Paata Burchuladze

Bass Paata Burchuladze, who was born in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, was able to complete his vocal studies with Giulietta Simionato and Edoardo Mueller in Milan thanks to a special grant. In 1981 he won the international vocal competition Voci Verdiane in Busseto and the following year he won first prize at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. In 1995 he had yet another triumph with the Pavarotti Competition in Philadelphia. He made his debut at the Royal Opera House in London in 1984 and has been a regular guest artist ever since at major opera houses around the globe, including the Vienna and Bavarian State Opera, La Scala in Milan, the Met in New York, San Francisco Opera, and Paris’s Opéra National. He made his Salzburg Festival in 1987 under the baton of von Karajan, singing the Commendatore in Don Giovanni. The core of Burchuladze’s repertoire includes the great bass roles of Giuseppe Verdi – and of course Russian works, above all the title role in Boris Godunov. Among his rich discography, Mussorgsky’s Khovanshchina (conducted by Abbado) and two CDs of Russian songs are especially outstanding.

April 2009