One of the world's most sought-after tenors, Graham Clark is closely associated with the works of Wagner and Janácek. He has received international acclaim for his interpretations of these composers, as well as for his work in many contemporary operas and selected traditional works.
Graham Clark began the 2009/10 season with Mime in Siegfried at the Los Angeles Opera, and returns this spring for both Das Rheingold and Siegfried in the complete Ring Cycle. He sings Hauptmann in Wozzeck at the Welsh National Opera, Valzacchi in Der Rosenkavalier at the The Royal Opera, Covent Garden and makes a welcome return to the Metropolitan Opera for Prince/Manservant/Marquis in Berg’s Lulu.
In the summer of 2009, Mr. Clark sang the Witch in Hänsel und Gretel at Seiji Ozawa’s Ongaku-juku. Last season, he sang performances of Mime in Das Rheingold at the Los Angeles Opera and appeared at The Netherlands Opera in The Makropulos Case.
Recent performances included a concert performance of Mime in Das Rheingold with the Bamberg Symphoniker at the Lucerne Festival, Aegisth in Elektra at the Liceu in Barcelona, the Lawyer in Birtwistle's Punch and Judy at the English National Opera and the Witch in Hansel and Gretel at the Welsh National Opera. He sang Ariadne auf Naxos in Madrid, the Witch in Hansel and Gretel for his debut with the Los Angeles Opera, Der Ring des Nibelungen in Amsterdam, The Makropoulos Case for English National Opera, Wozzeck at the Metropolitan Opera and Covent Garden, and Khovanshchina in Barcelona.
Graham Clark made his US debut in 1985 at the Metropolitan Opera as Steva in Jenufa. He has appeared there nearly every season since, in a wide range of operas including Loge and Mime in Das Rheingold, Mime in Siegfried, Captain Vere in Billy Budd, Herod in Salome, The Captain in Wozzeck, Prince/Marquis/Manservant in Lulu, Tanzmeister in Ariadne auf Naxos, and Albert Gregor in the Met premiere of The Makropulos Case, as well as Bégearss in the world premiere of The Ghosts of Versailles for which he received an Emmy nomination for the PBS broadcast. In concert, Mr. Clark has sung with most of the world's leading orchestras and at major festivals including Lucerne, Edinburgh, Brussels, and the London Proms. He has performed at virtually every leading opera house in Europe and North America, and from 1981 to 1992 appeared annually at the Bayreuth Festival, where he sang in over 100 performances.
Additional highlights of Mr. Clark's career include Mime in Wagner's Ring Cycle, in Bayreuth, London, Paris, New York, Chicago, Berlin, Tokyo and Amsterdam among others; The Makropulos Case, the Witch in Hansel and Gretel, and Ligeti's Le Grand Macabre in San Francisco; Wozzeck, Palestrina and Billy Budd at Covent Garden; Lulu and the world premiere of Le Grand Macabre at Salzburg; The Makropulos Case in Amsterdam and Berlin; Ariadne auf Naxos and the world premiere of Matthias Pinscher's L'Espace Dernier at the Bastille.
Born in Lancashire, England, Graham Clark received degrees in Physical Education and Recreation Management from the University of Loughborough, becoming a director of the English Sports Council before making his professional debut with the Scottish Opera in 1975. He was a member of the English National Opera from 1978 to 1985, and sang with Opera North and the Welsh National Opera. He received three nominations for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Opera" and won the coveted Olivier Award in 1986 for his portrayal of Mephistopheles in Busoni's Doktor Faust. Graham Clark has recorded for Philips, Decca, EMI, Erato and Teldec - including a recording of Strauss' Elektra with the Cologne Philharmonic - and has taught at the Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artists Program. Graham Clark appears in several videos including the Metropolitan Opera's The Ghosts of Versailles and Bayreuth performances of Die Meistersinger, The Flying Dutchman and the 1992 Ring des Nibelungen.
(April 2010. Please discard previously dated materials and contact publicity@colbertartists.com before making any alterations or cuts.)
