Opera singer Domingo. Spanish opera singer Placido Domingo: biography, family, creativity

Opera singer Domingo.  Spanish opera singer Placido Domingo: biography, family, creativity
Opera singer Domingo. Spanish opera singer Placido Domingo: biography, family, creativity

Placido Domingo Jr. (Placido Domingo Jr.) - official website of the concert agent

Placido Domingo Jr. (Placido Domingo Jr.) - official site. The RU-CONCERT company will organize a performance by Placido Domingo Jr. (Placido Domingo Jr.) at your event. The official website of the agency invites you to leave your contacts for an application for a concert with the participation of the singer! Having received a request from you, we will instantly provide all the necessary information about the artist and the conditions of his performance.

When holding a concert, you need to take into account a lot of nuances: free dates in the schedule of Placido Domingo Jr. (Placido Domingo Jr.), the amount of the fee, as well as the household and technical rider.

The cost of organizing an event depends on a number of factors that should be considered. The total amount will be affected by the location of the singer, the class and distance of the flight (moving), the number of members of the group. Since the prices for services of transport, hotels, etc. are not constant, the amount of the artist's fee and the cost of his performance must be specified.

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Placido Domingo Jr. is a successful composer and aspiring singer

Placido Domingo Jr. was born into a musical family, classical music accompanied him from childhood, so it is not surprising that he was built around her. However, he did not go to the opera like his parents, but decided to take up composing and production. Including he is related to many of his father's records. While working on one of them - "Amore Infinito" of 2009, which conquered the Billboard Top Classical Crossover Albums, Placido Domingo asked his son to record songs prepared for him so that it would be easier to learn them. And when the great tenor heard the result, he was impressed by his son's performance and invited him to try himself in popular classical music.

On January 21, 1941, one of the most famous tenors of our time was born. Placido Domingo called "the king of opera", "the Renaissance man in music" and "the greatest opera artist of our time." During his more than half-century career, Domingo has appeared on stage about four thousand times in 145 parts - a number not surpassed by any other famous opera singer in history - and also conducted 500 performances.

Talented heir

The "King of the Opera" was born in 1941 in Madrid into a family of singers. His mother Pepita Embil and father Placido Domingo Ferrer were famous performers in the zarzuela genre (this is the name in Spain of comedy with singing, dancing and spoken dialogues). From early childhood, the famous tenor got into the world of music, but, like all Spanish boys, he had other dreams - to become a goalkeeper or bullfighter. “I was passionate about football and played two games almost every day,” Domingo recalled. - And when I was 14 years old, I went with a friend to a small training arena to try my hand at bullfighting. The bull, with which I had to fight, was no more than an adult Great Dane, but when he chased me and knocked me to the ground, I decided to become a goalkeeper. " However, instead of football, Domingo studied conducting and piano, and then became interested in singing. For the first time as a singer, Domingo made his debut at the age of 16 in the troupe of his parents, and the famous tenor entered the opera stage as a baritone at only nineteen years old.

Placido Domingo, 1977 Photo: www.globallookpress.com

His first operatic role was Borsa in Rigoletto. In this production, the title role was played by Cornell McNeil, Flaviano Labo sang the Duke, and Ernestina Garfias- Gilda. Domingo recalled his debut: “It was an exciting day. My parents, as owners of their own theatrical business, provided me with a magnificent outfit. Labo wondered how an aspiring tenor had managed to get such a beautiful suit. A few months later I performed in a more significant role - I sang the chaplain in the Mexican premiere of Poulenc's opera Dialogues of the Carmelites.

In 1961, Domingo made his US debut, starting more than half a century of conquering America with his signature operatic roles, and then it is difficult to keep track of Domingo's rapid career and musical victories. The number of operatic roles included in his permanent repertoire exceeded eight dozen, he collaborated with all the major conductors of our time and with many filmmakers who filmed operas with his participation - Franco Zeffirelli, Francesco Rosi, Joseph Schlesinger... Since 1972, the maestro has regularly performed as a conductor. Opening a season at the Metropolitan Opera for the eighteenth time, Placido Domingo broke the record for the most Enrico Caruso... And the TV broadcast of the opera "Tosca", staged among the ancient scenery of Rome, was seen by over a billion viewers in 117 countries. An equally impressive audience listened to Domingo when he and the opera singer Song Sui performed the song in Chinese at the closing ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The singer's numerous albums, sold over a million copies, went gold and platinum and brought the maestro 11 Grammys - the most prestigious music award in the world, which outstanding performers dream of getting at least once.

Placido Domingo at the closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games. Photo: www.globallookpress.com

Othello the family man

The singer made the most difficult role of the Italian repertoire - the part of Othello - his best stage work. However, the character of the "king of the opera" does not in any way resemble his expressive romantic heroes. He is good-natured and balanced, never loses his judgment and sense of reality. Despite the crazy fame and the sea of ​​fans, he remains faithful to his family.

