Zachary Gordin showing off his guns in a Barihunk tee
Zachary Gordin, who is featured in our 2012 Barihunks charity calendar, is taking on Silvio in "Pagliacci" with the revived Sacramento Opera. We've seen a lot of Silvio's in our day, including old historical footage and we've never seen a Silvio this buff before. We can certainly understand why Nedda would want to wrap those big arms around herself. Maybe in this production, conducted by the amazing Michael Morgan, Canio dies from a choke hold by Silvio. Then again, maybe not, this is Sacramento, not Germany.
Performances are this Saturday and Sunday. Visit the Sacramento Opera website for additional performance information or to purchase tickets.
Here is another one of our calendar models, Michael Mayes, singing the duet between Nedda and Silvio. This was recorded last year at the Kentucky Opera. Mayes went out of his way to create a very special photo for the Barihunks calendar, which you won't want to miss. He's our February feature along with fellow singers with web shows, Michael Rice of OperaNow! (who appears in shorts floating in a pool) and Jonathan Estabrooks of the YouTube feature "A Singer's Life" (who shows a little extra skin than one usually sees from a Canadian). Don't forget to subscribe to Mayes' entertaining show, the Texapolitan Opera Roadshow. His guest this week is Maestro Jerome Shannon. If you tune in to the OperaNow! podcast this week, you can double your barihunk fun, as Michael Rice's guest star is Michael Mayes. We guarantee you that there are few things in opera more entertaining than the "Two Michaels."
We had a nice chuckle when we saw the following posted by "Superconductor" on the web. We can't believe that we left Warner Brothers' leading barihunk out of our calendar. There's always next year.
The concert debut of acclaimed baritone Giovanni Jones ended in surprising fashion when the ceiling of the arena collapsed. No one was injured, and Mr. Jones emerged from the rubble to take a bow.
Mr. Jones had become a fixture on the Los Angeles opera scene since singing the role of Ambrogio in a small San Pedro production of Rossini's L'inutile precauzione, with tenor Michele Maltese and bass Carlo Jonzio.
A powerful baritone singer with a half-octave range, Giovanni Jones drew acclaim for his performance as Gunther in the Christoph von Dohnanyi recording of Wagner's Götterdämmerung. The singer is also a leading candidate for inclusion in the forthcoming BariHunks 2012 calendar.
The singer was offering a recital focusing on the repertory of Rossini, including the aria "Largo al factotum." But his attempt to hit the high note at the end of the aria caused the concrete ceiling overhead to crack and shatter.
Conductor Leopold Lapin, who stepped in at the last minute for Hans Haasenpfeffer, could not be reached for comment. The maestro was on his way to an appearance at the carrot festival in Pismo Beach, but had taken a wrong turn at Albuquerque.
Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com
You can buy the actual Barihunks charity calendar by clicking HERE.
Dear Rogue: A Biography of the American Baritone Lawrence Tibbett
Today is the birthday of the legendary Lawrence Tibbett who was born on this day in 1896. He may not be the quintessential barihunk (like our birthday boy Paul La Rosa), but he was a huge star in movies, on the radio, in musical theater and on the operatic stage. He sang over 600 performances at the Metropolitan Opera from 1923-1950 where he was a fan favorite and to this day is considered one of the greatest Verdi baritones to grace that stage.
It's about the singing
A lot of people visit this site to see some skin, although we maintain it's about the singing. There is a famous clip of Lawrence Tibbett from his final movie "Under Your Spell" from 1936 where he appears in his birthday suit singing with the birds, frogs, an airplane and a female visitor. We thought it was appropriate to show the clip on his birthday, which you can see HERE. Before you send us an email, keep in mind that this a 1930s version of male nudity in a movie.
Tibbett sang a variety of roles including Silvio, Falstaff, Valentin, Tonio, the King's Herald in Lohengrin, Scarpia, Simon Boccanegra and the world premiere of The Emperor Jones. He was an equally big star off the operatic stage and was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in The Rogue Song. Here he is singing "Wanting You" with Grace Moore, who also crossed over between opera and movies.
Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com
You can help create the next generation of Lawrence Tibbett's by purchasing your 2012 Barihunks charity calendar. All proceeds go to benefit young artists programs. The calendar features 33 of the hottest singers from six countries. Click HERE to purchase your own calendar or make it the perfect holiday gift.
If you haven't visited La Cieca's "Parterre Box" website, then you haven't experienced the online world of opera in all its glory. La Cieca's site was the first successful non-company website to focus on opera and it's insider news, gossip, titillating photos and campiness has made it the most successful site of its kind in the world. Barihunks was inspired by Parterre in many ways and everyone involved with our site first read about the barihunks phenomenon on Parterre, so we owe her a great deal of gratitude.
We'd also like to thank her for the nice plug of our Barihunks charity calendar with the seductive photo of Randal Turner, which is included in the calendar. If you haven't bookmarked Parterre yet, click HERE and do it now.
If you want to buy the calendar, you can click on the link to the right.
Gabriel Preisser, Liam Bonner, Mike Nyby, Andrew Wilkowske & Ben Wager
The Minnesota Opera is one of the gems in the landscape of American opera houses. It doesn't always get the national notoriety that it deserves, but within music circles it is known for consistently strong vocal performances and their religious commitment to young artists and living composers.
