33-year-old French lyric tenor Benjamin Bernheim has signed an exclusive long-term contract with Deutsche Grammophon.
His first album under the deal will arrive in autumn and it will feature French, Italian and Russian arias. The release will capture his interpretations of the classic young tenor roles, featuring works by many of the composers central to his operatic repertoire, including Gounod, Massenet, Donizetti, Puccini, Verdi and Tchaikovsky.
āOpera has the power to touch peopleās souls and enrich their lives, and Iām happy that Iāll be able to reach a broader audience worldwide in partnership with DG,ā says Bernheim. āIām delighted to have recorded my first DG album with the Prague Philharmonia and Emmanuel Villaume, exploring a range of roles that suit my voice so well right now.ā
Dr Clemens Trautmann, President Deutsche Grammophon, said, āBenjamin owns much more than a sublime voice,ā he notes. āHe is always searching for those vital elements that lie beneath the musicās surface, demonstrating a combination of intuition and empathy as well as technical mastery. Weāre determined to introduce this remarkable young star to a large new audience, and show why heās in such high demand at the worldās leading opera companies.ā
ValĆ©rie Gross, DGās A&R Director Vocal & Opera Productions, added, āHeās got it all: voice, charisma, looks and an uncanny ability to communicate with people ā watch out for this exceptional singer!ā
Bernheim was born in Paris in 1985. After studying in Lausanne, he joined Zurich Operaās Opera Studio in 2008, returning to the company two years later as a member of its renowned ensemble.
He has sung Rodolfo (La bohĆØme) at Covent Garden, the OpĆ©ra de Paris and the Vienna Staatsoper; Alfredo (La traviata) at La Scala, Milan, Berlin Staatsoper and Zurich Opera; Nemorino (Lāelisir dāamore) at the Vienna Staatsoper; Lenski (Eugene Onegin) at the Deutsche Oper Berlin; and the title role in Faust at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and ThĆ©Ć¢tre des Champs-ElysĆ©es.
In the 2019-20 season Bernheim will return to the OpƩra de Paris as Alfredo and Des Grieux in new productions of La traviata and Manon respectively. He will also make his role and house debut as the Duke in Rigoletto at the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich.