Kristján Jóhannsson (born 24 May 1948 in

Akureyri Akureyri (, ) is a town in northern Iceland, the country's fifth most populous Municipalities of Iceland, municipality (under the official name of Akureyrarbær , 'town of Akureyri') and the largest outside the Capital Region (Iceland), Capital R ...

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

) is an Icelandic operatic

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

particularly known for his performances in

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, a small town in the province of Parma, to a family of moderate means, recei ...

an roles, and especially as Radames in ''

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 De ...

''.

Biography

Although Kristján was born into a musical family, he did not begin his musical studies until he was twenty years old, first at the College of Music in his native city under Sigurdur Demetz. He then went to Italy to pursue additional vocal training at the Conservatorio Nicolini in

Piacenza Piacenza (; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Piacenza, eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with more ...

under Gianni Poggi, as well as studying privately with Ettore Campogalliani and

Ferruccio Tagliavini Ferruccio Tagliavini (; 14 August 191329 January 1995) was an Italian operatic lyric tenor mainly active in the 1940s and 1950s. Tagliavini was hailed as the heir apparent to Tito Schipa and Beniamino Gigli in the lyric-opera repertory due to t ...

. In 1980, Kristján Jóhannsson made his operatic debut in

Osimo Osimo is a town and ''comune'' of the Marche region of Italy, in the province of Ancona. The municipality covers a hilly area located approximately south of the port city of Ancona and the Adriatic Sea. History The oldest archaeological evide ...

, Italy at the Teatro Piccolo la Fenice in

Puccini Giacomo Puccini (22 December 1858 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 line of composers, s ...

´s ''

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 ''

Gianni Schicchi () is a comic opera in one act by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Giovacchino Forzano, composed in 1917–18. The libretto is based on an incident mentioned in Dante's ''Divine Comedy''. The work is the third and final part of Puccin ...

''. He then went on to sing in leading opera houses around the world as well as at the

Arena di Verona The Verona Arena is a Roman amphitheatre located in the historic center of Verona, an iconic symbol of the Venetian city alongside the figures of Romeo and Juliet. It stands as one of the grand structures that defined Roman architecture and i ...

. Apart from Verdian roles, his repertoire also includes the principal tenor roles in operas by

Leoncavallo Ruggero (or Ruggiero) Leoncavallo (23 April 18579 August 1919) was an Italian opera composer and librettist. Throughout his career, Leoncavallo produced numerous operas and songs but it is his 1892 opera ''Pagliacci'' that remained his lasting co ...

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

, Saint-Saëns, Mascagni, and

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

Major House debuts

*1985

Cincinnati Opera Cincinnati Opera is an American opera company based in Cincinnati, Ohio and the second-oldest opera company in the United States (after the New York Metropolitan Opera). Beginning with its first season in 1920, Cincinnati Opera has produced opera ...

, ''

Zazà ''Zazà'' () is an opera by Ruggero Leoncavallo, with a libretto by the composer, which draws on the same material as the French play '' Zaza'' (1898). The story concerns the French music hall singer, Zazà, and her affair and subsequent decisio ...

'' *1988

La Scala La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was Santa Maria della Scala, Milan, a church). The premiere performa ...

, ''

I due Foscari ' (''The Two Foscari'') is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the 1821 historical play, ''The Two Foscari (Byron), The Two Foscari'' by Lord Byron. After his success with ''Ernani'', ...

'' *1989

Lyric Opera of Chicago Lyric Opera of Chicago is an American opera company based in Chicago, Illinois. The company was founded in Chicago in 1954, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox (Chicago opera), Carol Fox, Nicola Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, w ...

, ''

Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...

'' *1991

Vienna State Opera The Vienna State Opera (, ) is a historic opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by ...

, ''Tosca'' *1993 New York

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

, '' Il trovatore'' *1994

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

, Covent Garden, ''Aida''.Curriculum vitae, Lirica International Opera Management
/ref>

Recordings

*Verdi: ''Aida'' ( Maria Dragoni, Kristján Jóhannsson, Francesco Ellero d'Artegna, Barbara Dever, Mark Rucker,

RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO; previously known as Radio Éireann Symphony Orchestra, RTÉ Symphony Orchestra and the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra) is the largest professional orchestra in Ireland. Housed at the National Concert Hall, D ...

; Rico Saccani, conductor). Naxos 8660033-34 *Verdi: ''Aida'' (Kristján Jóhannsson, Maria Chiara, Dolora Zajick, Juan Pons, Carlo Strioli, Nicolaj Ghiuselev, Angelo Casertano, Anna Schiatti, Orchestra e Coro dell'Arena di Verona;

Nello Santi Nello Santi (22 September 1931 – 6 February 2020) was an Italian conductor. He was associated with the Zürich Opera House for six decades, and was a regular conductor at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. He was focused on Italian reper ...

, conductor) Fondazione Arena di Verona

Notes and sources

''Turandot'' in the Forbidden City, Beijing, September 1998
Official web site
Verdi's ''Aida'' to debut in Beijing'
''People's Daily'', September 23, 2003
Review: ''Il trovatore'', Deutsche Oper Berlin
''

International Herald Tribune The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France, for international English-speaking readers. It published under the name ''International Herald Tribune'' starting in 1967, but its ...

'', April 3, 1996

External links

Kristjan Johannsson´s official web siteLirica International Opera Management
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kristjan Johannsson Kristján Jóhannsson Living people 1948 births Kristján Jóhannsson 20th-century male opera singers