Christophe Dumaux
Encyclopedia
Christophe Dumaux is a French classical countertenor
.
He initially studied voice
and cello
at his local conservatory in Châlons-en-Champagne
and in 2000 entered the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris.
In July 2002 at the age of 21, he made his professional debut singing the role of Eustazio in Handel
's Rinaldo
at the Festival de Radio France et Montpellier
. Since then he has sung as a soloist with several prominent baroque music
ensembles, including William Christie
's Le Jardin des Voix and Les Arts Florissants
, Emmanuelle Haïm
's Le Concert d’Astrée, and Il Combattimento Consort di Amsterdam.
He made his US debut in 2003 at the Spoleto Festival
in Charleston, South Carolina
singing the title role in Handel's Tamerlano
. Several major other major house
and company debuts soon followed, including: the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels
as Giuliano in Cavalli's
Eliogabalo
(2004); Santa Fe Opera
as Ottone in Handel's Agrippina
(2004); the Opéra national de Paris as Ottone in Monteverdi's
L'incoronazione di Poppea
(2005); Glyndebourne Festival Opera
as Tolomeo in Handel's Giulio Cesare
(2005); and the New York Metropolitan Opera
as Unulfo in Handel's Rodelinda (2006).
Countertenor
A countertenor is a male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of a contralto, mezzo-soprano, or a soprano, usually through use of falsetto, or far more rarely than normal, modal voice. A pre-pubescent male who has this ability is called a treble...
.
He initially studied voice
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
and cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
at his local conservatory in Châlons-en-Champagne
Châlons-en-Champagne
Châlons-en-Champagne is a city in France. It is the capital of both the department of Marne and the region of Champagne-Ardenne, despite being only a quarter the size of the city of Reims....
and in 2000 entered the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris.
In July 2002 at the age of 21, he made his professional debut singing the role of Eustazio in Handel
HANDEL
HANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
's Rinaldo
Rinaldo
Rinaldo may refer to:*Rinaldo , an Italian opera by George Frideric Handel*Rinaldo , a cantata by Johannes Brahms*Rinaldo , a character in Torquato Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered...
at the Festival de Radio France et Montpellier
Festival de Radio France et Montpellier
The Festival de Radio France et Montpellier is a summer festival of opera and music held in Montpellier, France created in 1985. The music festival concentrates on classical music and jazz with about 100 events, including opera, concerts, films, and talks, most of which are free and located in the...
. Since then he has sung as a soloist with several prominent baroque music
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
ensembles, including William Christie
William Christie (musician)
William Lincoln Christie is an American-born French conductor and harpsichordist. He is noted as a specialist in baroque repertoire and as the founder of the ensemble Les Arts Florissants....
's Le Jardin des Voix and Les Arts Florissants
Les Arts Florissants (ensemble)
Les Arts Florissants is a Baroque musical ensemble in residence at the Théâtre de Caen in Caen, France. The organization was founded by conductor William Christie in 1979. The ensemble derives its name from the 1685 opera by Marc-Antoine Charpentier. The organization consists of a chamber orchestra...
, Emmanuelle Haïm
Emmanuelle Haïm
Emmanuelle Haïm is a French harpsichordist and conductor with a particular interest in early music and Baroque music....
's Le Concert d’Astrée, and Il Combattimento Consort di Amsterdam.
He made his US debut in 2003 at the Spoleto Festival
Spoleto Festival USA
Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina, is one of the world's major performing arts festivals. It was founded in 1977 by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Gian Carlo Menotti, who sought to establish a counterpart to the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, Italy...
in Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
singing the title role in Handel's Tamerlano
Tamerlano
Tamerlano is an opera in three acts written for the Royal Academy of Music , with music by George Frideric Handel to an Italian text by Nicola Francesco Haym, adapted from Agostin Piovene's Tamerlano together with another libretto entitled Bajazet after Nicolas Pradon's Tamerlan, ou La Mort de...
