Opera Gala: Plácido Domingo
Artists
Serena Sáenz – soprano
Ester Pavlů – mezzo-soprano
Plácido Domingo – baritone
PKF – Prague Philharmonia
Alessandro Crudele – conductor
Program
Selection of opera arias and duets by composers G. Verdi, G. Puccini, G. Bizet and Spanish zarzuelas
Serena Sáenz
Spanish soprano and 1st prize winner of the Montserrat Caballé International Singing Competition was honored with multiple prizes at both the Paris Opera Competition and the Viñas Competition, including the Audience Prize in Paris and Montserrat.
She has performed in numerous operatic roles including Lucia di Lammermoor in Gran Teatre del Liceu, Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, Nannetta in Falstaff and Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, Norina in Don Pasquale or Zerlina in Don Giovanni and in leading opera houses including Staatsoper Berlin, Gran Teatre del Liceu and Teatro Real or Fundació Opera de Catalunya.
Photo: Dovile Sermokas
Ester Pavlů
One of the most promising singers and mezzo-sopranos of the younger generation, she studied at the Academy of Performing Arts under Helena Kaupová and has performed on leading domestic and international stages. She has appeared at the National Theatre Opera, the State Opera and the National Theatre in Prague in the title role of Bizet’s Carmen, Santuzza in Cavalleria rusticana, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, the Queen in Švanda the piper, and the Foreign Princess in Dvořák’s Rusalka.
She has performed mainly abroad: she has toured the UK and the USA, made her debut in Basel as Santuzza, in Riga as Eboli in Don Carlos, in the National Theatre in Sofia in the title role of Rossini’s Cinderella and this season she also made her debut in Vienna at the Theater an der Wien as the Ice Queen in Die Fledermaus. She has worked with leading ensembles and conductors such as J. Bělohlávek, P. Inkinen, D.G. Carreras, P. Popelka, F. Chaslin, J. Cura, A. Jurkevyč, J. Valčuha and many others.
Photo: Josef Rabara
Plácido Domingo
World-renowned eclectic artist. Recognized as one of the best opera singers, Domingo is also a conductor and has been Honorary Artistic Director of the Centennial Festival of the Arena di Verona, General Manager of Los Angeles and Washington Opera.
His repertoire includes 151 roles, an achievement unmatched by any other singer and over 4,050 performances. His debut in Italy dates back to 1969 with Turandot at the Arena di Verona and a few months later he opened the season at Teatro alla Scala with Ernani. To his credit has more than a hundred recordings with 12 Grammy Awards and over 50 videos. He was the protagonist of three famous film-opera: Carmen di Rosi, La traviata and Otello by Zeffirelli. Cavaradossi’s historical interpretation was followed by over a billion people on live TV, from Rome in the places and times of Tosca. For over ten years, since 1990, he has performed in the concerts of The Three Tenors with Carreras and Pavarotti, attracting new audiences to the opera. Since 1993 he presides over the prestigious international singing competition Operalia of which is also the founder.
He has received honorary degrees and awards for his contribution to music and the arts. He has performed world premieres of several operas including Goya by Menotti and Il Postino by Catán. In parallel to singing, he performs as conductor; to his credit more than 500 opera performances and symphonic concerts with some of the most prestigious orchestras and his recent debut at the Bayreuth Festival conducting Die Walkure.
In recent years he has dedicated himself to interpreting the great roles of the baritone repertoire, especially Verdi’s: Simon Boccanegra, I due Foscari, La traviata, Nabucco, Il trovatore, Giovanna D’Arco, Macbeth, Ernani, Don Carlo, Luisa Miller, Thaïs and Gianni Schicchi, performing on the main stages of the world. In 2017 again a foray into the tenor repertoire such as Bajazet in Tamerlano on the stage of the Teatro alla Scala. During this summer, after receiving the Österreichischer Musiktheaterpreis 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award in Salzburg, he returned to perform starting from Italy with an impressive concert at the Reggia di Caserta and then at the Arena di Verona with two highly acclaimed Gala evenings, singing and conducting. Following the success at the Staatsoper in Vienna where he played Simon Boccanegra, he sang Nabucco at Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, after receiving the CC Forum Award in Monte Carlo for his humanitarian commitment, and conducted Manon Lescaut and sang in a Gala Eveing at Bolshoi Opera House. In December 2020 he sang I due Foscari in Montecarlo, the opening night of Teatro alla Scala for Season 2020/2021 and Nabucco at Mariinsky Opera House with Valery Gergiev.
Photo: Fiorenzo Niccoli
PKF – Prague Philharmonia
PKF – Prague Philharmonia was founded in 1994 on the initiative of the world-famous conductor Jiří Bělohlávek under the original name of the Prague Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra. In the nearly 30 years of its existence, the orchestra has earned recognition throughout the music world thanks to its international tours, but also thanks to its internationally acclaimed albums and recordings. The PKF is praised for its unique sound, but also for its repertoire, which is mainly focused on the works of Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven.
Jakub Hrůša, Julian Rachlin, Martha Argerich, Jefim Bronfman, András Schiff, Gil Shaham, Isabelle Faust, Emmanuel Pahud, Luciano Pavarotti, Diana Damrau, Plácido Domingo, Gautier Capuçon, Maxim Vengerov, Mischa Maisky, Juan Diego Flórez, Jonas Kaufmann and many others have performed with the orchestra.
Photo: Ivan Malý
Alessandro Crudele
The Milan native and one of the most versatile Italian conductors studied violin and composition at the Milan Conservatory and conducting at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena.
He has conducted many of the Europe’s leading orchestras including, amongst many others, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bamberger Symphoniker, Berliner Philharmoniker and Prague Symphony Orchestra FOK. As a a frequent guest in Asia, he has also conducted orchestras such as the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra and especially the Hong Kong Sinfonietta.
With the London Symphony Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra, Crudele has also released acclaimed albums interpreting works by Ottorino Respighi, Benjamin Britten and Edward Elgar.
Crudele also devotes his time to systematic work with young orchestras.
Photo: Marco Borggreve
Municipal Park
The 2.5 hectare park is located in the centre of Český Krumlov, on the left bank of the Vltava River. Since the end of the 16th century, the area of the present park has been a place of relaxation and a garden. It was used by the Jesuits, whose dormitory stood on the opposite bank. Extensive changes […]