Domingo first tied the knot when he was only 16 years old. He fell in love with a young Mexican pianist Anu Maria Guerroy who was 2 years older than the maestro. “With this girl, I thought I had real love. But we weren't long enough. The second time I got married was when I was 21 years old. " WITH Martha Ornelas the famous tenor was also brought together by music. The couple met while studying at the conservatory in Mexico City and are still together. Domingo confessed that he sought Martha's hand and heart by singing serenades under the window. As a result, one of the leading vocalists of the Mexican National Opera was conquered and still remains an excellent wife - she understands all the difficulties associated with her husband's excessive workload, and is never jealous of his fame.

Opera long-liver

In 2002, Domingo publicly announced the period during which he would continue to perform. "I am 61 years old and my operatic career will last for another 4-5 years, because opera is very demanding." But 14 years have passed, and the "king of the opera" is still standing on the stage, getting a long standing ovation. Once in Vienna, after his speech, Domingo went out to bow 83 times, the applause lasted an hour and a half. Only once the tenor was forced to interrupt his performance. It was at the end of 2001 when he played the role of Othello in the opera of the same name. Verdi at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the cause of the artist's discomfort was a sharp drop in blood pressure and, as a result, an instant loss of voice. In the middle of the aria, Domingo suddenly stopped and said in Italian: “Excuse me, but I cannot continue,” and then left the stage. Thirty minutes later, during which not a single person left the hall, the tenor returned and sang until the end of the performance, after which he was given a long standing ovation.

Despite his respected age, Domingo is in great shape. “There is an opinion that the musician is getting younger over the years. I have the same passion for singing that I had at the beginning of my career. I was lucky that I grew up in the theater and saw my parents give five performances a week. Their example showed me what to avoid. What and how to do in order not to wear out vocally, "Domingo shared with Moscow journalists, starting his anniversary tour in Russia in January 2016. And about his venerable age he joked: “75 years is only three times 25”.

Placido Domingo (Jose Placido Domingo Embil, Jose Placido Domingo Embil) was born on January 21, 1941 in Madrid (Spain), in a family of zarzuela performers (a kind of musical stage performance in Spain, close to operetta). At the age of eight, Placido already performed in front of the public as a pianist, and later became interested in singing.

In 1949, his parents moved to Mexico, where they continued their artistic career, organizing their own troupe in Mexico City.

When Placido was 14 years old, his parents decided to send him to the National Conservatory, where he studied both music and general education.

At the age of sixteen, Placido first appeared in his parents' troupe as a singer, his first role was Borsa in the opera Rigoletto, later he appeared in a more significant role - chaplain in the Mexican premiere of Poulenc's opera Dialogues of the Carmelites. At the theater of zarzuela, he has staged several performances as a conductor.

He made his stage debut on May 12, 1959 in a supporting role at the Teatro Degollado in Guadalajara. Placido Domingo's first major role was that of Alfredo in La Traviata, performed at the Teatro Monterrey.

Later, Domingo performed the role of Arthur in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Dallas Opera House (USA). In the 1960/1961 season, his roles already included Remendado in Carmen, Spoletta in Tosca, The Dandy and the Abbot in Andre Chénier, Goro in Madame Butterfly, Gaston in La Traviata and The Emperor in Turandot ".

Since 1962, Placido Domingo has been a soloist with the Israeli National Opera in Tel Aviv for three seasons, where he has gained the necessary experience and expanded his repertoire. He took part in 280 performances and performed 12 parts.

Six months after returning from Israel, Domingo played the role of Alberto in the world premiere of Ginaster's Don Rodrigo, for whom the New York City Opera opened the new Lincoln Center at New York State Theater. After this success, the stages of the best opera houses opened for the artist. In 1967 Placido Domingo made his debut at the Hamburg State Opera in the play Tosca and at the Vienna State Opera in Don Carlo.

In 1968, Domingo made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, performing the role of Maurizio in the opera Adriana Lecouvreur. For the next four decades, the tenor opened the seasons at the Metropolitan Opera 21 times, breaking Caruso's record achievement (17 times).

During the 1970-1980s, Domingo regularly sang in performances of the world's leading theaters: London's Covent Garden, Milan's La Scala, Paris's Grand Opera, Hamburg and Vienna operas. In October 1970, Domingo performed for the first time at Verdi's "Masquerade Ball" - in an ensemble with the Spanish singer Montserrat Caballe, with whom they later formed one of the most widely known duets.

For a number of years, Domingo was a participant in the Salzburg Festival, and the singer established strong ties with the Verona Arena festival.

In the 1973/1974 season, Placido Domingo made his debut as a conductor (he conducted La Traviata in New York City).

