About
We no longer need to introduce Christophe Dumaux, who is undoubtedly one of the most sought-after singers in the world. With his exceptional vocal capacities, the intensity of his singing and his unique stage presence, the French countertenor is a regular guest on the great international opera stages.
Christophe Dumaux burst onto the operatic scene as Eustazio in Handel's Rinaldo conducted by René Jacobs at the Festival de Radio France et Montpellier, a production revived at the Innsbruck Festival and the Staatsoper Berlin, and recorded by Harmonia mundi. Since those thunderous beginnings, his career has been firmly established in the finest musical venues: the Metropolitan in New York, the Opéra de Paris, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, the Vienna Staatsoper, the Theater an der Wien, the Chicago Opera, the Festivals of Glyndebourne, BBC Proms etc.
The list of conductors with whom he has collaborated includes some of the most prestigious names, including René Jacobs, William Christie, Emmanuelle Haïm, Gianluca Capuano, Giovanni Antonini, Harry Bicket, Andrea Marcon, Ivor Bolton, Philippe Jaroussky, Ottavio Dantone, Francesco Corti, and others, with ensembles such as Les Arts Florissants, La Cetra, the Freiburger Barockorchester...
Christophe Dumaux also sings with major symphony orchestras such as the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Most recently, he performed The Messiah with the Orchestre Métropolitain and its music director, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, at the Maison Symphonique de Montréal.
Similarly, the list of stage directors with whom he has established regular collaborations includes all the big names: Claus Guth, David McVicar, Robert Carsen, Calixto Bieito, Barrie Kosky, David Alden, Christof Loy, Barbora Horáková and Richard Jones.
With them, he tackles the masterpieces of the 17th and eighteenth centuries, from Monteverdi to Mozart and, of course, Handel, one of the geniuses he has served most exhaustively. Christophe Dumaux sang Ottone in Agrippina in Hamburg; the title role in Orlando at the Theater an der Wien ; Polinesso in Ariodante at the Wiener Staatsoper, Salzburg, the Bolshoi Theatre and last year at the Opéra Garnier; Athamas in Semele in Zurich. Christophe has a special relationship with the opera Giulio Cesare: his Tolomeo is in demand all over the world (Metropolitan Opera, Paris Opera, Salzburg Festival, La Scala in Milan, etc.), and he is just as brilliant in the title role – last season in Amsterdam.
He has tackled, with equal success, other Baroque masters such as Vivaldi (Melindo in La Verità in cimento in Zurich; the title role in Il Giustino in Berlin) and Cavalli (title role in Il Giasone in Antwerp and Endimione in La Calisto in Milan).
In 2014, Christophe Dumaux sang his first Mozartian role with Farnace in Mitridate at the Drottningholm Theatre in Sweden (conducted by David Stern and directed by Francisco Negrin). He returned to this role with Emmanuelle Haïm in the staging of Clément Hervieu Léger in Paris and Dijon.
The 2023/2024 season will confirm Christophe Dumaux's prominent status. Highlights include the title role in Handel's Orlando at Teatro Real in Madrid (Ivor Bolton and Claus Guth); Alessandro in Handel's Tolomeo on an extensive tour with Giovanni Antonini (Amsterdam, Barcelona, Madrid, Paris, Basel, etc.).
In 2024/25, Christophe returns to some of his favorite Handel roles: Polinesso in Ariodante at the Opéra du Rhin, Arsamene in Serse, then the role of Nerone in Agrippina at the Zurich Opera. He will also take part in a vast tour of the United States and Europe with the title role of Giulio Cesare (Berkeley, Omaha Opera, Carnegie Hall…), as well as in London at the Barbican Centre, Dublin, Newcastle under the direction of Harry Bicket and the English Concert.
His discography includes a recording of arias from Bach cantatas and passions with the Ensemble Pulcinella (Ambroisie-Naïve) and Pergolesi's oratorio Septum verbe a Christo with René Jacobs (Harmonia mundi). On DVD, there are no fewer than three recordings of his remarkable performances as Tolomeo in Giulio Cesare (Glyndebourne with William Christie and David McVicar for Opus Arte; Theater an der Wien with Ivor Bolton and Keith Warner for Unitel; Salzburg with Giovanni Antonini and the Moshe Leiser/Patrice Caurier tandem for Decca). Il Giasone, recorded in Antwerp for Dynamic, is also available.