Biography of Placido Domingo. Placido Domingo Jr. - successful composer and aspiring singer
The famous tenor was born at the beginning of 1941 in Madrid in the family of Pepita Embil and Placido Domingo, who performed in the zarzuela. The mother of the future celebrity was the owner of a beautiful soprano, and her father was a unique baritone.
Childhood
In 1949, the Domingo family moved to the Mexican capital, where Placido's father and mother set about organizing their own theater troupe.
Schoolboy Domingo loved to play football and did not miss a single bullfight. He learned to play the piano at the age of eight, and when he was fourteen Placido became a student at the Mexican National Conservatory.
The sixteen-year-old boy began performing with his parents as a vocalist. In addition, Placido conducted the orchestra in theatrical productions of the Spanish operetta.
opera singer career
In 1959, under the patronage of Manuel Aguilar, whose father was a famous Mexican diplomat, the young tenor was admitted to the National Opera, where he made his stage debut in Rigoletto. Over the next two years, Placido performed parts in Turandot, La Traviata, Madama Butterfly, André Chénier, Tosca and Carmen.
Then he was invited to the Dallas Opera. For 3 years, Placido performed at the Tel Aviv Opera House. In 1966 he was admitted to the New York Opera where he performed arias in Carmen, Pagliacci, Madama Butterfly and La bohème. A year later, the tenor sang in the opera Lohengrin. The rehearsals lasted only 3 days, but Domingo did an excellent job with a very difficult part.
In 1968, he was taken to the Metropolitan Opera in the production of Adriane Lecouvrere. In this theatrical troupe, the tenor was listed for 40 years.
star status
In 1990, the BBC channel took the aria "Nessun Dorma" as the screensaver of the world football championship, performed by José Carreras, Plácido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti. This trio continued to play sold-out concerts at the best European venues.
In 2006, in the capital of Germany, Domingo sang in a concert in honor of the closing of the world football championship.
Placido is the winner of eleven Grammy awards. He also put "Tosca", "Othello" and "La Traviata" in the cinema.
The Guinness Book of Records noted Domingo, whose performance in 1991 after the opera Othello in the Austrian capital was accompanied by an eighty-minute standing ovation, which became the longest in the history of the world.
Personal life
The tenor was first married to the pianist Anna Maria Guerra. Their marriage took place in 1957. Domingo at that time was a sixteen-year-old boy. Together, the couple did not live even a year. Anna Maria gave birth to Placido son José.
The second time Domingo married his stage colleague Martha Ornelas in 1962. Their acquaintance happened at the conservatory classes. In 1965, the couple had a boy, who was named Placido, and three years later, Ornelas gave birth to her second son, Alvaro.
The singer has been a fan of Real Madrid all his life. In 2002, he became the performer of the anthem of this famous Spanish club.
In 2017, Real beat Juventus and won the Champions League. Placido congratulated the players of his favorite team and took pictures with them. Subsequently, this picture appeared on his official Instagram page, where you can often see videos of the singer's performances and personal photos of Domingo.
Placido Domingo Jr. (Plácido Domingo Jr.) - concert agent official website
Placido Domingo Jr. (Plácido Domingo Jr.) - official site. The RU-CONCERT company organizes the performance of Placido Domingo Jr. (Plácido Domingo Jr.) at your event. The official website of the agency invites you to leave contacts for an application for a concert with the participation of the singer! Having received a request from you, we will instantly provide all the necessary information about the artist and the conditions of his performance.
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Placido Domingo Jr. - successful composer and aspiring singer
Placido Domingo Jr. was born into a musical family, classical music has accompanied him since childhood, so it is not surprising that he is built around it. However, he did not go, like his parents, to the opera, but decided to take up composing and production. Including he is related to many of his father's records. While working on one of them - "Amore Infinito" in 2009, which conquered the Billboard Top Classical Crossover Albums - Placido Domingo asked his son to record the songs prepared for him so that it would be more convenient to learn them. And when the great tenor heard the result, he was impressed by his son's performance and invited him to try his hand at popular classical music.
January 21, 1941 was born one of the most famous tenors of our time. Placido Domingo called "the king of opera", "the man of the Renaissance in music" and "the greatest operatic artist of our time." Over a career spanning more than half a century, Domingo has taken the stage some four thousand times in 145 roles - a number unsurpassed by any other famous opera singer in history - and has also conducted 500 performances.
