Gerald Finley

His career initially focused on the music of Mozart; his Don Giovanni and Count Le nozze di Figaro have been heard live and broadcast throughout the world. His ever-expanding repertoire soon encompassed major Wagner and Verdi repertoire as well roles including Bluebeard, Guillaume Tell, J. Robert Oppenheimer in John Adams’ Dr. Atomic, and Jaufré Rudel in Saariaho’s L’amour de loin. In contemporary opera, Finley has excelled in creating leading roles, most notably John Adams’ Dr Atomic (San Francisco Opera, Metropolitan Opera, English National Opera, Dutch National Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago), and Antony and Cleopatra (San Francisco Opera, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Metropolitan Opera). He also premiered in Mark Anthony Turnage’s The Silver Tassie (English National Opera) and Festen (Royal Ballet & Opera). He has also performed as Howard K. Stern in Turnage’s Anna Nicole and as Mr Fox in Tobias Picker’s Fantastic Mr Fox at L.A. Opera. In 2012, the DVD release of Doctor Atomic in which Gerald Finley appeared as J. Robert Oppenheimer was awarded the Grammy for ‘Best Opera Recording’.

Finley’s 26/27 season begins with Phelim McDermott’s production of Così fan tutte at the Metropolitan Opera before embarking on a tour with Klaus Mäkelä and the Concertgebouw Orchestra with Bluebeard’s Castle. He will appear twice more as Don Alfonso with a new production by Netia Jones at the Royal Ballet & Opera and in Barrie Kosky’s production at the Wiener Staatsoper. Finley also performs as Amfortas Parsifal at Tiroler Festspiele Erl and Scarpia Tosca at Bayerische Staatsoper. On the concert platform, Finley joins for Beethoven’s Symphony No.9 with Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Klaus Mäkelä; Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with Munich Philharmonic and Klaus Mäkelä; a recital tour with Julius Drake; Bluebeard’s Castle with Trondheim Symfonieorkester and Adam Hickox; a tour of Bach’s St Matthew Passion; Brahms’ German Requiem with Simone Young and the Philharmonia Orchestra; Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem with Edward Gardner and the London Philharmonic Orchestra; and joins a celebrated ensemble of singers to celebrate the 60^th Anniversary Gala at the Metropolitan Opera.

Last season saw Finley feature in a new production of Tosca at the Royal Ballet & Opera; his debut at Teatro alla Scala as Don Alfonso Così fan tutte; Golaud Pelléas et Mélisande at Opéra de Monte-Carlo; Amfortas Parsifal at Wiener Staatsoper; Count Almaviva Le nozze di Figaro and the title role in Macbeth at Bayerische Staatsoper. On the concert platform, Finley performed Handel’s Messiah with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra; Brahms’ Requiemwith the London Symphony Orchestra; Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with the Orchestre de Paris and Klaus Mäkelä; and a concert at Teatro Real with Leo Hussain.

Other recent engagements include Der fliegende Holländer (Norwegian National Opera, Staatsoper unter den Linden); Scarpia Tosca (Royal Ballet & Opera, Staatsoper unter den Linden); Macbeth (Wiener Staatsoper, Bayerische Staatsoper); Amfortas Parsifal (Bayerische Staatsoper, Royal Ballet & Opera, in Baden-Baden with the Berliner Philharmoniker and Sir Simon Rattle); Count Almaviva Le nozze di Figaro (Bayerische Staatsoper, Royal Ballet & Opera, Opéra national de Paris, Metropolitan Opera); Iago Otello (Bayerische Staatsoper); Wolfram Tannhäuser (Royal Ballet & Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago); Don Alfonso Così fan tutte (Royal Ballet & Opera); Bluebeard’s Castle (Metropolitan Opera, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Oslo Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, with Against the Grain Theatre in London and Toronto, l’Orchestre de Paris, Wiener Symphoniker and Gotherburg Symphony Orchestra); and Falstaff (Wiener Staatsoper and Salzburg Festival).

Further critical successes include Hans Sachs Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at Teatro Real, Glyndebourne Festival and Opéra national de Paris; Verdi’s Falstaff at the Canadian Opera (for which he won a DORA Award); as a “peerless” Iago Otello with Sir Colin Davis and the LSO (LSO Live) Royal Ballet & Opera in Japan, and Bavarian State Opera, and Canadian Opera; and in the title role in Rossini’s Guillaume Tell with Accademia di Santa Cecilia and Sir Antonio Pappano (EMI) and at the Royal Ballet & Opera Covent Garden. His other important roles include Scarpia, Golaud, Eugene Onegin and Nick Shadow.

Finley’s concert work is a vital part of his flourishing career with recent appearances with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Mahler Chamber, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, and Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. He was the star of the 2018 Last Night of the Proms and a rediscovered version of Shostakovich’s “English Poets” along with that composer’s orchestral cycle, Michelangelo Sonnets, was recorded by Finley and the Helsinki Philharmonic on the Ondine label and received international critical acclaim. Modern day composers have written extensively for him and include Peter Lieberson (Songs of Love and Sorrow with the Boston Symphony and recorded by Ondine with the Helsinki Radio Orchestra), Mark Anthony Turnage (When I woke with the LPO and Vladimir Jurowski), Huw Watkins, Julian Philips, Kaija Saariaho (True Fire with the L.A. Philharmonic and Gustavo Dudamel), and Einojuhani Rautavaara (Rubáiyát with the Helsinki Philharmonic).

As a celebrated song recitalist, he works regularly with pianist Julius Drake. Their many appearances throughout the world include the Schubertiade, a residency at the Wigmore Hall, New York’s Carnegie-Zankel Hall and lauded appearances at the festivals of Salzburg, Edinburgh, and Tanglewood. He has also performed with Sir Antonio Pappano, Malcolm Martineau, Simon Lepper and Michael McMahon.

Finley’s many solo recital CD releases have been devoted to complete songs of Barber, Britten, Duparc, Ives, Liszt, Ravel and Schumann song cycles Dichterliebe and Liederkreis Op. 24 & 39. With a continuing partnership with Julius Drake on the Hyperion label, all have been critically acclaimed, including an unprecedented three Gramophone Awards in the Solo Vocal category. Their release of Schubert Winterreise won a Canadian Juno Award in 2015 and last season saw the completion of their Hyperion Schubert trilogy with the release of Die schöne Müllerin. Most recently the London Symphony Orchestra released a recording of Mendelssohn’s Elijah with Finley in the title role. Finley also featured on the highly acclaimed recording of Der fliegende Holländer with Lise Davidsen, Edward Gardner and the Norwegian National Opera, released by Decca.

As part of his dedication to preserving and enhancing the singing tradition, he gives masterclasses throughout the world most recently at the Juilliard School of Music, and continues to work with the Jette Parker Young Artists’ Program at the Royal Ballet & Opera, Covent Garden, the National Opera Studio, and the Lindemann Program at the Met.