Brandon Jovanovich

Last updated

Brandon Jovanovich (born 5 October 1970) is an American operatic tenor whose repertoire encompasses Wagner, Puccini, Strauss, Britten, and from early Baroque to world premiere operas. He is most known for his passionate portrayals of Slavic, French and German operas. His signature roles include Don José in Bizet's Carmen , B. F. Pinkerton in Puccini's Madama Butterfly , Cavaradossi in Puccini's Tosca , and the title role in Wagner's Lohengrin . [1]

Contents

The 2007 Richard Tucker Award winner keeps a demanding schedule that sees him performing in both concerts and operas through the world.

Early life and education

Brandon Jovanovich is a native of Billings, Montana. He began singing in church choir at a young age. [2]

Jovanovich excelled in sports and was awarded a football scholarship to the University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota. [3] After one year in North Dakota he applied for admission at Northern Arizona University and was accepted into the music department with a scholarship. Initially, it was not his intention to become a singer but vocal performance was a requirement of the music program. He was thought to be a bass-baritone at first and sang in the chorus in Carousel , then he was assigned as understudy for the role of Sarastro in The Magic Flute (in English). When the principal was unable to perform, he had to take over. [2] He failed to meet some of the academic requirements for his music degree and so he switched to the theatre department in his final years, where he performed in roles from Neil Simon, Shakespeare and Sondheim. [1]

Jovanovich moved to New York City in the mid-1990s, where he dabbled in modeling, acting, musical theater, operetta and eventually opera. Having apprenticed with the Santa Fe Opera in 1996 and 1997, he asked to sing the role of Giovanni in Daniel Catán's opera La hija de Rappaccini . He was awarded a scholarship and was enrolled at the Manhattan School of Music until 1998. Concurrently he was singing with the New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players (NYGASP). [1] Between 1995 and 1999, he sang in seven operettas with that company both in New York and on tour, [4] but it was his performance of Luiz in The Gondoliers that brought his first mention in the New York Times . [5]

Career

Brandon Jovanovich started singing professionally while at the Manhattan School of Music. From New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players to New York City Opera's outreach program, he slowly cultivated a working relationship with companies in the New York area.

His first major operatic role was in the summer of 1999 with Smetana's The Two Widows at the Chautauqua Opera. Abroad, his first foray into Europe was as Don José in l'Opera de Bordeaux's production of Carmen in 2000.

He has since gone on to perform major roles through both continents at leading opera houses. Some of the highlights include the title role in The Tales of Hoffmann at La Scala; Don José at the Metropolitan Opera, Bayrische Staatsoper, Gran Teatro di Liceu, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Arena di Verona, Zurich Opera, Washington National Opera, de Vlaamse Opera, National Center for the Performing Arts (Beijing) and Chicago Lyric Opera; B. F. Pinkerton at the New York City Opera, San Francisco Opera, LA Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Staatstheater Stuttgart, Théâtre du Capitole de Toulouse and the Dallas Opera; Cavaradossi with de Vlaamse Oper, Oper Köln, Canadian Opera Company, Seattle Opera, Bregenz Festival and Opera de Bordeaux; the title role in Wagner's Lohengrin with the San Francisco Opera; Siegmund in Die Walküre with the San Francisco Opera and Baltimore Symphony; Bacchus in Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos with the Lyric Opera of Chicago and Boston Lyric Opera; the title role in Verdi's Don Carlos with the Houston Grand Opera; Turiddu in Cavalleria rusticana at the Houston Grand Opera, Dallas Opera, Angers-Nantes Opéra, Palm Beach Opera and New York City Opera; Luigi in Puccini's Il tabarro with the San Francisco Opera and Angers-Nantes Opéra; Boris in Janáček's Káťa Kabanová at the Lyric Opera of Chicago; Steva in Janáček's Jenufa at the Bayrische Staatsoper and Angers-Nantes Opéra; the title role in Britten's Peter Grimes with Teatro di San Carlo in Napoli; Pollione in Bellini's Norma at Teatro Verdi (Trieste) and Angers-Nantes Opéra; the Earl of Essex in Britten's Gloriana at the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis; Des Grieux in Puccini's Manon Lescaut at La Monnaie (Brussels); and Sergei in Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk at Zurich Opera and Austin Lyric Opera.

