Renowned British tenor Christopher Ventris has been strongly associated with the major Heldentenor repertoire across a career that has now spanned over three decades and was universally known as the pre-eminent Siegmund and Parsifal of his generation.
While Wagner’s music remains the bedrock of his enduring international success, reinforced by his recent outstanding debut as Loge in Das Rheingold, Ventris’ repertoire versatility is demonstrated by acclaimed performances in roles such as Peter Grimes, Tambour’ Major in Berg’s Wozzeck, Jimmy Mahoney in Kurt Weill’s Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny and Laca in Janacek’s Jenůfa.
Highlights of an enviably high-profile career include Ventris’ debut in the role of Prince Andrey Khovansky (Khovanshchina) at Wiener Staatsoper under Semyon Bychkov, his first performances at Teatro alla Scala as Max (Der Freischütz), many productions as Sergei (Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk) including in Geneva, Madrid, London and Brussels, and unanimously acclaimed portrayals of Peter Grimes at both Opernhaus Zürich and Deutsche Oper Berlin. One of Ventris’ many productions at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden was Martinů’s The Greek Passion in which he sang the role of Manolios, he portrayed the title role of Pfitzner’s Palestrina at Munich’s Bayerische Staatsoper and sang Jimmy Mahoney in new productions at Berliner Staatsoper, Opernhaus Zürich and Wiener Staatsoper.