James Valenti
Encyclopedia
James Valenti is an American operatic tenor
. Born in the town of Summit, New Jersey
and raised in Clinton
, he is a graduate of the Academy of Vocal Arts
in Philadelphia. He made his Metropolitan Opera
debut in March 2010 as Alfredo in Verdi's La traviata
in a cast that included Angela Gheorghiu
and Thomas Hampson, and at the Royal Opera House
Covent Garden in the same role in June 2010. Other career highlights include Rodolfo in La bohème
conducted by Gustavo Dudamel
at Milan's Teatro alla Scala (2009), and Salzburg Festival
debut as Alfredo in the Willy Decker production of La Traviata with Anna Netrebko
(2005). Valenti was the 2010 winner of the Richard Tucker Award. In 2009 he received the Maria Callas
Debut Artist of the Year from Dallas Opera
. He currently (2011) studies with Bill Schuman and Virginia Zeani.
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
. Born in the town of Summit, New Jersey
Summit, New Jersey
Summit is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. At the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 21,457. Summit had the 16th-highest per capita income in the state as of the 2000 Census....
and raised in Clinton
Clinton, New Jersey
Clinton is a Town in Hunterdon County, New Jersey on the South Branch of the Raritan River. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town population was 2,719....
, he is a graduate of the Academy of Vocal Arts
Academy of Vocal Arts
The Academy of Vocal Arts is a school dedicated to providing free higher education to aspiring opera singers. The school was founded in 1934 by Helen Corning Warden and is located at 1920 Spruce Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-History:...
in Philadelphia. He made his Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
debut in March 2010 as Alfredo in Verdi's La traviata
La traviata
La traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
in a cast that included Angela Gheorghiu
Angela Gheorghiu
Angela Gheorghiu is a Romanian soprano opera singer. Since her professional debut in 1990, she has sung as soprano leading roles at New York's Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden's Royal Opera House, the Vienna State Opera, Milan's La Scala, and many other opera houses in Europe and the United States...
and Thomas Hampson, and at the Royal Opera House
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
Covent Garden in the same role in June 2010. Other career highlights include Rodolfo in La bohème
La bohème
La bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
conducted by Gustavo Dudamel
Gustavo Dudamel
Gustavo Adolfo Dudamel Ramírez is a Venezuelan conductor and violinist. He is currently the principal conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony in Gothenburg, Sweden, and music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Los Angeles, California...
at Milan's Teatro alla Scala (2009), and Salzburg Festival
Salzburg Festival
The Salzburg Festival is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer within the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart...
debut as Alfredo in the Willy Decker production of La Traviata with Anna Netrebko
Anna Netrebko
Anna Yuryevna Netrebko is an Russian operatic soprano. She now holds dual Russian and Austrian citizenship and currently resides in Vienna. She has been nicknamed "La Bellissima" by fans.-Biography:...
(2005). Valenti was the 2010 winner of the Richard Tucker Award. In 2009 he received the Maria Callas
Maria Callas
Maria Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century. She combined an impressive bel canto technique, a wide-ranging voice and great dramatic gifts...
Debut Artist of the Year from Dallas Opera
Dallas Opera
The Dallas Opera is an opera company located in Dallas, Texas . The company was founded in 1957 as the Dallas Civic Opera by Laurence Kelly and Nicolà Rescigno, both of whom had been active with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the first as administrator, the second as artistic director.-The company's...
. He currently (2011) studies with Bill Schuman and Virginia Zeani.
Opera roles
- Francesco CileaFrancesco CileaFrancesco Cilea was an Italian composer. Today he is particularly known for his operas L'arlesiana and Adriana Lecouvreur.-Biography:...
- Adriana LecouvreurAdriana LecouvreurAdriana Lecouvreur is an opera in four acts by Francesco Cilea to an Italian libretto by Arturo Colautti, based on the play by Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé...
- Washington Concert Opera (Maurizio, 2010)
- Adriana Lecouvreur
- Gaetano DonizettiGaetano DonizettiDomenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti was an Italian composer from Bergamo, Lombardy. His best-known works are the operas L'elisir d'amore , Lucia di Lammermoor , and Don Pasquale , all in Italian, and the French operas La favorite and La fille du régiment...
- L'elisir d'amoreL'elisir d'amoreL'elisir d'amore is an opera by the Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. It is a melodramma giocoso in two acts...