Talented Heir
The "King of the Opera" was born in 1941 in Madrid into a family of singers. His mother Pepita Embil and father Placido Domingo Ferrer were famous performers in the zarzuela genre (the so-called comedy in Spain with singing, dancing and spoken dialogues). From early childhood, the famous tenor got into the world of music, but, like all Spanish boys, he had other dreams - to become a goalkeeper or a bullfighter. “I was passionate about football and participated in two matches almost every day,” Domingo recalled. - And when I was 14 years old, I went with a friend to a small training arena - to try my hand at bullfighting. The bull with whom I had to fight was no larger than an adult dog, but when he chased me and knocked me to the ground, I decided to become a goalkeeper. However, instead of football, Domingo studied conducting and piano, and then became interested in singing. For the first time as a singer, Domingo made his debut at the age of 16 in the troupe of his parents, and the famous tenor entered the opera stage as a baritone at only nineteen years old.
Placido Domingo, 1977 Photo: www.globallookpress.com
His first operatic role was Borsa in Rigoletto. In this production, the title role was played by Cornell McNeil, Flaviano Labo sang the Duke, and Ernestina Garfias— Gilda. Of his debut, Domingo recalled: “It was an exciting day. My parents, as the owners of their own theatrical business, provided me with a magnificent outfit. Labo wondered how the novice tenor had managed to get such a beautiful suit. A few months later, I performed in a more significant part - I sang the chaplain in the Mexican premiere of Poulenc's Dialogues des Carmelites.
In 1961, Domingo made his debut in the United States, starting more than half a century of conquering America with his signature opera parts, and then it is difficult to follow Domingo's rapid career and musical victories. The number of opera parts included in his permanent repertoire exceeded eight dozen, he collaborated with all the major conductors of our time and with many film directors who filmed operas with his participation - Franco Zeffirelli, Francesco Rosi, Joseph Schlesinger. Since 1972, the maestro has also systematically performed as a conductor. Opening the season at the Metropolitan Opera for the eighteenth time, Plácido Domingo broke the record for the most Enrico Caruso. And the television broadcast of the opera Tosca, staged among the ancient scenery of Rome, was seen by more than a billion viewers in 117 countries. An equally impressive audience listened to Domingo when he, along with an opera singer Song Sui performed a song in Chinese at the closing ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Numerous albums of the singer, sold in more than a million copies, became gold and platinum and brought the maestro 11 Grammys - the most prestigious music award in the world, which outstanding performers dream of receiving at least once.
Placido Domingo at the closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympics. Photo: www.globallookpress.com
Othello the family man
The most difficult role of the Italian repertoire - the part of Othello - the singer made his best stage work. However, the character of the "king of the opera" does not resemble his expressive romantic heroes. He is good-natured and balanced, never loses prudence and a sense of reality. Despite the crazy fame and the sea of fans, he remains faithful to his family.
Domingo first tied the knot when he was only 16 years old. He fell in love with a young Mexican pianist Anu Maria Guerroy, who was 2 years older than the maestro. “With this girl, I thought I had true love. But we didn't last long. The second time I got married was when I was 21.” WITH Martha Ornelas the famous tenor was also brought together by music. The couple met while studying at the conservatory in Mexico City and are still together. Domingo admitted that he sought the hand and heart of Martha by singing serenades under the window. As a result, one of the leading vocalists of the Mexican National Opera was subdued and still remains a wonderful wife - she understands all the difficulties associated with her husband's excessive workload and is never jealous of his fame.
Opera centenarian
In 2002, Domingo publicly announced the period during which he would continue to perform. “I am 61 years old and my operatic career will last another 4-5 years because opera is very demanding.” But 14 years have passed, and the "king of the opera" is still standing on stage, breaking a long standing ovation. Once in Vienna, after his speech, Domingo bowed 83 times, the applause lasted an hour and a half. Only once the tenor was forced to interrupt his performance. It was at the end of 2001 when he played the role of Othello in the opera of the same name. Verdi in the Milan theater "La Scala", the cause of the artist's malaise was a sharp drop in blood pressure and, as a result, an instant loss of voice. In the middle of the aria, Domingo suddenly stopped and said in Italian: “I'm sorry, but I can't continue,” and then left the stage. Thirty minutes later, during which not a single person left the hall, the tenor returned and sang until the end of the performance, after which he was given a long standing ovation.
