BARIHUNKS ®

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Don Giovanni back in Berlin

The amazing production of Mozart's "Don Giovanni" directed by Roland Schwab at the Deutsche Oper Berlin is back for three performances on June 22, 26 & 29. Ildebrando D'Arcangelo is back in the title role, but David Bizic is replacing Alex Esposito, the reigning Leporello in the world. The Masetto is the polish barihunk Krzystof Szumanski, who also appeared naked as an apparition in Macbeth. A reader send us this photo, which is allegedly Szumanski.

Krzystof Szumanski nude?

Here is Ildebrando D'Arcangelo talking about singing Mozart from an RAI 3 radio broadcast:

Here are a few other photos from the Berlin production taken by Marcus Lieberenz.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Is that a Magic Flute in your pocket?

The La Scala cast of Magic Flute; Alex Esposito

We recently featured a post about all of the Mozart on Alex Esposito's schedule. We've posted often about his definitive Leporello, but we've never featured a video of his Papageno. Fortunately, it was recorded by RAI 5 from La Scala during its recent run in April 2011. Esposito's Papagena is Ailish Tynan.

Günther Groissböck

The cast also included barihunk Günther Groissböck as Sarastro. Here he is singing "In diesen heil'gen Hallen." You won't want to miss hearing his beautiful rolling bass. The Austrian bass is currently singing the role at the Vienna State Opera with the Papageno of fellow barihunk Markus Werba.

Subscribe to Barihunks by Email

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

More Barihunks at Boston Early Music Festival

Douglas Williams

An astute reader and attendee of the Boston Early Music Festival pointed out to us that Jesse Blumberg isn't the only barihunk performing at the festival. Douglas Williams, who has also appeared on this site before, is singing Polyphemus in Handel's "Acis and Galatea."

Michael Kelley

Also appearing in the cast is Michael Kelly as Coridon. If you've needed an excuse to experience baroque opera, what more do you need than Jesse Blumberg, Douglas Williams and Michael Kelly? There are performances on June 18, 26 and 27. Click HERE for additional cast and performance information.

Click HERE to watch Michael Kelly perform Schubert's Winterreise.

Subscribe to Barihunks by Email

Jesse Blumberg in North American Premiere at Boston Early Music Festival

Jesse Blumerg & Amanda Forsythe

While we're on the subject of our favorite singers, we should mention that Jesse Blumberg is appearing as Polifierno in the first fully staged performance of Agostino Steffani’s opera, Niobe, Regina di Tebe in North America. The opera recounts a story from Ovid’s Metamorphoses about the Queen of Thebes whose pride earns her family the vengeance of the gods.

Blumberg joins an amazing cast that includes the soprano Amanda Forsythe as Niobe and the brilliant countertenors Philippe Jaroussky as Anfione and Matthew White as Creonte.

Jesse Blumberg rehearsing Polifierno

There are still five performances remaining in Boston and Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Click HERE for additional cast and performance information. If you're within a 100 miles of Boston, you should make sure to catch this performance.

Our favorite picture of Jesse Blumberg

Subscribe to Barihunks by Email

Phillip Sly Talks About His Operatic Journey

Sly as Collatinus (top); bottom photo by Adam Scotti

We've been touting the amazing talent of Phillipe Sly even before he won the Metropolitan Opera Auditions. He was recently interviewed in La Scena Musicale where he talked about his operatic journey from childhood to the Met Auditions. Click HERE to read the interview.

Here he is performing the first seven songs of Schumann's "Dichterliebe."

Contact us at Barihunk@gmail.com. We are always accepting reader submissions for new "talent." Please keep in mind that we don't post everyone who is submitted. If your submission has not appeared, please do not keep submitting them. We greatly appreciate all of the amazing singers who readers have exposed us to and allowed us to share with the world.

Subscribe to Barihunks by Email

Saturday, June 11, 2011

A "Rape of Lucretia" Photo Tribute

Heather Jewson & David Krohn in Aspen

Perhaps only Mozart's "Don Giovanni" has provided more material for Barihunks than Benjamin Britten's "Rape of Lucretia." The opera contains three roles that are often cast with barihunks - Junius, Collatinus and Tarquinius. Because the opera revolves around young soldiers it is usually cast with young, buff singers. Rather than bore readers with a lot of text, here is a photo tribute to one of the sexiest operas in the repertory.

Nathan Gunn in Vienna

Dan Kempson in Pittsburgh

The Rape of Lucretia revolves around a bet made between three Roman officers, Collatinus, Junius, and Prince Tarquinius, while they are at war with Greece. The three men bet on which of their wives will be faithful. As it turns out, only Lucretia, the wife of Collatinus remains true to her man. In a jealous rage, Prince Tarquinius rides back to Rome and rapes Lucretia. Overcome by shame, Lucretia commits suicide.

Robyn Rocklein & Seth Kershinik at Arizona Opera Theater

Benjamin Britten (November 22, 1913 – December 4, 1976) composed The Rape of Lucretia, a two-act English tragic drama based on the play "Le Viol de Lucrèce" by André Obey. The opera was premiered at Glyndebourne on July 12, 1946. The setting is in Rome in 500 BC.


Phillip Addis in Victoria; Colin Clarke at ENO


Grant Doyle at ROH; Kiera Duffy & Philip Cutlip in Toledo Christopher Maltman sings "Within this frail crucible of light," where Tarquinius pauses to collect his courage before doing the dreadful deed. Matt Worth in Berkeley Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com Subscribe to Barihunks by Email Tweet

Friday, June 10, 2011

Introducing Omar Montanari

Omar Montanari (Top Photo by Luca Nicosanti)

-->Italian baritone Omar was born in Riccione, Italy and studied at the Rossini Conservatory in Pesaro. He was the winner of the 59^th Concorso Europeo per Giovani Cantanti Lirici “A. Belli” in Spoleto and made his professional debut as Aeneas in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas in Pesaro in 2000.

He has performed numerous role in Rossini operas including Trombonok and Don Alvaro in Il Viaggio a Reims, Don Bartolo in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Dandini in La Cenerentola and Haly and Taddeo in Italiana in Algeri, Don Pomponio in La Gazzetta and Raimbaud in Le Comte Ory.

He is currently performing in Mercadante's I due Figaro at the Ravenna Festival directed by Emilio Sagi. In September, he returns to Rossini in Fenice where he takes on Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia.

[Duet starts at 2:16]