Opera Rara extends contract of artistic director Carlo Rizzi
Florence Lockheart
Tuesday, July 5, 2022
The London-based opera company has extended the Italian conductor's contract until 2025
London-based opera company and recording label Opera Rara has announced an extension of the contract Italian conductor Carlo Rizzi as artistic director until June 2025.
Rizzi took on the role of artistic director with the company in 2019 and since then has worked on Opera Rara’s audience engagement through concerts, recording releases, special events and initiatives, both in person and online.
Company chairman, Charles Alexander CBE, said: ‘In the last three years, Carlo’s dedication to Opera Rara has been inspiring. We are grateful that he has accepted our invitation to work with us for the next three years.’
Rizzi aligns with Opera Rara’s work towards resurrecting undiscovered and undervalued works from both celebrated and neglected composers, as he also spearheaded restoration projects including the revival of Mercadante’s Il proscritto which was performed for the first time since 1842 last Tuesday (28 June).
Born in Milan, Rizzi studied at the city’s conservatoire. His conducting career took off in 1982 with a production of Donizetti’s L’ajo nell’imbarazzo and, he held the role of music director with the Welsh National Opera (WNO) from 1992 to 2001 and from 2004 to 2008. Since 2015, Rizzi has been conductor laureate of the Welsh National Opera, and maintains relationships with the Teatro alla Scala, the Royal Opera House and the Metropolitan Opera in New York.
In continuing in the role, Rizzi will look to the future: giving a platform to emerging talent and helping the company forge artistic partnerships. Donizetti’s oeuvre, which has remained Opera Rara’s focus for over 50 years, will be a key element in Rizzi’s directorship and Opera Rara will release its recording of Il proscritto in March 2023 as well as releasing the company’s recording of Leoncavallo’s Zingari in September this year.
Rizzi said: ‘Opera Rara holds a unique place in the music world: from last December’s recording of the original 1912 London version of Leoncavallo’s Zingari to our performance of Mercadante’s Il proscritto earlier this week which had not been heard since 1842, it has been, and will continue to be a privilege to lead this special organisation in its ongoing journey of operatic discovery.’
You can find out more about Opera Rara here.