The singer took part in the unique concert program "Three Tenors" when three great opera singers - Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras - took the stage together. The concert was conceived for one purpose: to raise funds for the operation of Carreras, who was diagnosed with acute leukemia in 1987 by doctors. The charity concert instantly became the greatest musical event ever, and more copies of the Nessun Dorma aria were sold than any other tune in the history of music, which is also recorded in the Guinness Book of Records. Since then, the "Three Tenors" have performed more than once on famous stages of the world with sold-out audiences. For 11 years, in total, the artists gave 35 concerts together in different cities.

With the participation of Placido Domingo, four famous opera films have been created - La Traviata, Othello, Carmen and Tosca.

Since 1991, the singer has also been involved in directing activities.

Domingo has performed 147 different roles in more than 3,600 performances, and has recorded over 100 operas, arias and duets.

In 2013, the world famous tenor recorded an album of Giuseppe Verdi's arias for baritone. The album, called Verdi, became the first baritone album in the work of the performer.

Placido Domingo has repeatedly given concerts in Moscow, where he collected sold out in the most prestigious halls of the capital.

From 2003 to 2011, he served as CEO of the Washington National Opera (WNO). He is currently the CEO of the Los Angeles Opera.

Honorary Doctorate from the University of Madrid, Doctor of Fine Arts from New York University, Honorary Doctorate of Music from the University of Oklahoma, Philadelphia College of Performing Arts and Georgetown University.

He helps young performers through the Young Artist project he founded in Los Angeles and Washington DC in the US and Valencia in Spain, as well as through the Operalia competition, which has been running since 1993.

Domingo is also known as a patron of the arts. He organized charity concerts to help victims of the earthquake in Mexico and Hurricane Katrina in the United States.

The singer has won 13 Grammy awards, including recordings for the productions of Aida and La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi, Carmen by Georges Bizet and Lohengrin by Richard Wagner.

The singer also received an Emmy Award for the television films Hommage a Sevilla and Mets Silver Gala.

Placido Domingo was awarded the French Legion of Honor, the Spanish Order of Isabella the Catholic, Knight Grand Cross and Grand Officer of the Order of Merit for the Italian Republic, Chevalier of Arts and Literature, Chamber Singer (Honorary Singer) of Hamburg, Munich and Vienna, is the owner of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contribution to the development of theater.

In October 2009, King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden presented Placido Domingo at the Royal Opera and Ballet in Stockholm with the first Birgit Nilsson Prize, named after the famous Swedish singer. Placido Domingo became the first laureate of the award at the request of Birgit Nilsson herself.

In January 2011, the Spanish government awarded the singer with the Order of the Arts "for outstanding achievement in creative work."

Domingo was awarded the Russian Order of Friendship (2011) for his great contribution to the development of Russian-Spanish cooperation in the field of musical art.

Placido Domingo signed a personalized star for the Walk of Fame in Moscow ahead of his concert as part of the tour.

Placido Domingo is married for the second time. From his first marriage, he has a son, Jose.

With their second wife, Mexican Martha Ornelas, they have been together for almost 50 years. She is a vocalist (soprano), since 1991 she has been a stage director of opera performances. Domingo and Ornelas have two sons - Placido and Alvaro.

The material was prepared on the basis of information from RIA Novosti and open sources

Placido Domingo is one of the greatest tenors of our time, whose genius has been recognized by both classical music lovers and world critics. The rarest combination of a strong voice, stunning charisma and incredible hard work allowed Placido to become an opera legend during his lifetime.

Childhood and youth

Jose Placido Domingo Embil (full name of the singer) was born on January 21, 1941 in the capital of Spain, Madrid. His father Placido Domingo and mother Pepita Embil were the stars of zarzuela (Spanish variation of the operetta). The head of the family was fluent in baritone, and his wife was fluent in soprano.

In 1949, the family moved from sunny Madrid to Mexico City. In the capital of Mexico, the parents of the future musician organized their own theater troupe.

Personal life

Placido has been married twice. The first choice of the eminent tenor was the pianist Anna Maria Guerra. The young people got married in 1957 when Domingo was 16 years old. But the personal life of the spouses did not work out, their union broke up a couple of months after the wedding. In this marriage, the singer had a son, Jose.

The artist met his second wife while studying at the conservatory. The owner of the lyric soprano Marta Ornelas at that moment was just beginning to conquer the musical Olympus. The teachers unanimously predicted a great future for her, but the girl preferred a family to the career of an opera singer.

True, before getting married, Domingo had to win the favor not only of Martha, but also of her parents. When Placido performed a serenade under their windows, the head of the family, in order to cool the ardor of the gentleman, often called the police. According to the vocalist, law enforcement officials never used physical force against him and always allowed him to finish the last song to the end.

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Placido Domingo and his wife

Despite the categorical nature of his parents, Domingo did not back down and continued to look after his beloved. In the end, he still managed to obtain the blessing of the Ornelas family. In 1962, young people legalized their relationship.

In 1965, Martha gave birth to an heir to the artist. The woman named her first child after his father - Placido. The second child (1968) was given the name of the hero of Giuseppe Verdi's opera The Force of Destiny - Alvaro.