About

Italy announces a formidable return to the opera stage with the young Italian tenor, Vittorio Grigolo. His triumphant debut this June at London’s Royal Opera House Covent Garden, performing in a new production of Manon by Massenet alongside Anna Netrebko, caused a sensation amongst audience and music critics alike: “But the evening really belongs to her (Anna Netrebko’s) Des Grieux, Italian tenor Vittorio Grigolo […] making the most sensational debut to be heard at Covent Garden for some time. He’s got everything the role demands – a voice that flows, terrific looks, an instinctive sense of theatre”. The Guardian

Born in Arezzo,Tuscany and raised in Rome, Vittorio was only four when he discovered his passion for music; a few years later he was made a soloist in the Sistine Chapel choir. Having made his debut as the Shepherd in Tosca at the age of thirteen, he began his vocal training in earnest, and at twenty-three became the youngest tenor ever to perform at La Scala, Milan. Within a few years, he was appearing at all the world’s most prestigious opera houses, under the baton of Riccardo Chailly, Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Myung-Whun Chung, Daniel Oren and Antonio Pappano, with a repertoire that includes Mozart, Donizetti, Verdi, Puccini, Gounod, Massenet, Offenbach, Bernstein and the sacred works of Rossini. As one of the leading tenors of his generation, he now performs worldwide, and is renowned for his star quality as both a singer and actor: Vittorio’s exceptional dramatic and vocal talents have been widely praised by the world’s press.

With a gold and platinum-selling solo album, a Grammy-nominated recording of Bernstein’s West Side Story and his upcoming album “The Italian Tenor” released this Fall on Sony Classical, Vittorio is already established as a successful recording artist as well as a charismatic and accomplished stage performer. He brings the same energy to his live concert performances as he does to his operatic roles, and not long ago sang before an audience of over 40,000 at an event organized in Chicago in tribute to the late Luciano Pavarotti.

His most recent operatic appearances include the title roles in Faust, Don Carlo and Les Contes d’Hoffmann, along with La Bohème, Lucrezia Borgia, La Traviata, Gianni Schicchi, Lucia di Lammermoor, Il corsaro, Manon and Rigoletto.

Most recently Vittorio has collaborated with Zubin Mehta and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra in a special gala concert performance of Rigoletto in Tel Aviv. In September Vittorio will take the role of the Duke in Andrea Andermann’s spectacular televised production of Rigoletto, with Plácido Domingo, conducted by Zubin Mehta, which will be broadcast across two evenings by numerous European television stations. Vittorio will make his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York with La Bohème in October and next season will see him perform at La Scala, Milan in Roméo et Juliette.

Home town: Born in Arezzo, Italy, raised in Rome.

Birthday: 19 February 1977

Residences: Zurich, Los Angeles and Rome.

Formal Education: Scuola Cantorum della Cappella Sistina, Conservatorio di Musica L. Refice, Liceo Linguistico, Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza” (Political Science).

Mentor: Danilo Rigosa, from age seven, and still today!

Debut on stage: At age four with a recital for my elementary school singing opera arias, from age eleven to thirteen on a worldwide tour with the Sistine Chapel Choir throughout Europe and the United States.

Major role debut: At the age of eighteen in Rossini’s Petite Messe solennelle and six months later singing Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore in outdoor performances in small Venetian villages. This was followed by performing Rossini’s Il turco in Italia at Vienna’s Kammeroper when I was nineteen years old.

North American debut: Washington National Opera in Puccini’s La Bohème and Donizetti’s Lucrezia Borgia with Renée Fleming and Sondra Radvanovsky.

La Scala debut: In 2000 – singing in the opening concert for the Verdi year, the Inaugurazione Dell’Anno Verdiano.

Recent recordings: Vittorio, In the Hands of Love, West Side Story 50th Anniversary, The Italian Tenor.

Film and TV appearances: UK appearances include Davina, Des & Mel, GMTV, Top of the Pops, Loose Women, Greatest Movie Theme Tunes, BBC Breakfast Show, Classical Brit Awards 2006. Other European appearances include Miss Holland 2006, San Valentino Galà Turin, La Nau & RTVV Valencia. La traviata at the main station in Zurich 2008, Chorégies D’Orange 2009. USA appearances include Dancing with the Stars (also in Australia), Fox TV News. PBS Great Performances – Dreams of Rome.

Charitable involvement: I have a foundation called Opera for Life that works to raise money for different charities.

First job: This was selling corkscrews at the local fair and being a salesman in the family business.

First voice and music teacher: Madame Mauro at the pianoforte (age seven) , Suor Domenica (age ten), Padre Raffaele (interpretation) and Padre Vittorio Catena (singing) from age ten to thirteen, then Danilo Rigosa from age seventeen onwards.

Early successes: European Border Breaker Award and Capri Music Award.

Early failures: Basketball.

Philosophy: Every day is precious…a gift! That is why we call it the present! (Kung Fu Panda). Also, try to catch the extraordinary in the ordinary things of everyday life. And a loooooot of positive attitude!

Likes: Being with friends, flying my remote-controlled model helicopters and planes, motorcycle riding, repairing and modifying modern and vintage cars, riding my Vespa, racing-car driving, and basically doing any extreme sports.

Dislikes: Being stuck in traffic when I am going out somewhere because my free time is so precious! Also, anyone taller than me!

Favourite actor/actress: Alberto Sordi, Sylvester Stallone, Cary Grant, Sophia Loren, Harrison Ford.

Favourite movie: Star Wars and Star Trek, and I love all kinds of animation… I have a good sized library.

Greatest recent non-professional accomplishments: Learning to fly my remote-controlled helicopters well!

Music Vittorio listens to: All kinds and there are too many favourite artists to list here… maybe the Rocky soundtrack when I’m getting ready at home before a show… but I love all kinds of music from Ethnic and Tribal to modern Pop and R & B.

What Vittorio would do if he were not an opera singer: I would have continued racing cars and motorbikes, and building and repairing cars… maybe I can do that one day, when I retire.

Favourite food: Everything, but I like home cooking the most… especially la pasta dolce — a typical dish from the Umbrian cooking tradition.

Favourite drinks: Red and white wine, gin & tonic.

Favourite book: I am still writing it. Not yet finished!

Guiseppe Verdi:
Don Carlo
I Due Foscari
Un Ballo in Maschera
Luisa Miller
Messa da Requiem
Rigoletto
La Traviata
Il Corsaro
Gaetano Donizetti:
L´Elisir d’Amore
Don Sebastiano
La Favorita
Anna Bolena
Lucrezia Borgia
Lucia di Lammermoor
Giacomo Puccini:
La Bohème
Madama Butterfly
Charles Gounod:
Faust
Roméo & Juliette
Gioachino Rossini:
Petite Messe Solennelle
Stabat Mater
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:
Idomeneo
Così fan tutte
Jules Massenet:
Werther
Manon
Leonard Bernstein:
West Side Story
Jacques Offenbach:
Les Contes d'Hoffmann