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{{Short description|American operatic tenor (born 1951)}}
The American ] Rockwell Blake was born on January 10, 1951 in Plattsburgh, New York. He studied music first at the State University of New York (Fredonia) and then at the Catholic University of America. On leaving Catholic University, he served for three years in the United States Navy as a member of the Sea Chanters male chorus and later as a soloist with the US Navy Band. During that time, he continued his singing training with Renata Carisio Booth, who had been his teacher since his school days in Plattsburgh.
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'''Rockwell Blake''' (born January 10, 1951) is an American ]tic ], particularly known for his roles in ] operas. He was the first winner of the ].


==Biography==
He made his solo ] debut in 1976 at the ] in Washington D.C. as Lindoro in '']'', and made his debut at the ] in 1981 in the same role, with ] as his Isabella. He went on to become one of the outstanding ] singers of his generation, singing regularly at the ] in Pesaro since 1983. He made his ] debut in 1992 as Giacomo in ''La donna del lago'', La Scala's first production of the opera in 150 years, staged to mark the bicentenary of Rossini's birth.
Born and raised in ], Blake was the son of a ] farmer.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=bQwhAAAAIBAJ&sjid=hHIFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5035,5163407&dq=rockwell-blake&hl=en|title=Tenor Rockwell Blake Is Bel Canto Specialist|author=Mary Campbell|work=]|date=Mar 23, 1987}}</ref> After graduating from high school in ], he studied music first at the ] and then at ]. On leaving Catholic University, he served for three years in the ] as a member of the ] male chorus and later as a soloist with the US Navy Band. During that time, he continued his voice training with Renata Carisio Booth, who had been his teacher since his school days.


He made his solo ] debut in 1976 at the ] in Washington D.C. as Lindoro in Rossini's '']'', and made his debut at the ] in 1981 in the same role, with ] as his Isabella. He went on to become one of the leading ] singers of his generation,<ref>Kretschmer, J., 1992</ref> singing regularly at the ] in Pesaro since his debut there in 1983. He made his only stage appearance at ] in 1992 as Giacomo in '']''. It was La Scala's first production of the opera in 150 years and was staged to mark the bicentenary of Rossini's birth.
His superb vocal technique, two-and-a-half octave range, and elegant style have also made him a highly successful interpreter of ] operas, the ] operas of ] and ] and baroque opera. He has sung the leading tenor role in over 50 operas including such rarities as Rossini's ''Zelmira'', Mozart's' '']'', Donizetti's ''Il Furioso all'Isola San Domingo'', and ''L'Infedelta Delusa'' by ]. Blake is also a distinguished singer in orchestral works and oratorio, with works by Bach, Beethoven, Berlioz, Britten, Handel, Haydn, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Rossini, Saint-Saëns, and Stravinsky his repertoire.


Although several critics have expressed reservations about the intrinsic slightly harsh timbre of his voice,<ref>See, for example, Kozinn, A., 1989; Holland, B., 1989; Law, J., 1993</ref> his two-and-a-half octave range and mastery of florid vocal technique<ref>Kozinn, A., 1989</ref> and ] have made him a successful interpreter not only of Rossini's ] roles (in whose recent revival he has been a chief protagonist), but also of operas by ], ], ] and ]. Within that repertoire, Blake has sung in over 40 operas, including relative rarities such as Rossini's '']'', Mozart's' '']'', Donizetti's '']'', ] '']'' and ]. Blake has also been active in the orchestral and ] tenor repertoire, performing in works by ], ], ], ], ], Haydn, ], Mozart, Rossini, ], and ].
Since 2001 he has increasingly devoted himself to teaching young singers and has given ] at the Associazione Lirica Concertistica Italiana in Milan, the Conservatoire Nationale de Paris, the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Duke University in North Carolina, the State University of New York, the Hamburg Staatsoper, and the ] young artists program.
] at the Teatro Storchi, ], Italy (1988).]]
Since 2001 he has increasingly devoted himself to teaching and has given ]es at the Associazione Lirica Concertistica Italiana in Milan, the ], the ] in Rome, ] in North Carolina, the ], the ], and the ] young artists program.