- Hamburg State OperaHamburg State OperaThe Hamburg State Opera is one of the leading opera companies in Germany.Opera in Hamburg dates back to 2 January 1678 when the "Opern-Theatrum" was inaugurated with a performance of a biblical Singspiel by Johann Theile...
(Nemorino, 2008)
- Hamburg State Opera
- Lucia Di LammermoorLucia di LammermoorLucia di Lammermoor is a dramma tragico in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's historical novel The Bride of Lammermoor....
- Florida Grand OperaFlorida Grand OperaFlorida Grand Opera is an American opera company based in Miami, Florida. FGO was created in 1994 from the consolidation of two opera companies in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale region:...
(Edgardo, 2005)
- Florida Grand Opera
- L'elisir d'amore
- Charles GounodCharles GounodCharles-François Gounod was a French composer, known for his Ave Maria as well as his operas Faust and Roméo et Juliette.-Biography:...
- Faust
- Opera CarolinaOpera CarolinaOpera Carolina is a professional opera company located in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company reaches over 75,000 people from North Carolina and South Carolina....
(Faust, 2008), Teatro Verdi (Faust, 2005)
- Opera Carolina
- Roméo et JulietteRoméo et JulietteRoméo et Juliette is an opéra in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. It was first performed at the Théâtre Lyrique , Paris on 27 April 1867...
- Minnesota OperaMinnesota OperaThe Minnesota Opera is a performance organization based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was founded in 1963 by the Walker Art Center, and is known for premiering such diverse works as Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak and Frankenstein by Libby Larsen...
(Romeo, 2008)
- Minnesota Opera
- Faust
- Jules MassenetJules MassenetJules Émile Frédéric Massenet was a French composer best known for his operas. His compositions were very popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and he ranks as one of the greatest melodists of his era. Soon after his death, Massenet's style went out of fashion, and many of his operas...
- WertherWertherWerther is an opera in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet and Georges Hartmann based on the German epistolary novel The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe....
- With Opera Lyon in Bunkamura Concert Hall, Tokyo (Werther, 2009), Opéra BastilleOpéra BastilleL'Opéra Bastille ' is a modern opera house in Paris, France. It is the home base of the Opéra national de Paris and was designed to replace the Palais Garnier, which is nowadays mainly used for ballet performances....
(Werther, 2010)
- With Opera Lyon in Bunkamura Concert Hall, Tokyo (Werther, 2009), Opéra Bastille
- Werther
- Saverio MercadanteSaverio MercadanteGiuseppe Saverio Raffaele Mercadante was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. While Mercadante may not have retained the international celebrity of Gaetano Donizetti or Gioachino Rossini beyond his own lifetime, he composed as impressive a number of works as either; and his development of...
- Il giuramentoIl giuramentoIl giuramento is an opera in three acts by the Italian composer Saverio Mercadante. The libretto, by Gaetano Rossi, is based on Victor Hugo's play Angélo, tyran de Padoue...
- Washington Concert Opera (Viscardo, 2009)
- Il giuramento
- Giacomo PucciniGiacomo PucciniGiacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
- La bohèmeLa bohèmeLa bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
- The Minnesota Opera (Rodolfo, 2010), Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria (Rodolfo, 2010), Dallas OperaDallas OperaThe Dallas Opera is an opera company located in Dallas, Texas . The company was founded in 1957 as the Dallas Civic Opera by Laurence Kelly and Nicolà Rescigno, both of whom had been active with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the first as administrator, the second as artistic director.-The company's...
(Rodolfo, 2009), La ScalaLa ScalaLa Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
(Rodolfo, 2009), Aubade Hall (Rodolfo, 2008), Florida Grand OperaFlorida Grand OperaFlorida Grand Opera is an American opera company based in Miami, Florida. FGO was created in 1994 from the consolidation of two opera companies in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale region:...
(Rodolfo, 2008), SemperoperSemperoperThe Semperoper is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden and the concert hall of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden . It is located near the Elbe River in the historic center of Dresden, Germany.The opera house was originally built by the architect Gottfried Semper in 1841...
(Rodolfo, 2007), New York City OperaNew York City OperaThe New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
(Rodolfo 2006), Teatro Verdi (Rodolfo, 2006)
- The Minnesota Opera (Rodolfo, 2010), Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria (Rodolfo, 2010), Dallas Opera
- Madama ButterflyMadama ButterflyMadama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
- Opéra BastilleOpéra BastilleL'Opéra Bastille ' is a modern opera house in Paris, France. It is the home base of the Opéra national de Paris and was designed to replace the Palais Garnier, which is nowadays mainly used for ballet performances....
