José Carreras
2023/ november/ 29, 19:30
José Carreras returns to Budapest
with his brand new gala concert
at Budapest Arena on November 29, 2023
Conductor David Giménez
Special Guest Erika Miklósa
Accompanied by The Budafok Dohnányi Orchestra
José Carreras is one of the most prominent opera singers of his generation, and particularly eminent in the operas of Verdi and Puccini, his career has encompassed over 60 roles on stage and in the recording studio. The Maestro has sold a staggering 85 million records, making him one of the most commercially successful opera singer of all time.
“I am very happy to be able to return to one of my favorite audiences, the Hungarian music fans, where I have already had many memorable performances, which we will recall with a full evening program on November 29. My return to Budapest will surely be a celebration of music. I hope to see you there!”– said the Maestro about his performance in November in Budapest.
Carreras is also known for his humanitarian work as the president of the José Carreras International Leukemia Foundation (La Fundació Internacional Josep Carreras per a la Lluita contra la Leucèmia), which he established following his own recovery from the disease.
In 1987, aged 40, he was given a one in ten chance of surviving leukemia. After his operation and chemotherapy, he was never quite able to return to his full, punishing operatic schedule. He found instead a new role for himselves as a populariser of opera.
Most famously, as a fanatical football fan, he came up with the idea of forming The Three Tenors to mark the opening of the 1990 World Cup in Italy. He and his friends Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti intended the concert as one off, but such was its popularity they ended up performing together a further 30 times, racking up colossal record sales along the way – which still hold the record for classical music.
Erika Miklósa, a Kossuth, Liszt Ferenc and Prima Primissima Prize-winning coloratura soprano singer. At the age of 19 - as the youngest ever -, she joined the Hungarian State Opera. Among her first performances abroad in 1992, she debuted in Mannheim in The Magic Flute as the Queen of the Night, a role that brought her fame on the most prominent stages of London, Paris, Munich and New York – she became one of the most sought after singer in this role, which she has sang more than 500 times.
In 1996, she studied abroad first as a fellow student of the Academy of Vocal Arts, Philadelphia, then as the fellow of La Scala, Milan.
She was a member of the Hungarian State Opera until 1999, where she sang soprano roles. Since 2004, she is regularly featured on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera, New York.
In addition to her opera roles, she also regularly appears in musicals and operettas, and is often featured as a lead artist in exclusive gala concerts.
David Giménez studied piano and composition at the Conservatori del Liceu in Barcelona. Later on, he specialized in conducting. Since his debut in 1994, he has appeared worldwide, leading the most prominent orchestras and soloists. With an exceptional understanding of voice, David Giménez collaborates regularly with singers such as José Carreras, Plácido Domingo, Anna Netrebko, Kiri Te Kanawa and Bryn Terfel.
Maestro David Giménez’s recordings include works for Decca, BMG Classics, Koch-Schwann, Erato and Discmedi.
The Budafok Dohnányi Orchestra (BDO) is Hungary’s most dynamic and versatile symphony orchestra. It was turned into a professional orchestra in 1993, to gain recognition on the Hungarian and international music scene and become one of the top classical music ensembles in a short time.
BDO is actively present on the international concert stage, too: it has played in almost every European country. BDO’s versatility is proven by a wide repertoire, which ranges from classical to contemporary, from jazz and pop through world music to movie soundtracks. BDO has already accompanied Sting at his Symphonicity Tour stops as well as Andrea Bocelli and Quincy Jones at their Budapest concerts, while in 2017 they already accompanied José Carreras in his concert in Budapest.
Tickets for the Budapest concert will be available from 10am on August 23, 2023 via livenation.hu and funcode.hu.
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