His last appearances on the opera stage were as Uberto in Rossini's '']'' (Lisbon, 2005) and as Libenskoff in Rossini's '']'' (Montecarlo, 2005).
== Prizes and Distinctions ==


== Prizes and distinctions ==
Cavaliere Ufficiale, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana 1994
* ], 1978

*], 1988, SUNY Plattsburgh
Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres de la République Française 2000
* Cavaliere Ufficiale, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana, 1994

* Diapason d'Or de l'Année, 1994
Honorary Doctorate of Music, State University of New York
* Honorary Degree – Doctor of Music, State University of New York at Plattsburgh, 1988

* Victoire de la Musique, 1997
] 1978
* Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres de la République française, 2000

* Grand Prix du Palmarès des Palmarès, 2004
Diapason d'Or de l'Aneé 1994

Victoire de la Musique 1997

Grand Prix du Palmares des Palmares 2004


== Discography == == Discography ==
=== Operas === '''Operas'''
* Boieldieu – ''La Dame blanche'', Conductor: ] (CD Angel/])

* Donizetti – ''Alina, Regina di Golconda'': Conductor Antonello Allemandi (CD Nuova Era)
Boieldieu - ''La Dame blanche'' (CD Angel Records)
* Donizetti – ''Marino Faliero'', Conductor: ] (DVD Hardy Classic)

* Mozart – ''Mitridate Re di Ponto'', Conductor: ] (DVD Euro Arts)
Donizetti - ''Alina'' (CD Nuova Era)
* Rossini – ''Il barbiere di Siviglia'', Conductor: ] (CD Nuova Era)

* Rossini - ''Il barbiere di Siviglia'', Conductor: ] (DVD Deutsche Grammophon)
Mozart - ''Mitridate Re di Ponto'' (DVD Euro Arts)
* Rossini – ''La Donna del Lago'', Conductor: ] (CD ])

Rossini - ''Il barbiere di Siviglia'' (CD Nuova Era) * Rossini – ''La Donna del Lago'', Conductor: Riccardo Muti (DVD La Scala Collection)
* Rossini – ''La Donna del Lago'', Conductor: ] (CD Ponto)

Rossini - ''La Donna del Lago'', Conductor: Riccardo Muti (CD Philips) * Rossini – ''Elisabetta Regina d'Inghilterra'', Conductor Gabriele Ferro (DVD Hardy Classic)
* Meyerbeer – ''Robert le Diable'', Conductor Thomas Fulton (DVD Encore)

Rossini - ''La Donna del Lago'', Conductor: Riccardo Muti (DVD La Scala Collection)

Rossini - ''La Donna del Lago'', Conductor: Claudio Scimone (CD Ponto)

Rossini - ''Elisabetta Regina d'Inghilterra'' (DVD Hardy Classic)

=== Recitals ===

]

''Airs d'Opéras Français'' (CD EMI)

''Encore Rossini'' (CD Arabesque)

''The Mozart Tenor'' (CD Arabesque)

''Rossini Melodies'' (CD EMI)

''The Rossini Tenor'' (CD Arabesque)

== Links ==

- Rockwell Blake Page

- Rockwell Blake Page (includes his complete repertoire in both opera and orchestral/choral works)

- 13 January 1991 and 14 January 1996 (with commentary by the interviewer, Bruce Duffie)

== References ==

Official biography - IMG Artists


'''Recitals'''
Metropolitan Opera Data Base
* ''Airs d'Opéras Français'' (CD EMI)
* ''The Rossini Tenor'' (CD ])
* ''Encore Rossini'' (CD Arabesque Records)
* ''The Mozart Tenor'' (CD Arabesque Records)
* ''Rossini Melodies'' (CD EMI)
* Participation in '']'' (VHS/Laserdisc and CD EMI)


==References==
The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, Oxford University Press
'''Notes'''
{{Reflist}}
'''Sources'''
*Duffie, B., January 13, 1991 and January 14, 1996, , WNIB Radio. Accessed 31 July 2008.
*, New York Metropolitan Opera Data Base. Accessed 31 July 2008.
*Holland, B., , '']'', August 13, 1989. Accessed 31 July 2008.
*Horwitz, S., 1991, 'Rockwell Blake', ''Opera Monthly''.
*, Rockwell Blake Biography. Accessed 25 April 2007.
*Kozinn, A., , ''The New York Times'', August 6, 1989. Accessed 31 July 2008.
*Kretschmer, J., 'Top of the Ranks', ''Opera News'', February 1992.
*Law, J., 'La donna del lago (1819)', ''Opera Quarterly'', 1993; 9: 228–232.
*, 2002, Rockwell Blake Biography. Accessed 31 July 2008.
*'']'', Oxford University Press.
*. (accessed 25 April 2007)


{{Authority control}}
The Richard Tucker Music Foundation


{{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Rockwell}}
'Rockwell Blake' by Simi Horwitz, Opera Monthly, 1991
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Latest revision as of 21:01, 10 August 2024

American operatic tenor (born 1951)

Rockwell Blake (born January 10, 1951) is an American operatic tenor, particularly known for his roles in Rossini operas. He was the first winner of the Richard Tucker Award.

