Sidney Outlaw's "Night on the "A-List" with Toni Braxton

Toni Braxton and Sidney Outlaw

We make no secret about our love for Sidney Outlaw. He's not only an amazing singer, but one of the smartest and most interesting people in the business. When we saw him on Facebook posting pictures of himself serenading R&B icon Toni Braxton, we asked him to tell us the story. Here it is in his own words:

"Toni Braxton is one of the greatest contemporary R&B singers of our time. When I was a child, she was one of the singers I looked to for inspiration. So, when I learned she was to appear to do a signing for her memoir at the Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles, I knew I had to be there.

I arrived early because I knew there would be a crowd gathered to see the iconic Ms. Braxton. I was right - not only were scores of her fans present, also at the store were several media outlets and the camera crew for her hit reality show, Braxton Family Values. I waited patiently in line for my turn to greet her. I watched as several fans attempted to impress her by singing their renditions of her songs.

Toni Braxton and Sidney Outlaw

When it was my turn to greet her, I told her about our mutual connection with the Lupus Foundation and of how she inspired me to become a singer. When she asked what I did, I informed her I was an opera singer and her eyes lit up. She asked me to sing for her. And she would not hear me sing any of her music. She wanted to hear opera! I sang the first verse of Mozart's "Deh vieni alla finestra" and she told me to keep going so I sang Stepfano Donaudy's "O del mio amato ben". Before I knew it, everyone in the bookstore was fixated on my voice - shoppers, fans, media, the camera crew, and, of course, Ms. Braxton.

She seemed to really enjoy my gift, and it was an honor to share it with her."

Reader Submission: Jens Søndergaard

Jens Søndergaard

Our latest "Reader Submission" is Danish barihunk Jens Søndergaard, who a reader informed us will sing Aslak in the world premiere of composer Magnar Åm's Is-slottet (The Ice Castle). The opera, which is based on author Tarjei Vesaas' award-winning novel of the same name, opens on September 16 at Den Ny Opera.

The legendary Norwegian story tells the tale of two friends who despite having spent only one evening together, finds the life of one of them shattered when the other inexplicably disappears.

In 2003, Søndergaard graduated from the Royal Opera Academy in Copenhagen, and debuted in 2005 from the Royal Danish Academy of Music. From 2004-2007 he was a member of the ensemble at Das Deutsche Nationaltheater Weimar. His operatic repertoire has ranged from the baroque to contemporary Danish music.

In addition to Is-slottet, Søndergaard's current season includes his debut as Scarpia in Puccini's Tosca at the Aalborg Opera Festivaland Guglielmo in Mozart's Così fan tutte at Jyske Opera opening February 2015.

Photos from Zomeropera's sexy Don Giovanni

Gianluca Margheri as Don Giovanni

We recently posted about the upcoming production at the Zomeropera in Belgium where barihunks Borja Quiza and Gianluca Margheri are alternating the title role in Mozart's Don Giovanni. We've just gotten pictures of both casts and lovers of a sexy Don won't be disappointed.

The worst thing about this production would be deciding which cast to see. Fans of Margheri can catch him on May 27, 29, 31 and June 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 15, 17, 19 and 21. Fans of Quiza can see him on May 25, 28, 30 and June 1, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 18 and 20. Tickets are available online.
 

Borja Quiza as Don Giovanni

The Zomeropera, which is in its 17th season, was created to bring professional orchestra musicians together with students to perform work for a broader audience. The professionals occupy the concert master’s chair and the lead player positions for viola, cello, double bass, wood instruments and brass instruments. These masters coach the different instrumental groups and offer their assistance in recruiting talented students.

Thomas Rainer Schütz

On June 23 and 24, there will also be a gala concert featuring some of Europe's top opera studio opera artists. Included in the concert will be baritones Thomas Rainer Schütz and Owain Browne, tenors Denzil Delaere and João Terleira, sopranos Sarah Mc Court, Julia Rodriguez and Siân Winstanley, as well as mezzo-soprano Helene Bracke.

Sebastian Geyer in rare version of Orpheus myth

Sebastian Geyer in The Elixir of Love

German barihunk Sebastian Geyer, who we first introduced to readers back in 2010, is starring in Telemann’s rarely performed opera "Orpheus oder Die Wunderbare Bestängigkeit Der Liebe" (Orpheus or The Wonderful Constancy of Love). The production opened last night at the Oper Frankfurt and runs through June 8th. Tickets and additional information are available online. 

The opera tells of the destructive power of love from Eurydice's point of view. The myth of Orpheus is one of the best loved stories in literary and operatic history, at its center the power of music and love between Orpheus and Eurydice. In Telemann's version,  Orasia the Queen of Trace, who is in love with Orpheus plays a larger role than in versions by other composers. There also is no happy ending, as the composer/librettist ban all three main characters to the underworld.

Telemann’s Orpheus has often been dismissed as a pastiche because it included some well known passages from Handel and Lully operas. But the opera was a brave experiment that broke musical and dramaturgical boundaries. Telemann combined his own, strongly protestant, cantata forms with the sensuality of Italian opera and the courtly glamor of France. 

