Mediterranean Opera Studio strives to make the learning experience for singers a highly transformational one by bringing in the finest singer/voice teachers, coaches, and guest artists.
We are pleased to announce our 2014 Summer Guest Artists
Jennifer Larmore
Jennifer Larmore is an outstanding American mezzo-soprano, well known for her versatility, natural beauty and stage craft. This artist has a wide ranging repertoire, having begun with the coloratura roles of the Baroque and bel canto then adding music from the Romantic and Contemporary periods.
She began her career at Opera de Nice in 1986 with Mozart’s La Clemenza di Titoand went on to sing at virtually every major opera house in the world, including the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Paris Opera, Berlin Deutsche Oper, and London Covent Garden.
Jennifer Larmore has recorded widely for the Teldec, RCA, Harmonia Mundi, Deutsche Grammophon, Arabesque, Opera Rara, Bayer, Naive, Chandos, VAI and Cedille labels in over one hundred CDs to date.
With her frequent collaborator Antoine Palloc, she has made many International recital tours, including appearances in Amsterdam, Paris, Madrid, Hong Kong, Seoul, Tokyo, Vietnam, Vienna, London, San Juan, Prague, Melbourne, Brussels, Berlin, Rio de Janeiro, Lisbon, Sao Paolo, Athens and Copenhagen, as well as all the major American venues.
Symphonic repertoire plays a large role in this mezzo’s career with the works of Mahler, Schoenberg, Mozart, de Falla, Debussy, Berlioz and Barber featuring prominently. Miss Larmore has enjoyed great collaborations with world orchestras under the direction of Muti, Lopez-Cobos, Bernstein, Runnicles, Sinopoli, Masur, von Dochnanyi, Jacobs, Mackarras, Spinosi, Abbado, Barenboim, Bonynge, Maazel , Osawa and Hengelbrock.
Jennifer’s repertoire has expanded recently to include new roles such as the “Countess Geschwitz” in Berg’s Lulu which she debuted to great success at Covent Garden in the Christof Loy production with Tony Pappano, then again in Madrid and Paris Opera Bastille; “Kostelnička Buryjovka” in Janacek’s Jenufa with Donald Runnicles at Berlin Deutsche Oper; “Lady Macbeth” in Verdi’s opera Macbeth, a role she debuted in a striking new production of Christoph Loy at the Grand Théâtre de Genève and subsequently in Bologna for the opening of the season in a new Robert Wilson production; “Eboli” in the French version of Don Carlos at the Caramoor Music Festival in New York with Will Crutchfield and “Jocasta” in Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex at the Bard Festival. She will perform the title role of “Medea” in Cherubini’s opera Medea at the Grand Théâtre de Genève and the title role of Hélène in La Belle Hélène at Hamburg Opera.
Miss Larmore, in collaboration with the double bass player Davide Vittone has created an ensemble called Jennifer Larmore and OpusFive. The three programs they offer are entertaining and varied with Songs and Arias, Cabaret/Operetta and Movies and Broadway which feature string quintet and voice. They have given concerts in Seville, Pamploma, Valencia, Las Palmas, Venice, Amiens, Aix en Provence, Dublin and Paris.
In 2002, “Madame” Larmore was awarded the Chevalier des arts et des lettres from the French government in recognition of her contributions to the world of music.
In addition to her many activities, travels, performances and causes, author Jennifer Larmore is working on books that will bring a wider public to the love of opera!
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Simone Alaimo
A major proponent of Rossini and bel canto roles, bass-baritone Simone Alaimo made his US debut in 1987 in Chicago as Mustafa in L’italiana in Algeri. The following season he made his San Francisco debut in the title role of Maometto II and his debut with the Metropolitan Opera was in the 1992-1993 season as Assur in Rossini’s Semiramide. Subsequently he has appeared many times with these and the other major houses in the world. He was seen as Dulcamara in L’elisir d’amore at the Metropolitan Opera with Rolando Villazón and Angela Gheorghiu and at the Royal Opera House – Covent Garden. In 2009 he was seen as Il conte Rodolfo in La sonnambula in Cagliari, Don Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia in Liège, and in Genova as Selim in Il turco in Italia.
Mr. Alaimo’s many performances include: La Cenerentola, Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Le nozze di Figaro (Figaro) at the Metropolitan Opera; Semiramide in Dallas, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Mose in Egitto, La Cenerentola, Le nozze di Figaro at the Royal Opera House in London, as well as many appearances in Vienna, Berlin, Munich, Amsterdam, Geneva, Paris, Toulouse, Lisbon, Seville, Bilbao and Peralada, and many performances in his native Italy, including Rome, Venice, Naples, Catania, Bergamo, Pesaro, Genova, and Turin. Additional works in his repertoire include also the title roles in Don Pasquale, Attila, and Falstaff; Escamillio in Carmen; Alfio in Cavalleria rusticana; and Polidoro in Zelmira. His concert repertoire includes Rossini’s Stabat Mater and La petite messe solonelle; and the Verdi Requiem. He has appeared with many of the world’s most important conductors – James Levine, Neville Marriner, Giuseppe Sinopoli, and Daniele Gatti to name a few.
He has recorded extensively and can be heard on Decca’s L’elisir d’amore (with Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna); Phillips’ La petite messe solonelle, Il turco in Italia and Don Giovanni; Nuova Era’s L’italiana in Algeri, and Frequenz’s Crispino e la Comare and L’Ebreo.
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Marcello Giordani
Marcello Giordani has been hailed by the international press as one of the most important tenors of his generation. He has appeared in all of the world’s major opera houses and has sung with many of today’s most renowned conductors. His exceptional versatility and vocal range have allowed him to encompass a vast repertory, from the Bel Canto operas of Rossini, Donizetti and Bellini and the lyricism of the French operatic repertoire, to the more dramatic roles of Verdi, Puccini and Berlioz and, most recently, the popular Verismo operas of Mascagni and Leoncavallo: Cavalleria Rusticana e I Pagliacci.
