Mikhail Agafonov
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Mikhail Agafonov (russian: Михаил Агафонов) is a Russian tenor singer who was born in Moscow and was a graduate of Lunatscharsky Academy for Performing Arts.


Career

In 1993 after graduating from the Academy he joined the
Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, literally "Big Theater", p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈatər) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds ballet and ope ...
where he sang in such roles as ''Lensky'' and ''Lykov'' in ''
The Tsar's Bride ''The Tsar's Bride'' (russian: Царская невеста, translit=Tsarskaja nevesta) is an historical verse drama in four acts by Lev Mei from 1849.Golub (1998, 951). Fifty years later Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov used the play as the basis for h ...
'', ''Rodolfo'' in '' La Boheme'' as well starring roles of ''Alfredo'', Faust and Pollione. In 1997 he became a recipient of the first prize at the Zimin International Vocal Competition and then became contract singer at the Vienna Volksoper where he played the role of ''Nemorino'' in
Gaetano Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...
's ''
The Elixir of Love ''L'elisir d'amore'' (''The Elixir of Love'', ) is a ' (opera buffa) in two acts by the Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto, after Eugène Scribe's libretto for Daniel Auber's ' (1831). The opera premier ...
'' and other roles. Later on he performed as ''Italian Singer'' in '' Der Rosenkavalier'' at Vienna State Opera and then played as ''Pollione'' at
Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
,
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
and
Tel Aviv Opera The Israeli Opera, formerly known as the New Israeli Opera, is the principal opera company of Israel. It was founded in 1985 after lack of Israeli government funding led to the demise of the Israel National Opera. Since 1994 the Tel Aviv Performi ...
s. He also played a role of ''Astrologer'' in a play by
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov . At the time, his name was spelled Николай Андреевичъ Римскій-Корсаковъ. la, Nicolaus Andreae filius Rimskij-Korsakov. The composer romanized his name as ''Nicolas Rimsk ...
called '' The Golden Cockerel'' at the Royal Opera Covent Garden and then appeared as ''Rodolfo'' at both Bavarian and
Wiesbaden Opera The Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden ('Hessian State Theatre Wiesbaden') is a German theatre located in Wiesbaden, in the Bundesland (Germany), German state Hesse. The company produces operas, Play (theatre), plays, ballets, Musical theatre, mus ...
s. At Deutsche Oper Berlin he appeared once as ''Pinkerton'' and then performed as ''Manrico'' at the
Aalto Theatre The Aalto Theatre (Aalto-Theater) is a performing arts venue in Essen, Germany, and is home to the city's opera company Aalto-Musiktheater and the ballet company Aalto Ballett. The serve as the venue's orchestra. The theatre opened on 25 Septembe ...
which was followed by his appearance as ''Dick Johnson'' at the
Florida Grand Opera Florida Grand Opera (FGO) is an American opera company based in Miami, Florida. It is the oldest performing arts organization in Florida and the seventh oldest opera company in the United States. FGO was created in 1994 from the consolidation of ...
. Currently he performs at the Canadian Opera where he performs roles of ''Riccardo'', ''Calaf'', and ''Rodolfo'' from
Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...
's play called '' Luisa Miller'' and performs as a concert singer at Alte Oper Frankfurt, Essen Philharmonic and
Queen Elizabeth Hall The Queen Elizabeth Hall (QEH) is a music venue on the South Bank in London, England, that hosts classical, jazz, and avant-garde music, talks and dance performances. It was opened in 1967, with a concert conducted by Benjamin Britten. The ...
. As of 2001 he is a member of
Mannheim National Theatre The Mannheim National Theatre (german: Nationaltheater Mannheim) is a theatre and opera company in Mannheim, Germany, with a variety of performance spaces. It was founded in 1779 and is one of the oldest theatres in Germany. History In the 18 ...
where he sings as ''Duca'', ''Radames'', and ''Assad'' from '' The Queen of Saba'' and many others. From 2008 to 2009 he performed as ''Bacchus'' in Ariadne auf Naxos's production and the same years appeared as both ''Erik'' and ''Luigi'' in ''
Il Tabarro ''Il tabarro'' (''The Cloak'') is an opera in one act by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Giuseppe Adami, based on 's play ''La houppelande''. It is the first of the trio of operas known as ''Il trittico''. The first performance was given ...
'' and ''Stewa'' in a German city called
Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...
. In the first half of 2009 he played as ''Gabriele Adorno'' in Toronto and then appeared as ''Cavaradossi'' with the
Paris Opera The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be ...
. In the last half of 2009 he performed in ''
Andrea Chénier ''Andrea Chénier'' () is a verismo opera in four acts by Umberto Giordano, set to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica, and first performed on 28 March 1896 at La Scala, Milan. The story is based loosely on the life of the French poet Andr ...
'' and then appeared as ''Riccardo'' at the Swedish capital. In 2010 he performed in cities such as Antwerp and Gent in one of which he appeared as ''Cavaradossi'' at
Semperoper The Semperoper () is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera) and the concert hall of the Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxon State Orchestra). It is also home to the Semperoper Ballett. The building is located on the ...
in Dresden. In 2012 he had two plays to perform in; He played a role of ''Herman'' in Tchaikovsky's '' The Queen of Spades'' and then the same year played as ''Calaf'' in
Giacomo Puccini Giacomo Puccini (Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long li ...
's '' Turandot''.


Repertoire

*'' The Golden Cockerel'' — ''Astrologer'' *'' The Queen of Saba'' — ''Duca''/''Radames''/''Assad'' *'' The Queen of Spades'' — ''Herman'' *'' Turandot'' — ''Calaf''


References

Living people Russian tenors Year of birth missing (living people) {{Russia-opera-singer-stub