Abdrazakov joins the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus and previously-announced soloists Barbara Frittoli, soprano, Olga Borodina, mezzo-soprano, and Marcello Giordani, tenor.
The bass is slated to sing Raimondo in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor this coming season at the Met. Having made his company debut in 2004 as Masetto in Don Giovanni, other appearances on the famous Lincoln Center stage include M_phistoph_ls in Faust, Alidoro in La Cenerentola and Escamillo in Carmen.
The native of Ufa, Russia, has recorded a collection of unpublished Rossini arias for Decca and may be heard on the live recording of Cherubini's Messe at the Bayerische Rundfunk, conducted by Riccardo Muti for EMI Classics.
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The Met's performance of Verdi's Requiem is scheduled for Thursday, September 18 at 5:00 PM in commemoration of the first anniversary of the death of Luciano Pavarotti, who passed on September 6, 2007. Music Director James Levine will conduct. Tickets to the concert are free and will be distributed via a random drawing.
The concert will also be carried live on the Metropolitan Opera on Sirius Satellite Radio, channel 78, and will be streamed live on the Met's web site.
Free Ticket Drawing Information
Free tickets for "Verdi Requiem: A Tribute to Luciano Pavarotti" will be distributed via a random drawing selected from entries that are submitted before 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 3, 2008. Entries may be submitted in three ways:
1) filling out a form at the Met web site, www.metopera.org
2) calling the Met's ticket service center at 212-362-6000
3) filling out a form available in the Met lobby
Web site and phone entries may be submitted starting Wednesday, August 20 at noon. Lobby form entries are currently available and may be submitted now, however early entries have no advantage in the drawing process. Entries will NOT be accepted by mail or by e-mail, and only one entry per person will be allowed, with duplicates disqualified.
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"We are offering this free tribute in honor of one of the greatest artists of all time," said Peter Gelb, the Met's General Manager. "Pavarotti captivated millions with his performances at the Met and elsewhere, and his golden voice will resonate in this opera house for as long as it stands."
Luciano Pavarotti made his Met debut on November 23, 1968 as Rodolfo in Puccini's La Bohme and sang his farewell performance on March 13, 2004 as Mario Cavaradossi in the same composer's Tosca. In all, he performed 378 times with the Met, more than with any other opera company. He sang 20 roles, mostly by Italian composers, as well as performances of the Verdi Requiem and other concerts and recitals.
The famed tenor first performed Cavaradossi with the Met in 1978, and went on to sing it a total of 60 times, his most frequent role. Perhaps his most renowned portrayal was as Nemorino in Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore, his second most frequent Met role at 49 performances. He sang in 48 radio broadcasts from the Met stage and starred in 13 new production premieres. In addition to his opera performances, Pavarotti gave three recitals with piano on the Met stage, one with Maestro Levine and two with his accompanist Leone Magiera, and participated in numerous special galas, including the 1972 salute to Rudolf Bing, the 1983 Met Centennial Gala, and a gala celebration of the 30th anniversary of his Met debut in 1998.
When the Met launched its first regular series of televised performances in 1977, the inaugural opera was La Bohme, conducted by James Levine, with Pavarotti as Rodolfo and soprano Renata Scotto, another frequent onstage partner early in his career, as MimÐ. He went on to sing in 21 Met telecasts, many of which are currently available on DVD. Pavarotti also made several recordings with the Met, all conducted by Maestro Levine: La Traviata, Rigoletto, I Lombardi, L'Elisir d'Amore and Manon Lescaut.
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The Met's 2008-09 season opens on Monday, September 22 at 6:30 with a gala performance featuring Ren_e Fleming in fully-staged acts from three operas for which she is well-known: Act II of La Traviata, Act III of Manon, and the final scene of Richard Strauss's Capriccio. In another free public event, the performance will also be transmitted live to multiple screens in Times Square and the Plaza at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus. The opening night gala will also be the season's first The Met: Live in HD transmission to movie theaters and other venues in the Americas.
For further information, visit www.metopera.org
