Ildar Abdrazakov
Ildar Abdrazakov | |
|---|---|
| Born | Ildàr Amìrovich Abdrazàkov September 26, 1976 Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia |
| Occupation | Opera singer (bass) |
| Years active | Late 1990s–present |
| Known for | Opera bass vocalist, honored Artist of Russia (2021) |
Ildàr Amìrovich Abdrazàkov (; , Abdrazaqov İldar Ämir ulı; born 26 September 1976) is a distinguished Russian bass opera vocalist and was honored as an Artist of Russia in 2021.
Early life and career
Originating from Ufa, the capital city of Bashkortostan, Russia, Abdrazakov was raised in a creative environment; his mother practiced painting while his late father worked as a director. His older brother, Askar, also sings bass in opera, and the siblings have shared the stage at the Washington National Opera. After completing his studies at the Ufa State Institute of Arts, Abdrazakov became a member of the Bashkirian Opera and Ballet Theatre. During the late 1990s, he earned several awards in vocal competitions, notably the Moscow Grand Prix and the Maria Callas International Television Competition held in Parma, which paved the way for his recital debut at La Scala in 2001.
Opera and concert work
Abdrazakov made his first appearance at the Metropolitan Opera in 2004 performing in Don Giovanni under the baton of James Levine, subsequently establishing himself as a frequent guest artist. Between 2008 and 2009, he starred in a new staging of Verdi's Attila, and in 2011 he took on the role of Henry VIII in Donizetti's Anna Bolena alongside Anna Netrebko. He collaborated with Riccardo Muti for the reopening season of Teatro alla Scala in 2004–05, portraying Moses in Rossini's Moïse et Pharaon, a production that was issued on both CD and DVD. Abdrazakov’s debut at the Salzburg Festival occurred in 2009, reprising the role of Moses under Muti’s direction. His London stage debut at the Royal Opera House came the same year with Verdi's Requiem conducted by Antonio Pappano, followed by his performance as Don Basilio in Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia. In the 2012–13 season, he undertook leading roles including Don Giovanni at both Washington National Opera and the Met, as well as appearing in Le nozze di Figaro at the Met.
At the Mariinsky Theater, Abdrazakov has embodied principal characters such as Don Giovanni, Leporello, Méphistophélès in Gounod's Faust and Berlioz's The Damnation of Faust, Oroveso from Bellini's Norma, Selim in Rossini's Il turco in Italia, and Assur in Semiramide. His Verdi roles include Banquo (Macbeth), Walter (Luisa Miller), and the title character in Oberto. On an international scale, he has appeared at prestigious venues such as Barcelona’s Liceu, Madrid’s Teatro Real, Paris’ Opéra Bastille, San Francisco Opera, Washington National Opera, and Los Angeles Opera.
Across global concert halls, Abdrazakov has performed with top-tier orchestras including the Chicago Symphony, Vienna Philharmonic, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Bayerischer Rundfunk, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Orchestre National de France, Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala, and Rome’s Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. His collaborations extend to eminent conductors like Riccardo Muti, Valery Gergiev, James Levine, Gianandrea Noseda, Bertrand de Billy, Riccardo Frizza, Riccardo Chailly, and Antonio Pappano. In 2017, he returned to perform at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro for a concert led by conductor Ivan Lopez-Reynoso. Abdrazakov reprised the role of Attila for Teatro alla Scala’s 2018/2019 season opening under Chailly’s musical leadership with staging by David Livermore.
Other endeavors
Since 2015, Ildar Abdrazakov has taken on the role of director at the Elena Obraztsova International Academy of Music located in St Petersburg. The following year, he established the Ildar Abdrazakov Foundation aimed at nurturing promising young musicians. Beginning in 2018, he has been the driving force behind annual festivals across Russia, bringing in acclaimed vocalists to perform and conduct masterclasses.
In 2023, Abdrazakov was among 700 cultural personalities who publicly supported Vladimir Putin’s bid for reelection as Russian president.
Film and television appearances
Abdrazakov has embodied the legendary Feodor Chaliapin in various films and TV series. In 2014, he featured in the comedy Yolki 1914, while in 2022 he played a leading role in "Karamora," a television thriller directed by Danila Kozlovsky that presents an alternate history of Russia before the revolution.
In 2020, he co-hosted the third season of the Russian ballet contest "Bolshoi Ballet" on Russia-K alongside Svetlana Zakharova. Two years later, Abdrazakov emerged victorious in the third season of The Masked Singer (Russian TV series), performing as the character "Drakon" (Dragon).
Repertoire
- Hector Berlioz: La Damnation de Faust (Méphistophélès)
- Georges Bizet: Carmen (Escamillo)
- Arrigo Boito: Mefistofele (Mefistofele)
- Alexander Borodin: Prince Igor (Prince Igor)
- Luigi Canepa: Riccardo III (Riccardo III)
- Gaetano Donizetti: Lucia di Lammermoor (Raimondo), Anna Bolena (Enrico)
- Charles Gounod: Faust (Méphistophélès)
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Don Giovanni (Don Giovanni, Leporello), Le Nozze di Figaro (Figaro)
- Modest Mussorgsky: Khovanshchina (Dosifei)
- Jacques Offenbach: Les contes d'Hoffmann (Lindorf, Coppélius, Dappertutto, Dr. Miracle)
- Giacomo Puccini: La bohème (Colline), Turandot (Timur)
- Gioachino Rossini: Il barbiere di Siviglia (Don Bartolo), Moïse et Pharaon (Moïse), L'Italiana in Algeri (Mustafà), La Cenerentola (Alidoro), Semiramide (Assur)
- Giuseppe Verdi: Nabucco (Zaccaria), Attila (Attila), Rigoletto (Sparafucile), La forza del destino (Padre Guardiano), Aida (Ramfis), Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio (Oberto), Macbeth (Banquo), Don Carlos (Philippe II), I vespri siciliani (Giovanni da Procida)
Discography
Abdrazakov’s recordings span several prominent labels. His work with Decca includes Rossini’s compositions performed with the Symphony Orchestra of Milan and Verdi's Requiem alongside the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. For EMI Classics, he recorded Cherubini's Mass with Bayerischer Rundfunk. Chandos released his interpretations of Shostakovich's Suite on Verses of Michelangelo Buonarroti and Rachmaninoff's The Miserly Knight, both featuring the BBC Philharmonic. His DVD collection encompasses productions such as La Scala’s Moïse et Pharaon, Bilbao’s staging of Oberto, Parma’s rendition of Norma, San Francisco’s presentation of Mefistofele, and the Metropolitan Opera’s production of Lucia di Lammermoor.
The recording of Verdi’s Requiem with Abdrazakov and the Chicago Symphony under Riccardo Muti earned two Grammy Awards in 2010.
In early 2017, Abdrazakov entered into an exclusive agreement with Deutsche Grammophon. His solo album released in 2019, titled Verdi,, features arias accompanied by the Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin and includes a collaboration with Rolando Villazón.