. Several major other major house
Opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for opera performances that consists of a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and set building...
and company debuts soon followed, including: the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
as Giuliano in Cavalli's
Francesco Cavalli
Francesco Cavalli was an Italian composer of the early Baroque period. His real name was Pietro Francesco Caletti-Bruni, but he is better known by that of Cavalli, the name of his patron Federico Cavalli, a Venetian nobleman.-Life:Cavalli was born at Crema, Lombardy...
Eliogabalo
Eliogabalo
Eliogabalo is an opera by the Italian composer Francesco Cavalli based on the life of the Roman emperor Heliogabalus. The author of the original libretto is unknown but it was probably reworked by Aurelio Aureli...
(2004); Santa Fe Opera
Santa Fe Opera
The Santa Fe Opera is an American opera company, located north of Santa Fe in the U.S. state of New Mexico, headquartered on a former guest ranch of .-General history:...
as Ottone in Handel's Agrippina
Agrippina (opera)
Agrippina is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel, from a libretto by Cardinal Vincenzo Grimani. Composed for the Venice Carnevale season, the opera tells the story of Agrippina, the mother of Nero, as she plots the downfall of the Roman Emperor Claudius and the installation of...
(2004); the Opéra national de Paris as Ottone in Monteverdi's
Claudio Monteverdi
Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, gambist, and singer.Monteverdi's work, often regarded as revolutionary, marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two individual styles of composition – the...
L'incoronazione di Poppea
L'incoronazione di Poppea
L'incoronazione di Poppea is an Italian baroque opera comprising a prologue and three acts, first performed in Venice during the 1642–43 carnival season. The music, attributed to Claudio Monteverdi, is a setting of a libretto by Giovanni Francesco Busenello...
(2005); Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an English opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England.-History:...
as Tolomeo in Handel's Giulio Cesare
Giulio Cesare
Giulio Cesare in Egitto , commonly known simply as Giulio Cesare, is an Italian opera in three acts written for the Royal Academy of Music by George Frideric Handel in 1724...
(2005); and the New York Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
as Unulfo in Handel's Rodelinda (2006).
Recordings
- Handel: Rinaldo (Vivica Genaux, Christophe Dumaux, Miah PerssonMiah PerssonMiah Persson, born 27 May 1969 in Örnsköldsvik, is a Swedish soprano, active internationally and in recordings.-Career:Miah Persson grew up in Hudiksvall, singing in choirs and taking part in amateur drama productions...
, James Rutherford, Inga Kalna, Lawrence Zazzo, Dominique Visse; Conductor: René Jacobs; Orchestra/Ensemble: Freiburg Baroque Orchestra) CD 2003. Label: Harmonia MundiHarmonia MundiHarmonia Mundi is an independent music record label founded in 1958 by Bernard Coutaz in Arles . The Latin phrase means "world harmony"....
. - Handel: Giulio Cesare (Sarah Connolly, Christopher Maltman, Patricia Bardon, Christophe Dumaux, Angelika Kirchschlager, Danielle De Niese, Rachid Ben Abdeslam; Conductor: William Christie; Orchestra/Ensemble: Orchestra of the Age of EnlightenmentOrchestra of the Age of EnlightenmentThe Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment is a British period instrument orchestra. The OAE is a resident orchestra of the Southbank Centre, London, associate orchestra at Glyndebourne Festival Opera and has its headquarters at Kings Place...
, Glyndebourne Festival Chorus), DVD 2006. Label: BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
/Opus Arte. - Handel: Partenope Christophe Dumaux, Andreas SchollAndreas SchollAndreas Scholl is a German countertenor, a male classical singer in the alto vocal range. He is noted as a specialist in Baroque music.-Childhood:...
, Inger Dam Jensen, Tuva Semmingsen, Lars Ulrik Mortensen
External links
- Biography on IMG ArtistsIMG ArtistsIMG Artists LLC is a top universal performing arts management corporation that was acquired by International Management Group in 1984. Chairman and CEO of IMG, Mark McCormack, bought out Hamlen/Landau, a small, New York based artist-management music agency, founded by Charles Hamlen and Edna...