Explore and Learn
Paul Nilon
15/05/2010
Paul Nilon is established as one of Europe’s outstanding lyric tenors in a wide repertoire ranging from Monteverdi to Britten.
His many major operatic roles include Septimus/Theodora and Piro/Ermione for Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Tamino, Lurcanio/Ariodante, Cinna/La Vestale by Spontini, Don Ottavio in a new production of Don Giovanni, and the title role of Tito/La clemenza di Tito, all for English National Opera; Tom Rakewell/The Rake’s Progress, Nerone/Incoronazione di Poppea (shown on BBC Television over Christmas 1998), Benedict/Beatrice and Benedict, Prologue/Peter Quint/The Turn of the Screw, Eisenstein/Die Fledermaus, Pylade/Iphigenie en Tauride, and the title role in Il ritorno di Ulisse in patria, all for Welsh National Opera; Fenton/Falstaff, Grimoaldo/Rodelinda, Alfredo/La Traviata and Septimus/Theodora for Glyndebourne Touring Opera; and Ferrando/Cosi fan tutte, Don Ottavio/Don Giovanni, Fenton/Falstaff , King Ouf/L’Etoile and the title roles of Idomeneo, Orfeo, Croesus (by Keiser) and Zemlinsky’s Der Zwerg for Opera North; the title roles of Ulysses Comes Home and Idomeneo of the Birmingham Opera Company, Don Ottavio and Vivaldi’s L’incoronazione di Dario at Garsington, and Golo in Schumann’s Genoveva at the 2000 Edinburgh Festival. Recent overseas engagements have included the title role in Monteverdi’s Ulisse at the Maggio Musicale in Florence directed by Luca Ronconi conducted by Trevor Pinnock and for the Netherlands Opera, the title role in Croesus for Minnesota Opera, Grimoaldo/Rodelinda at the Montreux Festival with Glyndebourne Festival Opera, conducted by William Christie, Cosi fan tutte and The Barber of Seville for the New Israeli Opera, Mischa (Julietta) in Prague with Opera North, Lurcanio/Ariodante (in Munich and on tour in Japan) and Grimoaldo/Rodelinda for the Bayerische Staatsoper, Pylade in Oviedo, and Grimoaldo in his debut with San Francisco and Dallas Operas.
He has an active concert career with highlights including Bach’s B Minor Mass with the LPO, Mozart Requiem and Schumann’s Das Paradies und die Peri (conducted by Mark Elder) and Handel Susanna, all with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Handel L’Allegro with the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, Handel Solomon in Florence and Israel under Ivor Bolton, Britten’s War Requiem and Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings with the Hallé, the Messiah with The Sixteen and Harry Christophers, and Beethoven Symphony No 9 with the BBC Philharmonic and Gianandrea Noseda, Britten’s War Requiem with the Huddersfield Choral Society, and Mendelssohn Elijah for the Newbury Spring Festival.
Future engagements include Werther for Opera North, Lurcanio in Oviedo, Mahler (arr Schoenberg) Das Lied von der Erde with the London Philharmonic and Mark Elder at the Wigmore Hall, a concert performance of Handel Jephtha for City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Janacek Diary of one who disappeared for the Bath Festival, and Rossini’s Ermione with Opera Rara.
Paul Nilon has appeared on a number of notable recordings for Opera Rara including Rossini’s Ricciardo et Zoriade and Donizetti’s L’assedio di Calais and Medea in Corinto.
Book for Paul Nilon performing with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Leeds Festival Chorus & Leeds Philharmonic Chorus