More contemporary works include the American premiere of Jonathan Dove's Flight as Bill at the Boston Lyric Opera and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis; Hans Buchner in the world premiere of Marco Tutino's Senso at Teatro Massimo (Palermo); the world premiere of David Carlson's Anna Karenina as Constantin Levin with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and Florida Grand Opera; as Boconnion in the American premiere of Richard Rodney Bennett's The Mines of Sulphur with Glimmerglass Opera; Lord Geoffrey in the American premiere of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Lowell Liebermann at the Florentine Opera (Milwaukee); and the San Francisco Opera premiere of Carlisle Floyd's Susannah in 2014.

Related Research Articles

John Mark Ainsley is an English lyric tenor. Known for his supple voice, Ainsley is particularly admired for his interpretations of baroque music and the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In the course of his career, he has gravitated towards 20th-century music, singing in operas by Henze, Janáček, and Britten.

<i>La fanciulla del West</i> Opera by Giacomo Puccini

La fanciulla del West is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Guelfo Civinini and Carlo Zangarini, based on the 1905 play The Girl of the Golden West by the American author David Belasco. Fanciulla followed Madama Butterfly, which was also based on a Belasco play. The opera has fewer of the show-stopping highlights that characterize Puccini's other works, but is admired for its impressive orchestration and for a score that is more melodically integrated than is typical of his previous work. Fanciulla displays influences from composers Claude Debussy and Richard Strauss, without being in any way imitative. Similarities between the libretto and the work of Richard Wagner have also been found though some attribute this more to the original plot of the play, and have asserted that the opera remains quintessentially Italian.

Andrea Gruber is an American dramatic soprano particularly admired for her interpretations of the works of Puccini, Verdi, and Wagner.

Sharon Sweet is an American dramatic soprano. Sharon Sweet has appeared in leading roles in several major venues in Europe and the United States and has made notable contributions to several recordings, in particular Lohengrin, Der Freischütz, Don Giovanni, and Il Trovatore. In 1999, she accepted a full-time teaching position at Westminster Choir College of Rider University. In a column in Opera News, Sweet stated that she made the move out of frustration with the current operatic scene which emphasized physical appearance over voice. She cited her struggles with Hashimoto's syndrome, a thyroid condition.

Éva Marton is a Hungarian dramatic soprano, particularly known for her operatic portrayals of Puccini's Turandot and Tosca, and Wagnerian roles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emilio De Marchi (tenor)</span> Italian opera singer (1861–1917)

Emilio De Marchi was an Italian operatic tenor. He had a significant career during the late 19th and early 20th century, appearing at major theatres on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1900, he entered the annals of musical history as the creator of the role of Cavaradossi in Giacomo Puccini's Tosca. Today, however, he has largely been forgotten because, unlike many of his contemporaries, he did not leave a legacy of commercial gramophone or phonograph recordings.

Vladimir Vasilyevich Galouzine is a Russian tenor. He has performed in such Russian operas as The Queen of Spades, Boris Godunov and Khovanshchina and has performed the lead tenor roles in Italian operas including Madama Butterfly, Otello, Tosca, Aida, and Manon Lescaut.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Moulson</span> American opera singer

Robert Moulson was an American classical tenor who had an active international career in operas and concerts from the late 1950s through the 1980s. He became particularly associated with the role of Lenny Small in Carlisle Floyd's Of Mice and Men; a role which he recorded and portrayed in its original production at the Seattle Opera in 1970.

Maurice Stern is an American operatic tenor and sculptor. He graduated from the Eastman School of Music. He made his debut at the New York City Opera as The Emperor Altuom in Giacomo Puccini's Turandot, and received a laudatory solo review by Eric Salzman of The New York Times for that small role.

