills of his choice. He has a busy year ahead with Opera Australia where he will be singing Papageno in Mozart's The Magic Flute, Prosdocimo in Rossini's The Turk in Italy (in swim trunks!), Ceprano in Verdi's Rigoletto, Belcore in Donizetti's The Elixir of Love, and Dr Malatesta in Donizetti's Don Pasquale.

Gregory Jebaily

Vasil Garvanliev

14.  Best Selfies – Gregory Jebaily and Vasil Garvanliev: We discovered South Carolina native Gregory Jebaily on the Operaticus Facebook site, where singers talk about keeping their voices and bodies in shape. They also tend to post lots of pictures and watching Gregory Jebaily transform into an "Echt-Barihunk" has been a joy. Jebaily made his operatic debut as Wagner in Dayton Opera’s April 2010 production of Gonoud’s Faust. He returned the next year as a Dayton Opera Artist in Residence and performed the role of Hortensius in Donizetti's La Fille du Regiment. For the past two years he's also been a studio artist with Kentucky Opera where he sang Dancaïro in Carmen and Hermann in Enemies: a love story by Ben Moore.

      Vasil Garvanliev takes the hottest selfies in the world. PERIOD. This Macedonian-Canadian singer has mastered the artform like no on else. We were so impressed with his work that he's appeared regularly on our Facebook sidebar and Twitter images. His calendar photos this year were highly original and slightly provocative. We can see why the visually conscientious Opera Atelier has made him a permanent member of their roster. Next season he'll be performing in their production of Lully's Persee, which will also be performed at Versailles, France.

15.  Best Underwear Shots – Christopher Burchett (Soldier Songs), Lauri Vasar (Il Prigoniero): Directors seem to love getting barihunks to strip down to their scivvies and we're not complaining! Two of the hottest performance in a pair of briefs this year came from Lauri Vasar as the Prisoner in Dallapiccola's Il Prigioniero at Opéra de Lyon and Christopher Burchett in David T. Little's Soldier Songs in New York City. We'll let the pictures do the talking.

Andrew Garland (left) and William Berger (right)

16.  Best Solo CD's – Andrew Garland and William Berger: If you love gingers, you can't find two barihunks who are hotter and who sing better than these two guys. Andrew Garland is a favorite of ours and his release on GPR Records entitled "American Portraits" is destined to be become a classic among American art song recitals. The CD features music by Stephen Paulus, Jake Heggie, Lori Laitman and Tom Cipullo. William Berger's new release is so new that we haven't even featured it on the site yet, but Hommage à Trois with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the brilliant conductor Nicholas McGegan is one of the most delightful releases that we've heard in years. The recording pays hommage to three of the 18th century’s finest composers,  Mozart, Haydn, and Cimarosa and also features acclaimed soprano Carolyn Sampson in the duets. Berger was featured on the site for his amazing BariChunk to BariHunk transformation.

Kathryn Bates Williams and Jesse Blumberg in Green Sneakers

17.  Best Barihunk Solo Show – Green Sneakers at the Ft. Mason Center in San Francisco: We're huge fans of "Black Box Opera," where the intensity of a performance is immediate and close up. Ricky Ian Gordon is one of the busiest and most popular composers in all of opera today, but his works were not performed in San Francisco until January of this year. With help from a Barihunks Charity Calendar grant, Jesse Blumberg, the Del Sol Quartet and the talented young director John de los Santos put on a show for the ages. Audience members were in tears at the end of Gordon's most personal composition. The entire cast will reprise the performance with Opera Piccola of San Antonio on May 10 & 11 as part of a double bill with Gordon's Orpheus and Euridice.

Jud Arhur in a model shot and as Fafner

18.  Best Nude Scene – Jud Arthur as Fafner: Director Neil Armfield's Der Ring des Nibelungen at Opera Australia was quite the buzz even before it opened. Of course, our readers were buzzing about barihunk Jud Arthur's surprising entry from his cave as the mortally wounded Fafner, splattered with blood and completely naked. In the scene, Fafner, stripped bare, warns Siegfried of the Ring's power.

      Jud Arthur was born in New Zealand, worked as a farmer in Mosgiel, and then began a career as a professional rugby player. He's been one of the most popular regulars at Opera Australia for a decade now and also moonlights as a professional model.

19.  Best Ad Campaign – Glory Denied, Fort Worth Opera Festival: The ad campaign for Tom Cipullo's Glory Denied was literally stopping traffic this year. The innovative company, which brilliantly combines standard repertory with new works, created quite the buzz with these bus benches featuring barihunk Michael Mayes. Mayes portrayed Colonel Floyd James (Jim) Thompson, America’s longest-held prisoner of war. The opera looks back on Thompson's years as a captive in Vietnam and features Mayes in the title role. Fort Worth Opera often challenges their ticket holders with new works and the productions are often the audience favorites. This year they will present Daniel Crozier & Peter M. Krask's With Blood, With Ink and Kevin Puts' Silent Night with David T. Little and Royce Vavrek's JFK slated for the following season. Also, the aforementioned John de los Santos will direct Bizet's Pearl Fishers, part of their standard repertory along with Mozart's Cosi fan tutte.

