Nathan Gunn has made a reputation as one of the most exciting and in-demand baritones of the day.
A frequent interpreter of new works, Mr. Gunn will create the role of Paul in the world premiere of Daron Hagen’s Amelia at the Seattle Opera. He recently created the roles of Alec Harvey in André Previn’s Brief Encounter at the Houston Grand Opera and Father Delura in Peter Eötvös’ Love and Other Demons at the 2008 Glyndebourne Opera Festival. Other engagements this season include his returns to the Metropolitan Opera for Die Zauberflöte, the Dallas Opera for Malatesta in Don Pasquale and the Los Angles Opera for Il Barbiere di Siviglia and L’Elisir d’Amore. He also makes his debut in Bilbao as the title role in Billy Budd
Mr. Gunn has appeared in internationally renowned opera houses such as the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Seattle Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Royal Opera House (Covent Garden), Paris Opera, Bayerische Staatsoper, Glyndebourne Opera Festival, and the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels. His many roles include the title roles in Billy Budd, Il Barbiere di Siviglia, and Hamlet, Guglielmo in Cosi fan tutte, the Count in Le Nozze di Figaro, and Ottone in L’incoronazione di Poppea. He also created the role of Clyde Griffiths in the world premiere of Tobias Picker’s new opera, An American Tragedy at the Metropolitan Opera.
Mr. Gunn has recently ventured outside the standard opera repertoire with appearances in semi-staged performances of Camelot with the New York Philharmonic (broadcast live on PBS’s Great Performances) and Showboat at Carnegie Hall.
Also a distinguished concert performer, Mr. Gunn has appeared the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Münchner Rundfunkorchster, and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. The many conductors with whom he has worked with include, Sir Andrew Davis, Sir Colin Davis, Christoph von Dohnányi, Christoph Eschenbach, Alan Gilbert, Daniel Harding, James Levine, Kurt Masur, Kent Nagano, Antonio Pappano, Donald Runnicles, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Robert Spano, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Mark Wigglesworth.
A frequent recitalist, Mr. Gunn has been presented in recital at Alice Tully Hall by both Lincoln Center’s Art of the Song Series and the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society, and by Carnegie Hall in Zankel Hall, Cal Performances, the Schubert Club, the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, the Vocal Arts Society in Washington, DC, the University of Chicago, the Krannert Center, the Wigmore Hall, and the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie. As a student, he performed in series of recitals with his teacher and mentor John Wustman that celebrated the 200th anniversary of Franz Schubert’s birth. This season he will be presented in recital by the Krannert Center, Roy Thompson Hall, San Francisco Performances, Notre Dame, and Dominican University.
Mr. Gunn’s most recent solo album, Just Before Sunrise, was released on the Sony/BMG Masterworks label. Other recordings include the title role in Billy Budd with Daniel Harding and the London Symphony Orchestra (Virgin Classics), the first complete recording of Rogers & Hammerstein’s Allegro (Sony’s Masterworks Broadway), Peter Grimes with Sir Colin Davis and London Symphony Orchestra (LSO Live!), which was nominated for a 2005 Grammy Award; Il Barbiere di Siviglia (SONY Classics), Kullervo with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (Telarc), and his debut album, a collection of American songs entitled American Anthem (EMI). He also starred as Buzz Aldrin in Man on the Moon, an opera written specifically for television and broadcast on the BBC in the UK. The program was awarded the Golden Rose Award for Opera at the Montreux Festival in Lucerne.
Mr. Gunn was the recipient of the first annual Beverly Sills Artist Award, and was recently awarded the Pittsburgh Opera Renaissance Award. He is an alumnus of the Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young Artists Program and was the winner of the 1994 Metropolitan Opera National Council Competition. Mr. Gunn is also an alumnus of the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana where he is currently a professor of voice.
Last updated August 2009. Contact Opus 3 Artists for the most up-to-date version.