Despite his respected age, Domingo is in great shape. “There is an opinion that a musician gets younger with age. I have the same passion for singing that I had at the beginning of my career. I was lucky that I grew up in the theater and saw my parents give five performances a week. Their example showed me what to avoid. What and how to do in order not to wear out vocally, ”Domingo shared with Moscow journalists, starting his anniversary tour in Russia in January 2016. And about his venerable age he joked: "75 years is only three times 25."
Placido Domingo (Jose Placido Domingo Embil, Jose Placido Domingo Embil) was born on January 21, 1941 in Madrid (Spain), in a family of zarzuela performers (a type of musical stage performance in Spain, close to an operetta). At the age of eight, Placido was already performing before the public as a pianist, and later became interested in singing.
In 1949, his parents moved to Mexico, where they continued their artistic activities, organizing their own troupe in Mexico City.
When Placido was 14 years old, his parents decided to send him to the National Conservatory, where he studied both musical and general subjects.
At the age of sixteen, Placido first appeared in the troupe of his parents as a singer, his first role was Borsa in the opera "Rigoletto", later he performed in a more significant role - a chaplain in the Mexican premiere of Poulenc's opera "Dialogues of the Carmelites". In the theater of zarzuela, he held several performances and as a conductor.
He made his stage debut on May 12, 1959 in a minor role at the Teatro Degollado in Guadalajara. The first major role of Placido Domingo - Alfredo in La Traviata, performed by him at the Monterrey Theater.
Later, Domingo performed the part of Arthur in "Lucia di Lammermoor" at the Dallas Opera House (USA). In the 1960/1961 season, his roles already included Remendado in Carmen, Spoletta in Tosca, Goldfinch and Abbe in Andre Chenier, Goro in Madama Butterfly, Gaston in La Traviata and the Emperor in Turandot. ".
Since 1962, Placido Domingo has been a soloist of the Israeli National Opera in Tel Aviv for three seasons, where he managed to gain the necessary experience and expand his repertoire. He took part in 280 productions and performed 12 parts.
Six months after returning from Israel, Domingo played the role of Alberto in the world premiere of Ginastera's Don Rodrigo, with which the New York City Opera opened the new Lincoln Center at the New York State Theater. After this success, the stages of the best opera houses opened for the artist. In 1967, Placido Domingo made his debut on the stage of the Hamburg State Opera in the play "Tosca", at the Vienna State Opera in "Don Carlo".
In 1968, Domingo made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, performing the part of Maurizio in the opera Adriana Lecouvrere. For the next four decades, the tenor opened seasons at the Metropolitan Opera 21 times, breaking Caruso's record of 17 times.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Domingo regularly sang in the performances of the world's leading theaters: London's Covent Garden, Milan's La Scala, Paris' Grand Opera, Hamburg and Vienna Opera. In October 1970, Domingo performed for the first time in Verdi's Masquerade Ball, in an ensemble with the Spanish singer Montserrat Caballe, with whom they later formed one of the most widely known duets.
For a number of years, Domingo was a participant in the Salzburg Festival, strong ties were established between the singer and the Verona Arena festival.
In the 1973/1974 season, Placido Domingo made his debut as a conductor (he conducted the opera La Traviata in New York City).
The singer was a participant in the unique concert program "Three Tenors", when three great opera singers - Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and José Carreras - took the stage together. The concert was conceived for one purpose: to raise funds for the operation of Carreras, who in 1987 was diagnosed with acute leukemia by doctors. The charity concert instantly became the greatest musical event, and copies of the Nessun Dorma aria recording were sold more than any other melody in the history of music, which is also recorded in the Guinness Book of Records. Since then, the "Three Tenors" have repeatedly performed on the famous stages of the world with a full house. For 11 years, in total, the artists gave 35 concerts together in different cities.
With the participation of Placido Domingo, four famous opera films were created - La Traviata, Othello, Carmen and Tosca.
Since 1991, the singer has also been directing.
Domingo performed 147 different roles in more than 3600 performances, recorded more than 100 operas, arias and duets.
In 2013, the world famous tenor recorded an album of Giuseppe Verdi's arias for baritone. The album called Verdi became the first baritone album in the artist's work.