Sebastian Geyer in Orpheus at the Frankfurt Oper

Sebastian Geyer has become a leading baritone at the Oper Frankfurt, where he has sung Aeneas in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas, Conte Almaviva in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro, Guglielmo in Mozart's Così fan tutte, Papageno in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, Dr. Falke in Strauß' Die Fledermaus and the title role in Handel's Giulio Cesare. He also has appeared on the company's recording of Richard Wagner's Die Feen.

On September 5th, he'll switch to Puccini as he sings Schaunard with the company in La bohème. He then travels to Wuppertal to sing the title role in Mozart's Don Giovanni in a cast that includes fellow barihunk Damien Pass as Masetto. 

Duncan Rock to make U.S. stage debut with Boston Lyric Opera

The highly-anticipated U.S. stage debut of British Barihunk sensation Duncan Rock will occur not far from another rock, Plymouth Rock. The Boston Lyric Opera has snagged the charismatic fan favorite to portray the title role in Mozart's Don Giovanni next season.

Fans will have to wait a year, as the opera runs from May 1-10, 2015, but we assure you it will be worth the wait. To order a tickets, call 617-542-6772 or email boxoffice@blo.org. The remainder of their upcoming season includes Verdi’s La Traviata, Frank Martin’s The Love Potion and Janáček’s Kátya Kabanová.

At rehearsals of La bohème at English National Opera

We first discovered Duncan Rock when he was in Britten's Billy Budd at Glyndebourne and then as Moralès in a sexy production of Bizet's Carmen directed by Calixto Bieto at the English National Opera. In his young career, Rock has developed a reputation as both a gifted singer and riveting stage presence. His gender bending performance in Don Giovanni: The Opera at London's famous nightclub Heaven was a sensation. He followed that with an portrayal as an often shirtless Tarquinius in Benjmain Britten's The Rape of Lucretia at Glyndebourne, where Irish actress and theatre and opera director Fiona Shaw pushed him to new dramatic limits. His performance prompted Tim Ashley, of the Guardian to comment, "Rock undercuts Tarquinius's raffish allure with unnerving intimations of psychotic violence."
 
Duncan Rock recently finished a successful run as Marcello in Puccini's La bohème with the English National Opera in a production that was updated to 1950s Paris. European fans can catch him as the waiter in Benjamin Britten's Death in Venice at the Teatro Real in Madrid from December 4-23. The cast also includes the amazing countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo as the voice of Apollo. Tickets are available online.

Reader Submission: Takaoki Onishi

Takaoki Onishi

Our latest Reader Submission is Japanese baritone Takaoki Onishi. He has won the Top Prize in the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition, and the First Prize in both the Opera Index, Inc. Vocal Competition and the Licia Albanese - Puccini International Vocal Competition. He also received a prize in the 2013 Loren L. Zachary Competition, as well as two Grants from the Giulio Gari Foundation.

He made his Lincoln Center debut in the Juilliard Vocal Arts Honors Recital at Alice Tully Hall. He has been awarded a fellowship at the Aspen Music Festival and he received the Makiko Narumi Prize for Outstanding Singer by the Juilliard School.

In 2013, Onishi created the leading male role in the world premiere of Marty Regan’s The Memory Stone, which was presented by the Houston Grand Opera’s East/West program. This spring in New York, he sang in two concerts in the Schubert & Company series, as well as appearing as baritone soloist in Franz Schubert's Mass No. 2 in G major, D.167 at Rockefeller University and in Brahms Requiem with West Village Chorale in New York..

In February, he performed the title role in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin with Juilliard Opera and in March he performed Jesus in Bach's St. Matthew's Passion. He will also return to Japan to sing in several concerts of Beethoven's 9th Symphony, as well as a solo recital in Tokyo. On June 7th,  he sings at The Opera Ball at the Japanese Embassy in Washington, D.C.

Reader submissions are always welcome at Barihunks@gmail.com

Baritone turned tenor Sam Roberts-Smith, returns as a baritone

 

Sam Roberts-Smith

We were devastated when Aussie barihunk Sam Roberts-Smith announced in 2011 that he was switching to tenor. We recently learned that he's now making the switch back to baritone and will compete in his lower fach at the Paris Opera Awards. 

The competition starts with 50 singers and ends with prizes for three male and three female singers. Ten singers will perform in a gala finale on November 19th. Each singer can place two video clips on their profile and the public can vote for their favorite singers. 

Make sure to check out the Paris Awards website and cast your vote. The site is in French, but many pages are translatable to other languages by clicking on the flags on the top right of the page. 

WE VOTED!!!

Sam Roberts-Smith graduated with a Bachelor of Music and Graduate Diploma in Opera from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts in 2008. After completing his studies he relocated to Sydney and joined Australia’s national company, Opera Australia.

 

He is the recipient of numerous prizes and awards including the Joan Sutherland Society of Sydney Scholarship, the Rosina Raisbeck Award and winner of the prestigious 2009 Australian Singing Competition. As winner of the ASC, Sam was asked to perform at both Dame Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonynge’s 80th Birthday Gala’s. 

 

In 2010, after performing the role of Morales in Francesca Zambello’s production of Bizet's Carmen and Yamadori in Puccini's Madama Butterfly, he was invited to join Opera Australia’s Young Artist Program.

You can follow the Paris Opera Awards on Facebook.