Pelléas et Mélisande

Iván Fischer was making his own dream come true when he founded the Budapest Festival Orchestra in 1983 together with Zoltán Kocsis.

Thanks to its innovative approach to music and the uncompromising dedication of its musicians, the BFO has become the youngest ensemble to join the world’s top ten symphony orchestras. In addition to Budapest, the orchestra regularly performs in some of the most important concert venues of the international music scene, and is also present on international streaming platforms. Since its inception, the BFO has been recognized by Gramophone, the prestigious British musical periodical, three times: in 1998 and 2007, the magazine’s professional panel of judges awarded the BFO the prize for the best recording, while in 2022, thanks to audience votes, it was named Orchestra of the Year. The BFO’s most considerable successes are connected to Mahler: their recording of symphony no. 1 was nominated for a Grammy Award.

As well as recording successes and acclaimed tours, the BFO has also made a name for itself internationally with its series of innovative concerts. The Autism-friendly Cocoa Concerts, the Surprise Concerts – appreciated also at the Proms in London –, full-day musical marathons, informal Midnight Music performances geared towards young adults, outdoor concerts in Budapest, free Community Weeks and the Bridging Europe Festival, co-organized with Müpa Budapest – these are all unique in their own ways. Another special feature of the orchestra is that its members regularly sing at their concerts.

Each year, the BFO, in collaboration with the Iván Fischer Opera Company, Müpa Budapest, the Vicenza Opera Festival and the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, also stages an opera production. The performances have been invited to the Mostly Mozart Festival in New York, the Edinburgh International Festival and the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg; in 2013, the Marriage of Figaro led the New York Magazine’s list of the best classical music events of the year. The Vicenza Opera Festival, founded by Iván Fischer, debuted in the fall of 2018 at the Teatro Olimpico.

Conductor, composer, opera director, thinker and educator, anchored in the tradition of the great musical polymaths, Iván Fischer is considered one of the most visionary musicians of our time.

He has developed several new concert formats and reformed the structure and working method of the symphony orchestra. In the mid-1980s he founded the Budapest Festival Orchestra, where he has since introduced and established numerous innovations. He envisions a pool of musicians serving the community in various combinations and musical styles.

He has founded a number of festivals, including the Budapest Mahlerfest, the “Bridging Europe” festival and the Vicenza Opera Festival. The World Economic Forum presented him with the Crystal Award for his achievements in fostering international cultural relations.

He was principal conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, the Opéra National de Lyon and the Konzerthausorchester Berlin, the latter appointing him Conductor Laureate. The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra named him Honorary Guest Conductor following many decades of working together.

Iván Fischer studied the piano, violin and cello in Budapest, before joining the legendary conducting class of Hans Swarowsky in Vienna. Having spent two years as assistant to Nikolaus Harnoncourt, he then launched his international career as winner of the Rupert Foundation conducting competition in London.

After various guest appearances at international opera houses, he founded the Ivan Fischer Opera Company. His staging always sets as its goal an organic unity between music and theatre. IFOC productions have been received with great acclaim in recent years in New York, Edinburgh, Abu Dhabi, Berlin, Geneva and Budapest.

Iván Fischer has been active as a composer since 2004. His opera The Red Heifer made headlines across the world; the children’s opera The Gruffalo enjoyed numerous revivals in Berlin; his most frequently performed work, “Eine Deutsch-Jiddische Kantate” has been performed and recorded in several countries.

Iván Fischer is founder of the Hungarian Mahler Society and patron of the British Kodály Academy. The French government honoured him as Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres. In 2006 he was decorated with the Hungarian Kossuth Prize, in 2011 with the Royal Philharmonic Society Music Award and the Dutch Ovatie Prize, and in 2013 he was named an honorary member of the Royal Academy of Music in London.

Marco Gandini è stato collaboratore alla regia al fianco di Franco Zeffirelli e Graham Vick. Ha lavorato nei maggiori teatri d’opera italiani (tra cui Teatro alla Scala, Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Teatro San Carlo di Napoli, Teatro del Maggio Musicale di Firenze, Arena di Verona, Teatro La Fenice di Venezia, Teatro Massimo di Palermo, Teatro Comunale di Bologna) e compagnie liriche internazionali (Metropolitan Opera House di New York, Washington e Los Angeles Opera, NNT di Tokyo, Royal Opera House di Londra, Teatro Real di Madrid, Teatro Liceu di Barcellona, Teatro Marinsky di San Pietroburgo, Kremlin Theatre di Mosca, Odeo di Erode Attico di Atene). I suoi impegni più recenti e futuri includono: La Bohème al Teatro alla Scala di Milano (ripresa della Bohème di Franco Zefirelli); co-regia de L’incoronazione di Poppea con Iván Fischer al Teatro Olimpico di Vicenza, nell’ambito della tournée della Budapest Festival Orchestra; Il Trovatore alla Novaya Opera di Mosca e al Birgitta Festival di Tallinn; Le Nozze di Figaro e Giovanna d’Arco all’Opera Nazionale Estone; Don Giovanni, Survivor di Varsavia e Der Kaiser von Atlantis di Ullman (in forma semi-scenica) al Teatro Massimo di Palermo; La Fille du Régiment al Teatro Massimo Bellini di Catania; co-regista di Turn of the Screw di Britten con la Budapest Festival Orchestra a Budapest e Vicenza; Le Nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni e Così Fan Tutte al Teatro del Giglio Showa, Tokyo; Il Campiello alla Fujiwara Opera, Tokyo; I Capuleti e Montecchi con l’Orchestra Simon Bolivar, Caracas.

Svizzero di nascita, è ospite dei più importanti teatri d’opera internazionali, tra cui il Teatro alla Scala di Milano, la Royal Opera House di Londra, la Staatsoper di Vienna, il Teatro Real di Madrid, l’Opera di Zurigo e il Grand Théâtre de Genève. Tra i ruoli più importanti del suo repertorio figurano quelli di Pelléas et Mélisande, Idomeno e La Clemenza di Tito, oltre a Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni), Lurciano (Ariodante) e Chevalier (Dialogues des Carmélites). Oltre al suo lavoro sui grandi palcoscenici dell’opera, Bernard Richter è anche un ricercato cantante da concerto. Si esibisce con le principali orchestre e collabora regolarmente con rinomati direttori d’orchestra come Zubin Mehta, Daniele Gatti, Teodor Currentzis, Philippe Jordan, Daniel Harding, Adam Fischer, Kent Nagano, Marc Minkowski e Fabio Luisi.

Nato ad Atene, è stato uno dei principali baritoni della Greek Opera house (1995-1999) e della Deutsche Oper am Rhein di Düsseldorf (2000-2006) dove ha cantato Posa, Germont, Conte (Figaro), Don Giovanni, Figaro (Barbiere), Guglielmo, Onegin, Amleto, Pelleas. Come ospite canta a New York (Carnegie Hall, Electra), Glyndebourne Festival e Ginevra (Falstaff), Bruxelles (La Traviata), Amsterdam (Lucia di Lamermoor), Berlino (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Francoforte (Don Carlo, Il Trovatore), Nantes (Falstaff), Budapest (Così fan tutte, Don Giovanni, Falstaff con Iván Fischer), Faust, Il barbiere di Siviglia, I Pagliacci e Il ritorno di Ulisse in patria a Parigi, Il Barbiere di Siviglia a Vienna, La Traviata al Covent Garden, Macbeth e Simon Boccanegra a Bordeaux ecc. Particolarmente degna di nota la sua interpretazione di Wozzeck ad Atene all’inizio del 2020 e di Sharpless (Madame Butterfly) all’Opéra national du Rhin. Recentemente ha cantato Idoménée di Campra a Lille e alla Staatsoper di Berlino, Abramane (Zoroastre) con Les Ambassadeurs a Namur, Anvers e Tourcoing, Don Andrès de Rebeira (La Périchole) all’Opéra Comique- Paris, Cinna (La Vestale) al Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Iago (Otello) e Scarpia (La Tosca) ad Atene. I suoi progetti per la stagione 2022/2023 e le successive: Falstaff (ruolo del titolo) a Lille e Lussemburgo, Coelenus (Atys) in tournée, Golaud (Pelléas et Mélisande) a Tolosa, Germont (La Traviata) a Ginevra. La sua registrazione del Tamerlano di Handel è stata premiata e lodata a livello internazionale, così come il Giulio Cesare di Handel, l’Andromaque di Gretry e il Falstaff di Verdi sotto la direzione di Vladimir Jurowski su DVD, Reynaldo Hahn e le melodie di Charles Gounod.

Il basso francese Nicolas Testé ha studiato pianoforte, fagotto e storia della musica a Parigi prima di intraprendere la carriera di cantante. Ha studiato all’Opéra National de Paris e al Centre de Formation Lyrique. Nel 1998 ha ottenuto il secondo premio al concorso “Voix Nouvelles”.

Nicolas Testé si esibisce regolarmente in molti rinomati teatri d’opera come il Metropolitan Opera di New York, la Staatsoper di Monaco, l’Opera di Los Angeles, l’Opera di San Francisco, la Deutsche Oper di Berlino, l’Opéra National de Paris, il Teatro San Carlo di Napoli, il Grand Théâtre de Genève, il Teatro alla Scala di Milano, il Teatro La Fenice, oltre che al Festival di Glyndebourne e alle Chorégies d’Orange.

