Verdi's "Aida" at the Gran Teatre del Liceu

From July 21^st  to the 30^th, Marcello will be seen on the stage of the Gran Teatre del Liceu of Barcelona to reprise a role which he has sung with great success at the San Francisco Opera, the Chicago Lyric, the Arena di Verona and the Metropolitan Opera: Radames in Verdi’s Aida.

His debut in the role with the San Francisco Opera in 2010 was received enthusiastically by the critics - the “Classical Review” praised his “rich, heroic tone” and declared him “one of the finest actors”.  Since then his interpretation of a role that was defined by one critic as “impossibily demanding”, has been widely acclaimed by the press. “Giordani commands the stage as the conquering hero,” declared the reviewer of the online blog “Chicago Now”; and the Chicago Classical Review, praised both his vocalism and his acting abilities: “Giordani’s voice soared thrillingly over the massed ensembles of Act 2 and he brought an emotional depth and highly nuanced vocalism to his late scene with Amneris and the final duet.”

Because of its spectacular pageantry, Aida has been called “the grandest of grand opera”, and it’s certainly the most “grandiose”. But for all its grandiosity, Aida is also an “intimate” love story where the characters’ conflicting passions and emotions play against a broad background of the patriotic and religious values of a militaristic society. The challenges of the role begin for the tenor only minutes into the opera with the aria “Celeste Aida” which calls for a “rich, heroic tone” combined with tender lyricism, and culminate in the rousing confrontation with Aida’s rival, Amneris, which seals Radames’ tragic fate – a veritable “lightning storm”, as one critic put it.

For cast and ticket information go to the Gran Teatre del Liceu website.