Ryan McKinny backstage and onstage in Flying Dutchman

20.  Hottest Wagnerian – Ryan McKinny: When did Wagner become so sexy? Between Jud Arthur's naked Fafner and Ryan McKinny's smoking hot, leather clad Dutchman at the Glimmerglass Festival, we're beginning to see a trend that we really like. The Glimmerglass production was directed by the Queen Mother of barihunks, Francesca Zambello, and also featured the amazing soprano Melody Moore as Senta. All we can say is "ho-jo-to-ho-ho-jo-to-ho-ho-jo-to-ho."

21.  Best “Breakout” performance – Erik E. Larsen pants busting: Our post about Erik E. Larsen landed us in hot water with Facebook, who removed the post after a complaint from an offended reader (yes, Victorian England still exists!). We try to keep it (relatively) tasteful on Barihunks, but what do you expect us to do when someone tweets this photo with the caption "Hulked out of my pants" and hashtags it #Barihunks?  That's what Erik E. Larson (@unamplified) did on Twitter, so why not share it with our readers? Larsen is finishing his second year of study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and performed in their recent production of Mozart's Don Giovanni. He is also a member of the Madison Opera chorus. We hope to see (ahem) lots more of Erik Larsen (ahem, ahem). However, if he keeps tweeting about his love of "fried cream cheese" he may end up on BariChunks.

Steven Labrie and Peter Brathwaite

22.  Best Barihunk Supermodels – Steven Labrie MAC and Peter Brathwaite “Dockers”: Barihunk Steven LaBrie probably never guessed that he'd have something in common with drag icon RuPaul, but they are now both models for M∙A∙C Cosmetics. In July, the New York City-based company posted a notice that they were looking for a "classically trained male opera singer that has a young, hip, edgy appearance...Theatrical flair encouraged. Acting ability a plus." Labrie was chosen out of a slew of finalists and is now seen in ad campaigns and at promotional appearances for M∙A∙C.

      If that model in the Dockers ad looks familiar, it might be because you've seen him on a London opera stage, on the cover an Amore CD or even in the Barihunks calendar. Peter Brathwaite was chosen as a brand ambassador for the pants company Dockers. He was named one of four "Men of Style" in their new campaign.  The Dockers' "Men of Style" campaign showcases some of the most influential men in the world of style and their stories.

Separated at Birth: Ben Affleck and Wes Mason

23.  Best Doppelganger – Wes Mason/Ben Affleck: When we looked at Wes Mason's new photos by Barihunk's official photographer Michael Yeshion, it struck us that he was channeling a pretty serious Ben Affleck look with the baritone beard and seductive "stare at the camera and look serious" pose. You can visit Mason's new website at www.wesmasonstage.com.

Erik Anstine in the Alps (nice tee shirt!)

24.  Hottest tee shirt model – Erik Anstine in the Alps: Let's face it, we've seen some sexy photos of baritones in their BARIHUNK tee shirts, but there is something about these pictures of Erik Anstine sleeveless up in the Swiss Alps that made us want to strap on our boots and hit the slopes. Anstine is currently on the roster of the Zurich Opera, where he performed Masetto in their new production of Mozart's Don Giovanni with fellow barihunk Peter Mattei in the title role and Wagner in Gounod's Faust alongside fellow barihunks Elliot Madore and Kyle Ketelson. Next season he can also be seen alongside the great mezzo Cecilia Bartoli in a Christof Loy production of Handel's Alcina.  Check out the entire 2013/2014 season at the Opernhaus Zürich website.

Morgan Pearse

25.  Best Barihunk Crack – Morgan Pearse “Imeneo”: What better way to wrap up our year end feature than with a shot of a rear end? Barihunk Morgan Pearse showed a little crack in his performance of the title role of Handel's Imeneo with the London Handel Festival. Pearse is the Royal College of Music’s inaugural Joan Sutherland Scholar studying with Russell Smythe. He was recently awarded top prize in the Singers Section of the Royal Over-Seas League Music Competition.

If you love barihunks, make sure to purchase our 2014 Charity Calendar. Every penny of profit goes to benefit young artists. Buy yours today!

Introducing James Newby via Twitter

We caught some Twitter messages going back and forth between friends a few weeks ago. One friend suggested that the other should be on Barihunks. The other replied that "this accolade could complete me as a human being!"

The latter response came from 20-year-old baritone James Newby, who is currently in his second year of study at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, London. He currently studies under Alison Wells and previously studied with Robert Dean and Omar Ebrahim (who has been on this site in all his glory). We're happy to help him in his quest to become a complete human being.

Newby is due to represent Trinity Laban in the junior Kathleen Ferrier award in October after receiving the second highest mark in the year for his end of year recital.