Il suo vasto repertorio comprende ruoli da protagonista in Iphigénie en Aulide (Agamennone), Roméo et Juliette (Frère Laurent), Manon (Des Grieux), Amleto (Claudio), Il Trovatore (Ferrando), Die Zauberflöte (Sarastro), Castor et Pollux (Giove), Faust (Mephisto), Les Contes d’Hoffmann (I quattro cattivi) e Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Basilio).

Nelle stagioni precedenti si è esibito alla Bayerische Staatsoper in La Bohème (Colline), al Metropolitan Opera in Carmen (Zuniga), all’Opéra de Paris in Samson et Dalila (Abimelech) e all’Opera di Los Angeles nel ruolo dei Quattro Cattivi in Les Contes d’Hoffmann.

Altre esibizioni includono il ritorno di Nicolas Testé alla Bayerische Staatsoper nella produzione di Lucia di Lammermoor (Raimondo). Inoltre, si è esibito all’Opernhaus Zürich in Maria Stuarda (Giorgio Talbot) e alla Deutsche Oper Berlin nello stesso ruolo. Altre produzioni alla Deutsche Oper Berlin includono Faust (Mephisto) e La Gioconda (Alvise Badoero). Nel gennaio 2018 si è esibito all’Opéra National de Paris ne Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Basilio).

Nell’ottobre 2018 Nicolas Testé è tornato all’Opéra Bastille per cantare in Les Huguenots di Meyerbeer nel ruolo del servo Marcel, seguito da un impegno al MET esibendosi in Les Pêcheurs de perles (Nourabad).

Nella primavera del 2019 Nicolas Testé ha fatto un celebre debutto nel ruolo di Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte di Mozart all’Opéra Bastille di Parigi e ha debuttato nel ruolo di Claudio nelle rappresentazioni in versione concerto di Amleto a Barcellona e alla Deutsche Oper di Berlino. Nell’autunno 2019 Testé è tornato a interpretare Sir Giorgio ne I Puritani di Bellini all’Opéra Bastille.

Nella stagione 2021/22 è stato in scena come Comte des Grieux in Manon all’Opéra di Lione, come Ramfis in Aida al Teatro San Carlo di Napoli, in Norma come Oroveso al Gran Teatre del Liceu di Barcellona e come Colline in La Bohème al MET.

Oltre a numerose produzioni operistiche, Nicolas Testé si esibisce regolarmente con orchestre sinfoniche di fama internazionale. Nel novembre 2017 ha intrapreso una tournée asiatica insieme al celebre soprano Diana Damrau eseguendo programmi di gala e recital d’opera con concerti a Singapore, Shanghai, Tokyo, Seoul, Taipei e Pechino. Nell’ambito del tour VERDIssimo ha tenuto concerti nelle principali sale da concerto europee a maggio e giugno 2018.

Nelle prossime stagioni Nicolas Testé sarà nuovamente in tournée in Europa e in Asia insieme al soprano Diana Damrau, presentando il loro nuovo programma “Kings and Queens of Opera”.

Twelve-year-old Oliver Michael is a Music Scholar at Trinity School in South London. He is also a senior member of Trinity Boys Choir. As a member of the Choir, he has sung in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Opera de Rouen and in Berlioz’s L’Enfance du Christ with the Monteverdi Choir and Sir John Eliot Gardiner. He has also sung on the soundtracks to the film Spirited and the Netflix series All the light we cannot see. He featured as the solo treble in five live-to-screen performances of The Fellowship of the Ring at the Royal Albert Hall. Oliver is a talented violinist and plays regularly in the South London Youth Orchestra.

Studia inglese e francese al Magdalen College di Oxford e, in seguito, alla Guildhall School of Music di Londra, dove vince il Walther Grüner International Lieder Competi- tion, l’English Song Award e il Peter Pears Award. Effettua oltre un centinaio di registrazioni in un repertorio che abbraccia otto secoli, con particolare attenzione alla musica dell’Alto Barocco.

Fra i principali interpreti delle opere di Bach si lega alla J.S. Bach Foundation St. Gallen. Oltre a comprovati specialisti di musica antica come John Eliot Gardiner, Philippe Herreweghe, Masaaki Suzuki, Christophe Rousset, Hervé Niquet, Ton Koopman, Paul McCreesh e a grandi come Gustav Leonhardt e Michel Corboz, ha eseguito le opere di Bach con orchestre come la Boston Symphony Orchestra/Bernhard Haitink, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal/Kent Nagano, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Oslo Philharmonic/both with Herbert Blomstedt.

Oltre al barocco tedesco e inglese, Peter Harvey si è fatto conoscere anche per le sue registrazioni del repertorio barocco francese, nonché per le opere successive, come le sue pluripremiate registrazioni della Creazione di Haydn e del Requiem di Fauré. Attualmente le sue collaborazioni includono: Hans-Christoph Rademann/Internationale Bachakademie, Lars Ulrik Mortensen/Concerto Copenhagen, Iván Fischer/Budapest Festival Orchestra  and Richard Egarr/Scottish Chamber Orchestra.

