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The French baritone, Laurent Naouri, began his musical studies in 1986. Initially began his education at the École Centrale de Lyon. Whilst he was still studying, the CNIPAL in Marseilles gave him the chance to perform the role of Guglielmo in Così fan tutte. These performances led to a number of concerts and recordings, including the Radio France and Montpellier Festivals. He decided to concentrate on opera in 1986 and continued his musical studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where he sang several roles, including those of the Theatre Director in Francis Poulenc's Les mamelles de Tirésias, Ford in The Merry Wives of Windsor, and Ferdinand in Prokofiev's Betrothal in a Monastery for Mstislav Rostropovich.
Laurent Naouri's professional career began properly in 1992 in the title role of Darius Milhaud's Christopher Columbus at the opening of the Imperial Theatre in Compiègne. He has since performed in France, Italy, Holland, Belgium and Spain with a wide repertoire ranging from Monteverdi to contempory works and including such roles as Eugene Onegin in Nantes, Tarquin in Benjamin Britten's The Rape of Lucretia at Tourcoing, Lully's Roland at Montpellier and Bottom in B. Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream at Lyon, with such conductors as Maurizio Benini, William Christie, René Jacobs, Marc Minkowski and Kent Nagano. Other notable appearances include the four leading roles in Offenbach's Les contes d'Hoffmann in Metz and Tours, his Opéra Bastille début as Figaro in The Marriage of Figaro and as Comte Des Grieux in Massenet's Manon, his Palais Garnier début as Thésée (Theseus) in Rameau's Hippolyte et Aricie, Hidraot in Lully's Armide in Nice, Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride in Amsterdam, Don Giovanni at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie, Fieramosca in Berlioz's Benvenuto Cellini, with Ravel's L'enfant et les Sortileges and Prokofiev's War and Peace at the Opéra Bastille. A wide range of roles has followed, including many from the Baroque era including Rameau's Platée and Les Indes galantes and George Frideric Handel's Alcina.
In Britain, he has appeared at the Royal Opera House in 2006 in the role of Escamillo in Carmen; in the USA at the Santa Fe Opera he appeared in the same role in the 2006 Carmen and is scheduled for the role of Falstaff in Verdi's opera of the same name for 2008.
Laurent Naouri gives frequent recitals and oratorio performances, and performances abroad include L'enfant et les sortileges with the Berliner Philharmoniker under Simon Rattle. His recordings range from Lully and Rameau to Offenbach and Francis Poulenc.
Laurent Naouri is married to the soprano Natalie Dessay. Among his pupils and/or singers who have attended his master-classes: Ana Sofia Ventura (Soprano). |
