About
Ian RosenblattPresenting the major singers of today and the stars of tomorrow, the Rosenblatt Recitals are London's only world-class concert season of opera and song.
2009 ushers in the landmark 10th season of the Rosenblatt Recitals, which launched in 2000 with a concert by the Italian tenor Giuseppe Sabbatini. Tenors to have followed him include Juan Diego Flórez, José Cura and Joseph Calleja - all giving their first London recitals as part of the Rosenblatt season - Marcello Giordani, Dennis O'Neill, Vittorio Grigolo and Andrew Kennedy. Other major and rising names to have appeared include sopranos Anna Caterina Antonacci, June Anderson, Nicole Cabell, Ailish Tynan and Elizabeth Watts, mezzo Sonia Ganassi, baritone Anthony Michaels-Moore and bass Orlin Anastassov.
The second half of the 2009/10 season opens with German contralto Maria Radner who has established herself as one of the most promising young singers today at houses such as the Bayerische Staatsoper and Teatro Real Madrid. Scottish bass Matthew Rose makes his Rosenblatt debut after performing with Sir John Eliot Gardiner at New York’s Carnegie Hall, while in March we welcome Spanish-born tenor Joel Prieto, winner of the First Prize at Plácido Domingo’s Operalia Competition 2008. One of the most renowned bel canto tenors, Lawrence Brownlee, will make his debut London recital after performing at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York and Alexander Tsymbalyuk, winner of numerous international awards, will bring the curtain down on the season.
Over the years the Rosenblatt Recital Season has brought a wealth of major artists to the attention of the London public. This season, don't miss your chance of being able to say in years to come: "I was there when ..."
Ian Rosenblatt, founder of the recitals
"The idea for the Rosenblatt Recitals first took shape in 1999, when my law firm sponsored a concert by José Cura and the Philharmonia Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall. It seemed to me that British audiences deserved more frequent opportunities to experience truly great voices, generally only heard at the Royal Opera House or the occasional one-off concert.
My plan was to present recitals by singers of international stature at regular intervals throughout the year. The programmes, each performer's own selection of arias and songs, would showcase vocal talent to the full. The idea took off and over the past nine seasons, Helga Schmidt, former Artistic Director of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, has brought dozens of exceptional artists to the Rosenblatt Recital Series, some already world-renowned, others in the early days of a major career.
People often say that the golden age of singing is dead. The Rosenblatt Recital Series is devoted to proving that bel canto - in its broadest sense - is very much alive!"
Ian I. Rosenblatt