René Pape

René Papes bass showed considerable velvet sheen and elegant dynamic play purely as singing and star presence he impressed Born in Dresden Black Diamond Bass Rene Pape has been a member of the Berlin State Opera since 1988 but considers New Yorks Metropolitan Opera his operatic home away from home Since his house debut in 1995 he has appeared every season at the Met in 18 roles and more than 160 performances including four major debuts Méphistophélès in Faust Gurnemanz in Parsifal Escamillo in Carmen and the Old Hebrew in Samson et Dalila But it was at the famous Unter den Linden home of the Berlin State Opera where Pape honed most of the great roles of his career Music Director Daniel Barenboim was an early supporter and the Berlin State Opera has played host to Papes performances as King Marke in Tristan und Isolde King Heinrich in Lohengrin Sarastro in Mozarts Die Zauberflöte Pogner in DieMeistersinger Rocco in Beethovens Fidelio Fasolt in Das Rheingold Hunding in Die Walküre and the title role in Don Giovanni The opera house was also the venue for Papes appearances as Ramfis in Verdis Aida Figaro in Mozarts Le nozze di Figaro Leporello in Don Giovanni and Orest in Strausss Elektra Papes first CD of solo arias Gods Kings Demons was released in 2008 on Deutsche Grammophon with his hometown orchestra the Staatskapelle Dresden conducted by Sebastian Weigle The disc won a coveted ECHO award the German equivalent of a Grammy Pape performs regularly in major opera houses concert halls and symphony orchestras around the world as well as opera festivals such as Bayreuth Glyndebourne Lucerne Orange SaintPetersburg Salzburg Verbier and White Nights He currently resides in Austria and Berlin