Norman Mittelmann was a Canadian operatic baritone who had an active international opera career from the 1950s through the 1990s. A winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Mittelmann performed periodically at the Met from 1961 through 1984. Primarily active with opera houses in Europe, he was a resident artist at the Grillo-Theater in Essen, Germany (1959–1961), the Deutsche Oper am Rhein (1960–1964), and the Zürich Opera (1964–1982) in addition to appearing frequently with other opera houses internationally as a guest artist. His voice is preserved on several live complete opera recordings from the 1960s and 1970s that have been released on disc; including performances with Luciano Pavarotti, Renata Scotto, Shirley Verrett, Plácido Domingo, Jon Vickers, Birgit Nilsson, and Richard Tucker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Valenti</span> American opera singer

James Valenti is an American operatic tenor with an active international career specializing in leading roles in the Italian and French repertoire. Born and raised in New Jersey, in the United States, he attended St. Helena School and North Hunterdon High School before becoming a graduate of West Virginia University and the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Valenti also holds a Master of Voice Pedagogy degree from Westminster Choir College of Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Valenti made his professional debut in 2003 as Rodolfo in La bohème at the Rome Opera, and was the 2010 winner of the Richard Tucker Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tobias Hoheisel</span> German-born stage designer and director (born 1956)

Tobias Hoheisel is a German-born stage designer and director.

Yonghoon Lee is a South Korean operatic tenor. He has performed at many of the most prestigious theaters in the world, including the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Metropolitan Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Vienna State Opera, Rome Opera, Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, Bavarian State Opera in Munich, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Semperoper Dresden, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Opera Australia, amongst others.

Brian Jagde is an American operatic tenor. He has performed roles at leading opera houses throughout the world, including the San Francisco Opera, the Metropolitan Opera, the Royal Opera House, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Wiener Staatsoper, Teatro Massimo, and the Teatro di San Carlo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Douglas Ahlstedt</span> American operatic tenor (1945–2023)

Douglas Ahlstedt was an American operatic tenor who had an international performance career with major opera houses from the 1970s through the 1990s. He was a member of the Metropolitan Opera and of the Deutsche Oper am Rhein, performing leading roles of the lyric tenore repertoire, and also many supporting roles. He was professor of voice at Carnegie Mellon University from 1998 until 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gaston Rivero</span> Uruguayan-US American operatic tenor

Gaston Rivero is an Uruguayan-US American operatic tenor.

Heather Engebretson is a Chinese-American operatic soprano who made a career mostly in Europe. Based at German opera ensembles for several years, she has worked freelance from 2017, and widened her repertoire from coloratura roles to leading characters such as Puccini's Madama Butterfly. She has been praised for her convincing acting as well as the expressiveness of her lyric voice, with performances including the Royal Opera House in London, the Bolshoi Theatre and Oper Frankfurt.

Ruth Hesse is a German dramatic mezzo-soprano. She was a member of the Deutsche Oper Berlin from 1962 to 1995, and appeared internationally, including the Bayreuth Festival and the Salzburg Festival. She appeared regularly at the Vienna State Opera from 1965 to 1988, and was appointed an Austrian Kammersängerin in 1982. In Berlin, she took part in the world premiere of Henze's Der junge Lord.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fabio Sartori</span> Italian opera singer

Fabio Sartori is an Italian operatic tenor. He is particularly known for his interpretations of Italian roles by Giuseppe Verdi, Giacomo Puccini and of the Verismo.

Frank Philipp Schlößmann is a German scenic designer focused on operas who has worked at major opera houses and festivals internationally. He staged Janáček's Jenůfa at the Metropolitan Opera, Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen at both the Bayreuth Festival and Der Ring in Minden, and the world premiere of Heinz Holliger's Lunea at the Opernhaus Zürich.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Finding His Voice, the Slow, Steady Way" (October 29, 2010) The New York Times
  2. 1 2 "Rising Stars: An Interview with Brandon Jovanovich" (July 31st, 2010) Opera Warhorses
  3. ↑ "Brandon Jovanovich Interview" (June 10, 2011) The Opera Tatler
  4. ↑ Brandon Jovanovich's personal website
  5. ↑ Tommasini, Anthony (December 30, 1996). "'Gondoliers,' When Sullivan Won". New York Times. the duke's strapping attendant, winningly played by the bright-voiced tenor Brandon Jovanovich, whose stiff demeanor was a refreshing contrast to some of the mugging going on around him
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.