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With a voice praised as "beautiful" -; "thrilling" -; and "rich" -; tenor Michael Calmès has achieved a distinguished record of performances in concerts, recitals, oratorio, and opera. Since his 1982 Boston Lyric Opera Company debut in Puccini's Madame Butterfly, he has been acclaimed by audiences and critics alike in operas and operet-tas ranging from the sophistication of Richard Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos to the ef-fervescent comic genius of Johann Strauss's Die Fledermaus.
Mr. Calmès maintains an active schedule as a guest soloist with numerous choruses, orchestras, and other ensembles. He excels in the interpretation of great oratorios such as Handel's Messiah, Haydn's Creation and Mendelssohn's Elijah; concert works such as Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, Symphony No. 9, and Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde; and an extensive repertoire of both well-known and rare works encompassing Monteverdi, Mozart, and contemporary masters.
He made his European debut in the Bach Magnificat at the Rijeka Festival (Yugoslavia) and Venice in 1985, and has since made concert tours of Austria, Belgium, China, England, France, Germany, Italy, and The Netherlands. He is also in demand as a recitalist lauded for his interpretive insights. He appears on many concert series and music festivals in the United States, and has been featured on National Public Radio broadcasts.
1988 saw his solo debut in Paris at La Madeleine with James David Christie, Boston Symphony Orchestra organist, presenting the world premiere of Marian Antiphons, the first of several song cycles written for and dedicated to Mr. Calmès by celebrated American composer Daniel Pinkham. In 1995, they toured Germany where Mr. Calmès was the only classical singer invited to participate in the international music festival Nachbar Amerika. This followed performances, in London, Austria, Rome, and Washington DC. In 1996, he was invited to China under the auspices of the Hebei Foreign Service Center and Shanghai Office of Cultural Affairs, giving solo recitals in Beijing, Kunming, and Shanghai. He returned to England in May 2000 for concerts in London, Oxford and Cambridge.
Michael Calmès is a former President and Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Handel & Haydn Society. He has been a member of the Executive Committee, American Guild of Musical Artists/New England Chapter, and in 1991 founded the Boston Aria Guild. Mr. Calmès is a member of the notable chamber music company Janus 21 and concertizes with organist Timothy Smith in Canzona. He is featured on the CDs Time and Eternity with Janus 21 and An Evening of Premieres celebrating Daniel Pinkham's 75th birthday.
"captivating, poignant, sweet tone and stylish phrasing"
The Boston Globe
"considerable technical and artistic sophistica-tion"
The Boston Globe
"a refined artist" - "the superb tenor, Michael Calmès"
The Boston Phoenix
"The tenor was not on stage long enough. His voice is full and
rich."
Cape Cod Times
"une voix trés riche et noble"
L'Officiel des Spectacles, Paris
"Michael Calmès' fine, ringing tenor was thrill-ing."
The Patriot Ledger
"Calmès brought down the house, earning the most bravos of
the eve-ning. He sang with in-comparable high notes, full of
intensity and pas-sion, opening up to full-bodied crescendos then
miraculously back again to pianissimo."
Tab Community Newspa-pers