Biography

Born and raised in Plattsburgh, NY, Blake was the son of a mink farmer. After graduating from high school in Peru, he studied music first at the State University of New York at Fredonia and then at The Catholic University of America. On leaving Catholic University, he served for three years in the United States Navy as a member of the Sea Chanters male chorus and later as a soloist with the US Navy Band. During that time, he continued his voice training with Renata Carisio Booth, who had been his teacher since his school days.

He made his solo opera debut in 1976 at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. as Lindoro in Rossini's L'italiana in Algeri, and made his debut at the New York Metropolitan Opera House in 1981 in the same role, with Marilyn Horne as his Isabella. He went on to become one of the leading Rossini singers of his generation, singing regularly at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro since his debut there in 1983. He made his only stage appearance at La Scala in 1992 as Giacomo in La donna del lago. It was La Scala's first production of the opera in 150 years and was staged to mark the bicentenary of Rossini's birth.

Although several critics have expressed reservations about the intrinsic slightly harsh timbre of his voice, his two-and-a-half octave range and mastery of florid vocal technique and coloratura have made him a successful interpreter not only of Rossini's tenore contraltino roles (in whose recent revival he has been a chief protagonist), but also of operas by Mozart, Donizetti, Bellini and Handel. Within that repertoire, Blake has sung in over 40 operas, including relative rarities such as Rossini's Zelmira, Mozart's' Zaide, Donizetti's Il furioso all'isola di San Domingo, Haydn's L'infedelta delusa and Boieldieu's La Dame blanche. Blake has also been active in the orchestral and oratorio tenor repertoire, performing in works by Bach, Beethoven, Berlioz, Britten, Handel, Haydn, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Rossini, Saint-Saëns, and Stravinsky.

Rockwell Blake accompanied by Denise Massé at the Teatro Storchi, Modena, Italy (1988).

Since 2001 he has increasingly devoted himself to teaching and has given master classes at the Associazione Lirica Concertistica Italiana in Milan, the Conservatoire Nationale de Paris, the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Duke University in North Carolina, the State University of New York at Plattsburgh, the Hamburg Staatsoper, and the Chicago Lyric Opera young artists program.

His last appearances on the opera stage were as Uberto in Rossini's La donna del lago (Lisbon, 2005) and as Libenskoff in Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims (Montecarlo, 2005).

Prizes and distinctions

  • Richard Tucker Award, 1978
  • Omicron Delta Kappa, 1988, SUNY Plattsburgh
  • Cavaliere Ufficiale, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana, 1994
  • Diapason d'Or de l'Année, 1994
  • Honorary Degree – Doctor of Music, State University of New York at Plattsburgh, 1988
  • Victoire de la Musique, 1997
  • Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres de la République française, 2000
  • Grand Prix du Palmarès des Palmarès, 2004

Discography

Operas

  • Boieldieu – La Dame blanche, Conductor: Marc Minkowski (CD Angel/EMI)
  • Donizetti – Alina, Regina di Golconda: Conductor Antonello Allemandi (CD Nuova Era)
  • Donizetti – Marino Faliero, Conductor: Ottavio Dantone (DVD Hardy Classic)
  • Mozart – Mitridate Re di Ponto, Conductor: Theodor Guschlbauer (DVD Euro Arts)
  • Rossini – Il barbiere di Siviglia, Conductor: Bruno Campanella (CD Nuova Era)
  • Rossini - Il barbiere di Siviglia, Conductor: Ralf Weikert (DVD Deutsche Grammophon)
  • Rossini – La Donna del Lago, Conductor: Riccardo Muti (CD Philips)
  • Rossini – La Donna del Lago, Conductor: Riccardo Muti (DVD La Scala Collection)
  • Rossini – La Donna del Lago, Conductor: Claudio Scimone (CD Ponto)
  • Rossini – Elisabetta Regina d'Inghilterra, Conductor Gabriele Ferro (DVD Hardy Classic)
  • Meyerbeer – Robert le Diable, Conductor Thomas Fulton (DVD Encore)

Recitals

References

Notes

  1. Mary Campbell (Mar 23, 1987). "Tenor Rockwell Blake Is Bel Canto Specialist". Schenectady Gazette.
  2. Kretschmer, J., 1992
  3. See, for example, Kozinn, A., 1989; Holland, B., 1989; Law, J., 1993
  4. Kozinn, A., 1989

Sources

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