Founder of OperaWebinar and Music Director at Teatr Wielki in Warsaw from 2011 to 2014, Italian conductor Carlo Montanaro was discovered by Zubin Mehta, who recommanded him to the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna, where he improved his skills under Leopold Hager, Erwin Acél and Yugi Yuasa for three years.
Since 2001, Montanaro has conducted opera and concerts in major venues including Teatro dell’Opera in Rome, Teatro Massimo in Palermo, Fondazione Arena in Verona, Deutsche Oper in Berlin, Teatro Comunale in Florence, Fondazione Arturo Toscanini in Parma and Teatro Verdi in Trieste (a collaboration which led to a Japanese tour with the Orchestra). Titles included Lucia di Lammermoor, Nabucco, Aida, Tosca, La Sonnambula, Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Madama Butterfly and La Bohème.
He conducted two works in the 2004-2005 season at Teatro Comunale in Florence, as well as various symphonic concerts with Fondazione Arena Verona, Orchestra Filarmonica Marchigiana, Teatro Cilea in Reggio Calabria and Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. He conducted Il Trovatore and Il Barbiere di Siviglia at the State Opera of Stuttgart, as well as Il Barbiere di Siviglia with Fondazione Arturo Toscanini.
Highlights between 2006 and 2008 include a great public and critical success conducting Un Ballo in Maschera with the Israeli Opera of Tel Aviv (new production), his American debut in Colorado with Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’Amore, I Dialoghi delle Carmelitane in Bilbao to great critical acclaim, and Madama Butterfly at the Deutsche Oper Berlin.
In 2008 he made his debut at La Scala with La Traviata, and he opened the Macerata Summer Festival with Carmen directed by Dante Ferretti. He conducted Il Corsaro at Festival Verdi in Parma and made his debut at Hercules Halle in Munich in a concert with the Weimar Staatskapelle and Erwin Schrott.
His 2009 opened with Madama Butterfly at the New National Theatre in Tokyo, followed by his return to Opera Colorado in Denver for Così fan tutte and a highly praised new production of Simone Boccanegra at Megaron in Athens, where he was then invited again to conduct Aida. He opened the 2009/10 Season at Canadian Opera conducting a new production of Madama Butterfly, and he conducted Mefistofele in Frankfurt, Verdi’s Requiem at Musikverein in Graz, Roméo et Juliette in Verona, La Traviata in Munich and Aida in Hamburg with great reviews from public and critics.
In 2011 he debuted with Carmen at Semperoper Dresden to great success, and he was reinvited to conduct Il Barbiere di Siviglia and a new production of Un Ballo in Maschera.
Further highlights: Don Quichotte and Attila at Seattle Opera, a new production of Turandot in Warsaw, Lucia di Lammermoor in Bilbao, Aida, Manon Lescaut, Turandot and Macbeth in Hamburg, La Bohème at Teatro Comunale di Firenze, L’Amico Fritz and a new production of Adriana Lecouvreur in Frankfurt, La Traviata in Warsaw and in Cincinnati.
In September 2012 he returned to Musikverein in Graz to conduct a concert version of Verdi’s Giovanna D’Arco, and since then he conducted Falstaff in Hamburg, Tosca and L’Elisir d’Amore in Munich, Il Barbiere di Siviglia in Tokyo, Don Carlo, Verdi’s Requiem and Turandot in Warsaw, La Bohème in Seattle, Don Carlo in Frankfurt, Il Corsaro in Budapest, Norma at the Festival in Peralada. In season 2013/14, Madama Butterfly in Nagoya and Hamburg, La Traviata in Oviedo, La Bohème in Budapest, The Consul in Seattle, a concert version of Attila in Warsaw, Carmen, L’Elisir d’Amore and Tosca in Munich, Tosca and Il Trovatore at the Mariinsky in St. Petersburg, as well as concerts with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra del Santa Cecilia in Rome.
In season 14/15 he successfully debuted at Opéra Bastille in Paris with Il Barbiere di Siviglia. After that, he was on the podiums of the Hungarian National Philharmonic (Verdi’s Requiem) and Seattle Symphony for a series of concerts. He then conducted a new production of La Fanciulla del West in Hamburg, Rigoletto and La Traviata in Warsaw, Mefistofele in Budapest, Simon Boccanegra in Frankfurt, Rossini’s Stabat Mater in Budapest and Pécs, Nabucco in Seattle.
Highlights in the recent seasons include the debut at Opéra de Monte-Carlo (Tosca), at Korean National Opera (Tosca and La Bohème), at Sydney Opera House (La Bohème, Lucia di Lammermoor and Werther) and at San Francisco Opera (Carmen and La Bohème), as well as Rigoletto and Madama Butterfly at Warsaw Opera, Maria Stuarda, Madama Butterfly, Il Trovatore, Rigoletto and L’Elisir d’Amore in Seattle, a new production of Rigoletto in Frankfurt, La Traviata at Dallas Opera, La Traviata and Ernani in Melbourne, Lucia di Lammermoor at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Rigoletto at Opéra de Montréal, Un Ballo in Maschera at the Hungarian State Opera, La Traviata, Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Tosca at Opéra de Paris, La Bohème at Hamburgische Staatsoper, La Traviata and Nabucco at the Deutsche Oper, Il turco in Italia at Teatro di San Carlo, Les contes d’Hoffmann at ABAO Olbe Bilbao.
In concert, he appeared with Cincinnati Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, Hungarian National Philharmonic, Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, and he conducted Mozart’s Requiem at Teatro Regio di Parma.
Most recently he conducted Tosca and Fedora at Oper Frankfurt, Lucia di Lammermoor at Teatro di San Carlo and Israeli Opera, La Juive and Madama Butterfly in Sydney, Nabucco, Lucia di Lammermoor and Aida at the Deutsche Oper, Madama Butterfly and Norma at Palm Beach Opera, La traviata and Pagliacci at Seattle Opera, Aida at Hungarian State Opera, Die Entführung aus dem Serail at Festival Napa Valley. Moreover, made his debut with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.
Future engagements include Manon at Hamburg State Opera, Rigoletto at Santa Fe Opera, Madama Butterfly at Berlin State Opera, Turandot at Lyric Opera of Kansas City.
Gianluca Macheda
ul. Grzybowska 43a, lok. 72 00-855
Warsaw Poland
gmacheda@gmartandmusic.com
Martina Biagini
Via Romana 578/B 55100 Lucca Italy
+39 3479762848
mbiagini@gmartandmusic.com
“Maestro Carlo Montanaro is probably the most athletic conductor I’ve ever seen. With incredible physicality, he continuously pushed his orchestra to new depths and heights of drama despite it being opening night.”
Mia T. Vogel, The Daily of the University of Washington
“Montanaro’s leadership blends the voices on stage with surgingly—sometimes even startlingly—zestful work in the orchestra pit in a way that makes Puccini’s score more intoxicatingly beautiful than any performance I can remember.”
Bernard Jacobson, Seen and Heard International
“However it was jolting to see conductor Carlo Montanaro applauding them also from his podium. Montanaro paced the performance deftly, keeping the orchestra well balanced with the singers, surely not an easy job with the unusual positioning.”
The SunBreak
“It’s intoxicating, rich, and inventive fitting perfectly with a lively and pacey performance led by Carlo Montanaro.”
Neil Simpson, The Huffington Post
“And the musical values are solidly underscored by the lyrical conducting of Carlo Montanaro, who knows how to create an edgy energy in the sound, and just when and how to broaden the small orchestra to underscore a dramatic idea.”
Melinda Bargreen, Seattle Times