Previous operatic experience includes Papageno in Mozart's The Magic Flute with Suffolk opera, Escamillo in Bizet's Carmen with Puzzle piece opera, Gugliemo in scenes from Mozart's Cosi fan tutte with G and T opera and covering Apollo in Trinity Laban's production of Offenbach's Orpheus in the Underworld. Oratorio performaces include Bach's "St John Passion" and Haydn's "Nelson Mass" with the Old Royal Naval college chapel choir, Britten's "Rejoice in the Lamb" with the Rodolfus choir and Stainer's "Crucifixion" with the Stamford endowed schools chapel choir.

We have to confess that we were also intrigued that he's been playing rugby since he was fourteen. 

James is also a member of TV star Gareth Malone's new choir, whose innovative new album will be released in November.

Gareth Malone's choir performs their rendition of Guillotine by Death Grips

You can follow James Newby on Twitter @jamesn103.

A revealing introduction of Erik E. Larsen

Erik E. Larsen "hulked out of his pants"

We try to keep it (relatively) tasteful on Barihunks, but what do we do when someone tweets this photo with the caption "Hulked out of my pants" and hashtags it #Barihunks?

That's what Erik E. Larson (@unamplified) recently did on Twitter, so why not share it with our readers. You should see the stuff that gets mailed to us that never sees the light of day!

Larson isn't just some random tweeter on Twitter, he's a serious student of voice at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is just finishing his second year of study and has sung multiple times with the University Opera, including the role of Masetto in University Opera’s recent production of Mozart's Don Giovanni. Earlier this year, he sang Samuel in Gilbert & Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance with the Madison Savoyards.

Larson is also a member of the Madison Opera chorus, where he as sung in Wagner's Der Fliegende Holländer, Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro, Verdi's La Traviata, and Rossini's La Cenerentola.

We hope to see (ahem) lots more of Erik Larson (ahem, ahem). However, if he keeps tweeting about his love of "fried cream cheese" he may end up on BariChunks.

Chat Live with Keith Miller

Barihunks Dmitri Hvorostovsky & Keith Miller at The Met

Barihunk Keith Miller continues to be one of the leading opera singers in utilizing social media and the internet for promoting his career. The barihunk who regularly tweets and posts on Facebook, is now offering a live chat on Ustream.

Miller will be online HERE on Thursday, January 13 at 6:30 EST/3:30 PST.

Podcasters and Barihunks Michael Mayes and Michael Rice

Don't forget that you can follow other barihunks online. Michael Rice runs the informative and entertaining OperaNow! podcast and Michael Mayes has the always hysterical Texapolitan Opera podcast.

Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com

Keith Miller Maximizing Social Media

Kieth Miller's website

Popular barihunk is a prime example of a singer using social media to promote his career. Like Mariusz Kwiecien, whose incredible new website we recently featured, Miller has a new site with schedules, photos, features and multimedia.

One can't help but imagine how different opera would be if Caruso, Callas or Bjoerling had access to social media. It also would have exposed opera singers who never became famous worldwide like Flabiano Labo and Magda Olivero to new audiences. Of course, this is what is happening today, as Keith Miller's 552 Facebook friends come from all over the planet, creating an instant global fan base.

The success of Miller and Kwiecien's website certainly makes one wonder why a singer like Teddy Tahu Rhodes has avoided social media, even on YouTube.

Miller not only can be followed on his website but you can follow him on Twitter where you can only get his thoughts on opera, but his feelings about college football, which he played at the University of Colorado.

Miller is also on Facebook where there are additional photos and some interaction with fans.

Of course our only disappointment with both the Kwiecien and Miller sites is that there is no link to Barihunks.

Barihunks Keith Miller & Dmitri Hvorostovsky

Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com

Twitter's Barihunk: Michael Adair

Michael Adair

I guess one way to get onto this site is to use the profile name Barihunk on Twitter, which is what Michael Adair did. Of course, one would still have to be a baritone and a hunk. We think he qualifies and he joins our long roster of Canadian barihunks.

Adair was born in Canada and studied at the University of Toronto Opera School, the Banff Centre for the Arts and Opera NUOVA and also did three tours with the Festival Ensemble in Stuttgart under the direction of Helmuth Rilling.

In 2006 Michael accepted a two-year contract with the International Opera Studio at the Opernhaus Zürich where he performed roles in Andrea Chenier, Cavalli’s La Didone, The Beggar’s Opera, L’Etoile, Gianni Schicchi, and Don Carlo and worked with conductors Nello Santi, Sir John Elliot Gardiner and Carlo Rizzi.



As a recitalist, Michael has appeared with the Aldeburgh Connection singing Finzi’s To A Poet and Schumann’s Op.40. He has also partnered with Canadian baritone Russell Braun and the Elora Festival Singers to perform a program of folksongs at the 2007 Elora Festival. Michael also gave a performance of Strauss and Wolf lieder at an Opernhaus Zürich Lieder matinee.

Later this season Michael will be making his debut at the Berliner Philharmonie singing Weihnachts Oratorium with the Berliner Oratorien Chor. He will also be revisiting Israel in Egypt with Bachchor Wiesbaden, Messiah with Kantorei Michaels Ottobrunn and a debut of Bach’s B Minor Mass at Carnegie Hall.

Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com

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