James Lee (2019)

James Lee (Korean: Jeong-Hwan Lee, born 1979) is a South Korean operatic tenor who made a career mainly in Europe, focused on roles of the Italian opera repertoire.

Biography

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James Lee was born in Miryang in South Korea and studied singing at Yeungnam University in Kyongsan, South Korea and then at the Robert Schumann Hochschule in Düsseldorf with Alexandru Ionitza.[1]

After winning the Competizione dell’Opera competition in 2013,[2] he made his debut as Calaf in Puccini's Turandot at the Graz Opera[3] and he made his debut as Radames in Verdi's Aida at the Oper im Steinbruch St. Margarethen [de] festival in Austria, staged by director Robert Dornhelm.[4]

He has performed roles including Don José in Bizet's Carmen, Manrico in Verdi's Il Trovatore at the Theater Freiburg, Ricardo in Verdi's Un ballo in maschera at the Theater Saarbrücken,[5] and Radames at the Schlossfestspiele Schwerin [de] and Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz, Opernhaus Dortmund. He also performed as Manrico at the Linz State Theatre,[6] and as Cavaradossi in Puccini's Tosca at the Teatro di San Carlo. He performed as his favorite roles Calaf in Turandot and Radames in Aida in Opera Națională Bucureşti, Națională Română Iași in Romana, Teatr Wielki w Lodzi in Poland, Georgian National Opera Theater in Georgia,[7] Daegu Opera House, Seoul Arts Center in South Korea,[8] International Istanbul Opera Festival in Turkey, Prague National Theater in Czech Republic,[9] Cairo Opera House, in the Temple of Hatshepsut at the Luxor Festival in Egypt.[10]

He also sang Verdi's Messa da Requiem in Teatro Veriano Luchetti, Basilica di San Pietro Tuscania and  Teatro Politeama Catanzaro in Italy and Belcanto Opera Gala at Alte Oper Frankfurt in Germany.[11]

In the 2021/22 season he is scheduled to appear in Opernhaus Dortmund as Cavaradossi in Puccini's Tosca[12] and as Télasco in Gaspare Spontini's Fernand Cortez.[1]

Awards

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  • First prize International Singing Competition Masters of Lyrical Art – Valentin Teodorian in Bucharest
  • First prize and special prize at the Competizione dell’Opera 2013 in Linz[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b "James Lee". Theater Dortmund (in German). Retrieved 5 August 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Ab heute Wettsingen beim Opernwettbewerb". nachrichten.at (in German). 22 September 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  3. ^ Haslmayr, Harald (19 January 2014). "Puccinis Turandot: Das Publikum tobte". Die Presse (in German). Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  4. ^ "Aida in St. Margarethen: Der Römersteinbruch als Großleinwand". tt.com (in German). Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  5. ^ Schwambach, Oliver. "Die Geschichte im Schatten". saarbruecker-zeitung.de (in German). Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  6. ^ "Il Trovatore GIUSEPPE VERDI". ioco.de (in German). Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  7. ^ "Invited soloists at the third performance of Aida". opera.ge. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  8. ^ Park, Anna J. (8 August 2019). "Puccini's music goes directly into the blood and hearts of audiences". The Korea Times. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  9. ^ "James Lee". narodni-divadlo.cz. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  10. ^ Lee, Se-Hyung. "Korean opera singers to star in Aida in Luxor". donga.com. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  11. ^ "Belcanto Operngala". alteoper.de (in German). Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  12. ^ "Tosca". Theater Dortmund (in German). Retrieved 29 July 2021.
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Category:1979 births Category:Living people Category:South Korean opera singers Category:Operatic tenors