Eric Halfvarson (born December 1, 1951 in
Aurora, Illinois
Aurora is a city in the Chicago metropolitan area located partially in DuPage County, Illinois, DuPage, Kane County, Illinois, Kane, Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall, and Will County, Illinois, Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Locat ...
) is an American operatic
bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range:
** Bass (instrument), including:
** Acoustic bass gui ...
. He made his professional debut in 1973 with the Lake George Opera (now the
Opera Saratoga) as Don Basilio in Rossini's ''
The Barber of Seville''. Since then he has specialized in the repertoire for the
basso profundo, singing such roles as the Grand Inquisitor in Verdi's ''
Don Carlos'', Sarastro in Mozart's ''
The Magic Flute'', Baron Ochs in
Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss and Wagner's König Heinrich in ''
Lohengrin'', Hagen in ''
Götterdämmerung'' and Hunding in ''
Die Walküre'', as well as Claggart in Britten's ''
Billy Budd
''Billy Budd, Sailor (An Inside Narrative)'' is a novella by American writer Herman Melville, left unfinished at his death in 1891. Acclaimed by critics as a masterpiece when a hastily transcribed version was finally published in 1924, it quick ...
''. He has sung in many theaters including the
Lyric Opera of Chicago, the
Metropolitan Opera in New York City, the
Royal Opera House in London,
La Fenice
Teatro La Fenice (, "The Phoenix") is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of "the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre" and in the history of opera as a whole. Especially in the 19th century, La Fenice beca ...
in Venice,
La Scala
La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...
in Milan, the
Wiener Staatsoper and
Deutsche Oper Berlin. He has taken part in the
Bayreuth Festival
The Bayreuth Festival (german: link=no, Bayreuther Festspiele) is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived ...
.
[
]
References
External links
Interview with Eric Halfvarsonby Bruce Duffie, February 16, 1995
{{DEFAULTSORT:Halfvarson, Eric
1951 births
Living people
People from Aurora, Illinois
American operatic basses
Singers from Illinois
Classical musicians from Illinois