Placido Domingo has repeatedly been with concerts in Moscow, where he collected full houses in the most prestigious halls of the capital.
From 2003 to 2011, he served as General Manager of the Washington National Opera (WNO). He is currently the general director of the Los Angeles Opera.
Honorary Doctorate from the University of Madrid, Doctor of Fine Arts from New York University, Honorary Doctorate of Music from the University of Oklahoma, Philadelphia College of Performing Arts and Georgetown University.
He helps young performers through the Young Artist project he founded in Los Angeles and Washington in the USA and in Valencia in Spain, and through the Operalia competition, which has been running since 1993.
Domingo is also known as a philanthropist. He was the organizer of charity concerts to help victims of the earthquake in Mexico and Hurricane Katrina in the United States.
The singer is the owner of 13 Grammy awards, including for recordings for productions of "Aida" and "La Traviata" by Giuseppe Verdi, "Carmen" by Georges Bizet and "Lohengrin" by Richard Wagner.
The singer has also received an Emmy Award for the television films Hommage a Sevilla and Mets Silver Gala.
Placido Domingo was awarded the French Order of the Legion of Honor, the Spanish Order of Isabella the Catholic, is a Knight of the Grand Cross and a Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, has the title of "Chevalier of Arts and Literature", the title of "Chamber Singer" (Honorary Singer) of Hamburg, Munich and Vienna, is the owner of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contribution to the development of the theater.
In October 2009, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden presented Plácido Domingo at the Royal Opera and Ballet Theater in Stockholm with the first Birgit Nilsson Prize, named after the famous Swedish singer. Placido Domingo became the first winner of the award at the request of Birgit Nilsson herself.
In January 2011, the Spanish government awarded the singer with the Order of the Arts "for outstanding achievements in creative work."
Domingo was awarded the Russian Order of Friendship (2011) for his great contribution to the development of Russian-Spanish cooperation in the field of musical art.
Placido Domingo signed a personalized star for the Walk of Fame in Moscow on the eve of his concert as part of the tour.
Placido Domingo is married for the second time. From his first marriage he has a son, Jose.
With his second wife, Mexican Marta Ornelas, they have been together for almost 50 years. She is a vocalist (soprano), since 1991 she has been a stage director of opera performances. Domingo and Ornelas have two sons, Placido and Alvaro.
The material was prepared on the basis of information from RIA Novosti and open sources
Placido Domingo is one of the greatest tenors of our time, whose genius was recognized by both classical music lovers and world critics. A rare combination of a strong voice, stunning charisma and incredible diligence allowed Placido to become an opera legend during his lifetime.
Childhood and youth
Jose Placido Domingo Embil (full name of the singer) was born on January 21, 1941 in the capital of Spain, Madrid. His father Placido Domingo and mother Pepita Embil were stars of the zarzuela (Spanish version of the operetta). The head of the family was fluent in baritone, and his wife was a soprano.
In 1949 the family moved from sunny Madrid to Mexico City. In the capital of Mexico, the parents of the future musician organized their own theater troupe.
Personal life
Placido was married twice. The first chosen one of the eminent tenor was the pianist Anna Maria Guerra. Young people got married in 1957, when Domingo was 16 years old. But the personal life of the spouses did not work out, their union broke up a couple of months after the wedding. In this marriage, the singer had a son, Jose.
The artist met his second wife while studying at the conservatory. The owner of the lyric soprano Marta Ornelas at that moment was just beginning to conquer the musical Olympus. The teachers unanimously predicted a great future for her, but the girl preferred her family to the career of an opera singer.
True, before getting married, Domingo had to win the favor of not only Martha, but also her parents. When Placido performed a serenade under their windows, the head of the family, in order to cool the ardor of the gentleman, often called the police. According to the vocalist, law enforcement officers never used physical force on him and always allowed him to sing the last song to the end.
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Placido Domingo and his wife
Despite the categoricalness of his parents, Domingo did not back down and continued to court his beloved. In the end, he still managed to achieve the blessing of the Ornelas family. In 1962, young people legalized their relationship.
In 1965, Marta gave birth to an heir to the artist. The woman named the firstborn in honor of his father - Placido. The second child (1968) was given the name of the hero of Giuseppe Verdi's opera The Force of Destiny - Alvaro.