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2011), Vancouver OperaVancouver OperaVancouver Opera is the second largest performing arts organization in British Columbia and the largest opera company in western Canada.It performs in the Queen Elizabeth Theatre accompanied currently by the Vancouver Opera Orchestra, one of two specialized opera orchestras in Canada...
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2010), Michigan Opera TheatreMichigan Opera TheatreMichigan Opera Theatre is Michigan's principal opera company. The company is based in Detroit, where it performs in the Detroit Opera House. Each year it presents an opera and dance season. The company usually presents five operas in their original language with English supertitles and hosts five...
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2008), New York City OperaNew York City OperaThe New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2008), San Francisco OperaSan Francisco OperaSan Francisco Opera is an American opera company, based in San Francisco, California.It was founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola and is the second largest opera company in North America...
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2007), Opéra de MarseilleOpéra de MarseilleL’Opéra de Marseille, known today as the Opéra Municipal, is an opera company located in Marseille, France. In 1685, the city was the second in France after Bordeaux to have an opera house which was erected on a tennis court....
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2007), SemperoperSemperoperThe Semperoper is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden and the concert hall of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden . It is located near the Elbe River in the historic center of Dresden, Germany.The opera house was originally built by the architect Gottfried Semper in 1841...
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2007), Palm Beach OperaPalm Beach OperaPalm Beach Opera, a professional opera company in West Palm Beach, Florida resident at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, was founded in 1961 as "Civic Opera of the Palm Beaches." Over its history, the company has presented a season of fully staged operas ranging from a single production...
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2007), Teatro Carlo FeliceTeatro Carlo FeliceThe Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the Piazza De Ferrari....
(Lt. Pinkerton, 2006)
- Opéra Bastille
- La bohème
- Giuseppe VerdiGiuseppe VerdiGiuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
- La TraviataLa traviataLa traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
- Royal Opera HouseRoyal Opera HouseThe Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
(Alfredo, 2010), Metropolitan OperaMetropolitan OperaThe Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
(Alfredo, 2010), Deutsche Oper BerlinDeutsche Oper BerlinThe Deutsche Oper Berlin is an opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin, Germany. The resident building is also home to the Berlin State Ballet.-History:...
(Alfredo, 2009), Korean Opera (Alfredo, 2007), Teatro Pérez Galdós de Las Palmas (Alfredo, 2007), Canadian Opera CompanyCanadian Opera CompanyThe Canadian Opera Company is an opera company in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest opera company in Canada and the third largest producer of opera in North America. The COC performs in its own opera house, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.-History:For 40 years until...
(Alfredo, 2007), La MonnaieLa MonnaieLe Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie , or the Koninklijke Muntschouwburg is a theatre in Brussels, Belgium....
(Alfredo, 2006), Hamburg State OperaHamburg State OperaThe Hamburg State Opera is one of the leading opera companies in Germany.Opera in Hamburg dates back to 2 January 1678 when the "Opern-Theatrum" was inaugurated with a performance of a biblical Singspiel by Johann Theile...
(Alfredo, 2006), Teatro Comunale di BolognaTeatro Comunale di BolognaThe Teatro Comunale di Bologna is an opera house in Bologna, Italy, and is one of the most important opera venues in Italy. Typically, it presents eight operas with six performances during its November to April season....
(Alfredo, 2005)
- Royal Opera House
- RigolettoRigolettoRigoletto is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo. It was first performed at La Fenice in Venice on March 11, 1851...
- Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (Duke of Mantua, 2009), Palm Beach OperaPalm Beach OperaPalm Beach Opera, a professional opera company in West Palm Beach, Florida resident at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, was founded in 1961 as "Civic Opera of the Palm Beaches." Over its history, the company has presented a season of fully staged operas ranging from a single production...
(Duke of Mantua, 2008), Opera CarolinaOpera CarolinaOpera Carolina is a professional opera company located in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company reaches over 75,000 people from North Carolina and South Carolina....
(Il Duca, 2007), Academy of Vocal ArtsAcademy of Vocal ArtsThe Academy of Vocal Arts is a school dedicated to providing free higher education to aspiring opera singers. The school was founded in 1934 by Helen Corning Warden and is located at 1920 Spruce Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-History:...
(Il Duca, 2006)
- Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (Duke of Mantua, 2009), Palm Beach Opera
- La Traviata