On the calendar for the 2013-2014 season are Carmen at the Semperoper Dresden, Aida at the Wiener Staatsoper, Turandot at the Teatro dell’Opera of Rome, Tosca at the Metropolitan Opera and at the Deutsche Oper Berlin.
Among his most recent operatic appearances during the 2012-13 opera season were Calaf in Puccini’s Turandot and Paolo il Bello in a revival of Zandonai’s Francesca da Rimini at the Metropolitan Opera. The Spring saw him as Cavaradossi in Puccini’s Tosca at the Wiener Staatsoper, and in Gounod’s Faust at the Staatsoper Hamburg. Also in the Spring, Giordani appeared in concert at the Dallas Opera and at the Vero Beach Opera together with some of the winners of the Marcello Giordani Foundation International Vocal Competition. The Summer season saw him as Turiddu in Cavalleria Rusticana at the Mikhailovsky Classical Ballet and Opera Theatre in St. Petersburg, and in a reprise of Turandot with the Puccini Festival of Torre del Lago.
Highlights of previous seasons include Carmen at the Teatro Massimo of Palermo and at the Royal Opera House Muscat in the Sultanate of Oman, Ernani at the Metropolitan, Cavalleria Rusticana at the Opera National de Paris, and his debut in Giancarlo del Monaco’s production of Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West broadcast live as part of the Metropolitan “Live in HD” series. During the 2010-11 season he made his debut in three different roles: Vasco da Gama in Meyerbeer’s L’Africaine with Opera Orchestra of New York; Turiddu in Cavalleria Rusticana and Canio in I Pagliacci, in a double bill at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona. During the 2009-10 opera season Giordani appeared in a revival of the 1995 Giancarlo del Monaco’s production of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra at the Metropolitan Opera, where he performed the tenor role of Gabriele Adorno alongside Placido Domingo in the title role. The Summer of 2010 also saw his debut as Pollione in Bellini’s Norma at the Salzburg Festival.
During the Met’s 2008-09 opera season, Giordani sang the title role in a new production of Berlioz’ La Damnation de Faust. On November 22nd, after singing in the matinee performance of La Damnation de Faust, he appeared as Pinkerton in the evening performance of Madama Butterfly, adding his name to a handful of singers who have sung two leading roles on the same day at the Met. In April 2008, Giordani appeared before Pope Benedict XVI to sing “Panis Angelicus” by César Franck during the Papal Mass at Yankee Stadium in New York. “A day I will never forget,” he declared.
In the Fall of 2006, Giordani opened the new season at the Metropolitan Opera as Pinkerton in the company’s new production of Madama Butterfly by the late movie director Anthony Minghella. He opened the Met season again in 2007 as Edgardo in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor. The following year saw his debuts in the title role of Verdi’s Ernani at the Metropolitan, as Enée in Berlioz’ Les Troyens with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under the direction of James Levine; and in Puccini’s Edgar with Opera Orchestra of New York.
Of his performance as Maurizio in Adriana Lecouvreur with OONY in 2002 the New York Times wrote: “Marcello Giordani sang like a god”. Also to be noted are his performances in the title roles of the Metropolitan Opera’s premiere productions of Bellini’s Il Pirata (2002) and of Berlioz’ Benvenuto Cellini (2003); his debut in 2004 in the role of Enzo in La Gioconda with OONY, where his interpretation of the aria “Cielo e mar” received a four-minute ovation and was declared “sensational” by the New York Times; and his performance as Arnold in OONY’s concert performance of Guillaume Tell, where the audience stopped the show following his execution of the cabaletta “Amis, amis secondez ma vengeance”.
Earlier milestones of his career include his debuts as Gabriele Adorno in Simon Boccanegra at the Royal Opera of London under the direction of Sir Georg Solti (1997); in La Damnation de Faust (1999) with the Munich Philharmonic under the direction of Maestro Levine; and in Lucrezia Borgia with OONY at Carnegie Hall (2000).
Born in Augusta, Sicily, in 1963, Marcello Giordani began his voice studies in 1983 in Catania, and then in Milan. In 1986, he won the singing competition of Spoleto, and that same year he made his professional debut as the Duke in Rigoletto at the Festival of Spoleto in Italy. His debut in the United States was in the role of Nadir in Les Pêcheurs de Perles at the Portland Opera during the 1988-89 season. In 1988 he made his debut at Teatro alla Scala as Rodolfo in La Bohème, and at the Metropolitan Opera as Nemorino in L’Elisir d’Amore in 1993.
Marcello Giordani’s discography includes the first studio recording of Verdi’s Jérusalem and 3 solo recordings: Tenor Arias (Naxos), featuring arias by various Italian composers; Sicilia Bella (VAI) a collection of songs of authors from his native Sicily; and Ti voglio tanto bene, a CD of Neapolitan and Italian songs dedicated to the great Italian tenors of the past. He is also featured on Many Voices, a compilation of songs by composer Steven Mercurio.
On DVD, Giordani can be seen in Franco Zeffirelli’s production of Madama Butterfly from the Arena di Verona (2004); La Bohème from the Opernhaus Zürich (2005); La Gioconda, from the Teatro Bellini of Catania (2006); La Forza del Destino by the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (2007), and in five Metropolitan Opera productions: Manon Lescaut (2008), Madama Butterfly (2009), Turandot (2009), Simon Boccanegra (2010), and La Fanciulla del West (2011). He was also featured in two additional Met Opera productions broadcast live as part of the Met’s “live in HD” series: Verdi’s Ernani and Zandonai’s Francesca da Rimini.