The Minnesota Opera has premiered Oliver Knussen's "Where the Wild Things Are," Libby Larsen's "Frankenstein," Ricky Ian Gordon's "The Grapes of Wrath," and Bernard Herrmann's sole opera "Wuthering Heights." They've also presented the American premieres of Jonathan Dove's Pinocchio, Poul Ruders' "The Handmaid's Tale," Dominick Argento's "Postcard from Morocco," Rossini's "Armida," Laurent Petitgirard's "The Elephant Man," and Reinhard Keiser's "The Fortunes of King Croesus."
The latest premiere from the Minnesota Opera New Works Initiative is Kevin Puts' "Silent Night," which is based on the screenplay for Joyeux Noël by Christian Carion. The opera recounts a miraculous moment of peace during one of the bloodiest wars in human history. On World War I’s western front, weapons are laid down when the Scottish, French and German officers defy their superiors and negotiate a Christmas Eve truce. Enemies become brothers as they come together to share Christmas and bury their dead. Tenor William Burden, who has a place in barihunk history for starring shirtless opposite of Nathan Gunn in the production that gave rise to the term, stars as the soldier whose voice inspired peace among adversaries – if only for a day.
Canadian Mike Nyby plays Scottish soldier William Dale
The opera contains more sexy men than a World Cup soccer championship. There are four barihunks who have appeared on this site before, including Mike Nyby, Gabriel Preisser, Ben Wager and Liam Bonner. The world premiere was on Saturday, November 12 and there are additional performances on November 15, 17, 19 and 20, 2011. Visit the Minnesota Opera website for additional performance and ticket information.
Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com
Don't forget that you can support young artists like those performing at the Minnesota Opera by purchasing our 2012 Barihunks charity calendar. All proceeds go to benefit young artists. The calendar features the hottest singers from six countries. Click HERE to purchase your own calendar or make it the perfect holiday gift.
We're still not over the loss of Aussie Sam Roberts-Smith, who crossed over into the realm of the tenor repertory. So we were thrilled when a reader brought another Aussie barihunk to our attention, Morgan Pearse. Our reader heard him perform in the Australia Singing Competition, which is sponsored by the International Foundation for Arts and Culture.
Pearse sang a rousing rendition of Leporello's "Madamina, il catalogo è questo" from Mozart's "Don Giovanni," which seemed to be an audience favorite. There is already chatter Down Under that he is the heir apparent to New Zealander Teddy Tahu Rhodes, with whom he shares movie star looks, golden locks and unlimited charisma.
Pearse is finishing his Masters at the Royal College of Music, where he is studying on a Joan Sutherland scholarship. After the Australia Singing Competition, Pearse headed back to London where he is covering the role of Splendiano in the Royal College of Music's production of Bizet’s Djamileh and participating in a master class with baritone Gerald Finley.
Pearse will be singing Handel's "Messiah" on December 13 and 18 at the Sydney Town Hall. You can click HERE for tickets and additional information.
Contact us at Barihunks@gmail.com
Don't forget that you can support young artists like Morgan Pearse by purchasing our 2012 Barihunks charity calendar. All proceeds go to benefit young artists. The calendar features the hottest singers from six countries. Click HERE to purchase your own calendar or make it the perfect holiday gift.
Fans of barihunks and Bach in Montréal were in luck this week when the internationally acclaimed Austrian barihunk Markus Werba teamed up with Canadian sensation and Met Auditions winner Philippe Sly for a riveting rendition of Bach's "St. John's passion." Our source in Montréal told us that Sly's voice filled the space with "a full, lush sound that radiated to the rafters." To top things off, Canadian barihunk Tyler Duncan was also in the cast.
We've followed Sly's career since he started creating a sensation during the Metropolitan Opera's National Council Auditions Competition. Opera aficionados are already hailing him as the next great baritone sensation. We've had the pleasure of hearing him in recital and performance and the early praise is well-deserved. He will be featured in a solo recital on June 1, 2012 at the Shenkman Arts Cenre in Ottawa. We're telling you about it now, because tickets are bound to sell fast. You can visit the Shenkman website for tickets and concert information.
We've posted Sly's rendition of Schubert's "Der Erlkönig" before, but we think it's worth posting again, as it rivals the greatest versions that have ever been performed (and he's in his early 20's!):
Markus Werba heads to the Théâtre des Champs Elysées in Paris this December to sing Papageno in Mozart's "Die Zauberflöte" in a cast that features the brilliant soprano Sandrine Piau as Pamina. Click HERE for tickets or additional performance information.
Here is Werba as Papageno from a 2003 production at the Teatro Lirico di Cagliari with a cast that also featured Piau:
Tyler Duncan can next be heard in an eclectic program of music inspired by water with The Jefferey Concerts in London, Ontario. Joined by soprano Martha Guth and Duncan's wife, accompanist Erika Switzer, the trio will perform works by Schubert, Fauré, Joni Mitchell and Stan Rogers. Visit their website for additional information.
Tyler Duncan
Duncan then heads off to Boston to join the Handel & Haydn Society for their annual dose of the Messiah.
Contact us at barihunks@gmail.com
If you're thinking about a holiday gift, don't forget to purchase our 2012 Barihunks charity calendar. All proceeds are going to benefit young artists, so buy your calendar now and support our future generation of singers.
