site.btaJose Carreras Comes to Bulgaria in December

Jose Carreras is coming back to Bulgaria for a concert on December 3 in Hall 1 of the National Palace of Culture, the Fest Team, who are organizers together with the Sofia Opera and Ballet, said Tuesday.

Carreras is one of the "Three Tenors", a vocation he shares with Luciano Pavarotti and Placido Domingo. Over the course of his career, Carreras recorded more than 50 full operas and 40 classical and popular recitals, and is a particular favourite with audiences for his Puccini and Verdi roles.

"I am very happy to be able to return to one of my favourite audiences - the Bulgarian music fans, where I have already had many unforgettable performances, which we will recall with a full programme on December 3", Carreras said. "My return to Sofia will certainly be a celebration of music. I hope to see you there," he added.

With a remarkable career spanning nearly seven decades, Carreras is considered one of the most popular tenors of all time and one of those responsible for the genre gaining greater mass appeal among audiences. His musical history includes numerous awards and personal highs, such as being the musical director for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Summer Olympics in his native Barcelona and opening the 1992 Olympics. Jose Carreras also experienced a tremendous personal health catharsis, which he described and published in his autobiography "Jose Carreras, Singing from the Soul", about his battle with leukemia. He created a foundation to fight the disease, which to this day parallels his life as a performer. 

The conductor of the performance in Sofia will be David Jimenez. The Barcelona-born conductor studied piano and composition at the Liceu Conservatoire and since his debut with the Hannover NDR Orchestra in 1994 has appeared all over the world, leading the most distinguished orchestras and soloists at venues such as the Royal Albert Hall, the Berlin Philharmonic and others.

The soprano to take to the stage at the NDR is Diana Tsugui. She studied at the George Enescu University of Music in Bucharest under the direction of Professor Sanda Sandru. Diana Tsugui has won a number of international awards including Jaume Aragall, Wilhem Stenhammar, Vox Artis, Ionel Perlea and Elena Teodorini.

Jose Carreras's own team chose the orchestra of the Sofia Opera and Ballet - one with over 130 years of history and worldwide recognition and popularity, to perform with the legendary artist again. With its chorus, orchestra and soloists, the orchestra has made numerous guest appearances in various countries in Europe, in Brazil, Japan, Russia, Belarus, Slovakia, Cyprus, presenting the major productions of the classical opera and ballet repertoire.