Having studied with Rachel Yakar at the CNSM in Paris and discovered by William Christie, Patricia Petibon’s has made a name for herself as one of the most versatile singers in her field, with a repertoire that ranges from French baroque to contemporary music.

Patricia Petibon entertains close musical ties to Alain Altinoglu, Giovanni Antonini, Bertrand de Billy, Ivor Bolton, Frédéric Chaslin, Daniele Gatti, Bernard Haitink, Emmanuelle Haïm, Daniel Harding, Kristjan Järvi, Andrea Marcon, Josep Pons, Paavo Järvi, Lorenzo Viotti and many more.

Highlights of her career included Ginevra/ ARIODANTE, the title role in ALCINA at the Festival in Aix-en-Provence or Euridice in ORFEO ET EURIDICE at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées in Paris. Highlights also include Giunia in LUCIO SILLA in Vienna under the baton of Nikolaus Harnoncourt, with whom she has worked regularly, her debut in the title role of Berg’s LULU in Geneva, Barcelona and Salzburg, and Blanche/LES DIALOGUES DES CARMÉLITES at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. In May 2017 she celebrated a great success as Mélisande in Debussy’s PELLÉAS ET MÉLISANDE at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées.

In spring 2019 she returned to the Opéra-Comique de Paris for Massenet’s MANON, followed by the three female roles of Offenbach’s LES CONTES D’HOFFMANN at the Monnaie de Bruxelles. In 2021, Patricia Petibon was heard for the first time in Poulenc’s LA VOIX HUMAINE as well as in Thierry Escaich’s POINT D’ORGUE and returned as Mélisande in PELLÉAS ET MÉLISANDE at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées.

Last season Patricia Petibon sang a new production of Poulenc’s LA VOIX HUMAINE directed by Katie Mitchell at the Opéra National du Rhin in Strasbourg. In addition to numerous recitals, Patricia Petibon was on tour with her new programme with the La Cetra Baroque Orchestra and Andrea Marcon as well as the French baroque ensemble Amarillis. Furthermore, she could be heard with Ravel’s “Shéhérazade” with Les Siècles and François-Xavier Roth as well as with the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg and Jérémie Rohrer and presented French operetta with the Orchestre National de France conducted by Enrique Mazzola.

Being equally at home on the great recital stages, she performs frequently in Paris, Lyon, Lille, Strasbourg, Vienna’s Musikverein and Konzerthaus, at the Salzburg Festival, in Graz, Geneva, Dortmund, Hamburg, London’s Wigmore Hall, Edinburgh, Aix-en-Provence, Luxembourg, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Madrid, Granada and Bilbao.

2019 Patricia Petibon has signed a recording contract with Sony Music Masterworks. The first recording under the Sony Classical label entitled “L’amour, la mort, la mer” was released in February 2020. The new solo album entitled “La Traversée”, which Patricia Petibon recorded with Andrea Marcon and La Cetra, was released at the end of March 2022.

A native of Switzerland, Yvonne Naef has appeared throughout her career at the most prestigious opera houses and concert venues. Her huge repertoire mainly consists of the major mezzo roles in operas by Verdi (Aida, Il Trovatore, Don Carlo, Un ballo in Maschera) which she has sung in prominent theaters such as the Metropolitan Opera House, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the Vienna State Opera and the Opéra de Paris. In the French repertoire she excelled in operas such as Ariane et Barbe-Bleue, Carmen, Les Troyens and La damnation de Faust, alongside her fondness for Russian operas and those of Richard Wagner.
On concert stages, Yvonne Naef performs composers ranging from Bach to Boulez with very prominent orchestras and conductors. A specialist for Mahler’s symphonies and song cycles, she has performed his Symphonies No. 2, 3 and 8, Kindertotenlieder, Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, Lieder aus des Knaben Wunderhorn under the direction of conductors such as Marin Also, Pierre Boulez, Semyon Bychkov, Sylvain Cambreling, Gustavo Dudamel, Christoph Eschenbach, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, James Levine, Kent Nagano, Jonathan Not and Franz Welser-Möst. Other important conductors she has worked with in numerous and disparate concert and opera projects include James Conlon, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Ivan Fischer, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Daniele Gatti, Michael Gielen, Bernard Haitink, Mariss Jansons, Philipp Jordan, Jess López Cobos, Marc Minkowski, Seiji Ozawa, Sir Simon Rattle, Georges Prêtre and Michael Tilson Thomas.

Yvonne Naef has been a lecturer for singing at the Zurich University of the Arts since 2014.