BOYD OWEN

Boyd began his most recent season in Australia, debuting the role of Rodolfo in Puccini’s La Bohème, with Melbourne Opera. He then joined The Ten Tenors for their 30th Anniversary Celebration Tour through Germany and Australia. At the same time, he returned to Shanghai, China, for several concerts and to take up an invitation to do his Masters/PhD with the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

 

Previous seasons saw him perform the role of Normanno in Donizetti’s Lucia Di Lammermoor with Melbourne Opera; and in Aotearoa, New Zealand, he was involved in assisting and advising on the inauguration of the new opera company, Wellington Opera. He then worked as the Italian language and diction coach for their inaugural production of Mozart’s Don Giovanni.

 

In Wuhan, China, he sang his first Alfredo in Verdi’s La Traviata for Melbourne Opera’s New Year China tour, and he debuted the role of the Evangelist in Bach’s St John’s Passion in Shanghai, with conductor Fred Sjöberg and the Shanghai International Choral League. He then joined the Spazio Musica Summer Festival in Orvieto, Italy, to sing his first Elvino in Bellini’s La Sonnambula with conductor Maurizio Arena, before returning home to sing Rodrigo in the Australian première of Rossini’s Otello with Melbourne Opera. He then returned to New Zealand to make his debut as the Duke of Mantua in Verdi’s Rigoletto with Eternity Opera in Wellington.

 

He sang the tenor solo in Orff’s Carmina Burana at Carnegie Hall, which marked his classical debut, not only in New York but also in the USA. Following this, he returned to Shanghai, China, to sing in Mendelssohn’s Elijah and then won first prize in the Sydney Eisteddfod Operatic Scholarship singing competition.

 

Other performances include: (Italy) Lindoro in Rossini’s L’Italiana in Algeri conducted by Bruno Campanella (Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Florence). Don Narciso in Rossini’s Il Turco in Italia (Teatro Municipale di Piacenza and Teatro Alghieri di Ravenna). Ernesto in Donizetti’s Don Pasquale and Quint in Britten’s Turn of the Screw (Teatro Comunale di Bologna). Prince Ramiro in Rossini’s La Cenerentola (Teatro dell’Opera Giocosa, Savona). Nemorino in Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’Amore and Don Basilio in Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro (Spazio Musica, Orvieto). (Australia) Riccardo Percy in Anna Bolena (Melbourne Opera). His symphonic concert work has included: (China) Handel’s Messiah, Orff’s Carmina Burana and Puccini’s Messa di Gloria (Shanghai). (Italy) Britten’s Ballad of Heroes, conducted by Aziz Shokhakimov (Teatro Comunale di Bologna). Schubert’s Mass in G Major (Alessandria). International Vocal Competitions: First prize in the men’s section of the 18th International Spazio Musica Singing Competition (Orvieto, Italy). Second Prize in the 2015 New Zealand Aria (Rotorua, New Zealand) and the Herald Sun Aria (Melbourne, Australia), and semi-finalist in the Hans Gabor Belvedere competition (Amsterdam, Netherlands).

 

He performed with the Australian group The Ten Tenors for many years. His time with the group included numerous highlights: TV appearances such as the Jerry Lewis Telethon, USA; Carols by Candlelight, Australia; Verstehen Sie Spass, Germany; and the Allsång festivals in Norway and Sweden; as well as recording the live DVD Amigos Para Siempre in Madrid with the RTVE orchestra. He was the singing voice behind the Foster’s Carlton Draught ad campaign Slow Motion – Made from Beer.

 

Boyd Owen was born in Melbourne, and is a proud citizen of both Australia and New Zealand (Kāi Tahu, Ngati Raukawa, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Raukawa).