Raúl Giménez (born September 14, 1950), is an Argentine operatic tenor, particularly associated with the Italian

bel canto Bel canto (Italian for "beautiful singing" or "beautiful song", )—with several similar constructions (''bellezze del canto'', ''bell'arte del canto'')—is a term with several meanings that relate to Italian singing. The phrase was not associat ...

vocal style. Giménez was born in

Carlos Pellegrini Carlos Enrique José Pellegrini Bevans (October 11, 1846 – July 17, 1906) was Vice President of Argentina and became President of Argentina from August 6, 1890 to October 12, 1892, upon Miguel Ángel Juárez Celman's resignation (see R ...

Province of Santa Fe The Province of Santa Fe ( es, Provincia de Santa Fe, ) is a province of Argentina, located in the center-east of the country. Neighboring provinces are from the north clockwise Chaco (divided by the 28th parallel south), Corrientes, Entre Rí ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

. He studied at the Music Conservatory of Buenos Aires and made his operatic debut at the Teatro Colón as Ernesto in '' Don Pasquale'', in 1980. After appearing in concert and opera throughout

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sou ...

, he came to

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in 1984, where he made his debut at the

Wexford Festival Wexford Festival Opera () is an opera festival that takes place in the town of Wexford in south-eastern Ireland during the months of October and November. The festival began in 1951 under Tom Walsh and a group of opera lovers who quickly gener ...

in Ireland, in Cimarosa's '' Le astuzie femminili''. He's appeared at opera houses and festivals of Europe. Giménez made his American debut in Dallas in 1989, as Ernesto in '' Don Pasquale.'' At the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is opera ...

New York, his debut was as Count Almaviva in "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" in 1996. He also appeared frequently in works by Donizetti and Bellini, as well as composers such as

Salieri Antonio Salieri (18 August 17507 May 1825) was an Italian classical composer, conductor, and teacher. He was born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, and spent his adult life and career as a subject of the Habsburg monarch ...

and Pacini. Giménez has maintained a parallel career in the concert hall. His 1987 Nimbus release Argentinian Songs, with pianist Nina Walker, included works by

Ginastera Alberto Evaristo Ginastera (; April 11, 1916June 25, 1983) was an Argentinian composer of classical music. He is considered to be one of the most important 20th-century classical composers of the Americas. Biography Ginastera was born in Buenos ...

and Guastavino, Carlos Buchardo, and introduced composer Abraham Jurafsky to a global audience.

Selected recordings

* Rossini - ''L'italiana in Algeri'', Teldec * Rossini - ''Il barbiere di Siviglia'', Teldec * Rossini - ''La cenerentola'', Teldec * Rossini - ''L'inganno felice'', Erato * Rossini - ''La Pietra del Paragone'' ROF * Rossini - ''Il Turco in Italia'', Philips * Rossini - ''Il Viaggio a Reims'', Sony * Mayr - ''Medea in Corinto'', Opera Rara * Bellini - ''La sonnambula'', Naxos * Salieri - ''Les Danaïdes'', EMI * Rossini - ''Stabat Mater'', DG * Rossini - ''Messa di Gloria'', Philips * Rossini - ''La petite messe solennelle'', Philips * Pacini - ''L'ultimo giorno di Pompei'', Dynamic

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gimenez, Raul 1951 births Living people Argentine operatic tenors Illustrious Citizens of Buenos Aires 20th-century Argentine male opera singers