John Daszak
Renowned for both vocal versatility and dramatic stage prowess, British tenor John Daszak performs a diverse span of operatic roles on the world’s major stages with particularly strong ties to several works including Wozzeck, Lady Macbeth of Mtsenk, Khovanschina, Billy Budd, Boris Godunov, Das Rheingold and Salome. Daszak has made many important debuts across his enduring career including at Bayreuther Festspiele as Loge (Das Rheingold) under Kirill Petrenko, at Berliner Staatsoper Unter den Linden as Tambour Major (Wozzeck) under Daniel Barenboim, at Teatro alla Scala as Peter Grimes under the late Jeffrey Tate, at the Bolshoi Theatre as Sergei (Katarina Ismailova) under Tugan Sokhiev and at the Metropolitan Opera as Captain Vere (Billy Budd) under David Robertson.
A frequent collaborator with many of today’s key conductors and directors, some of Daszak’s innumerable recent projects include Alviano Salvago in Barrie Kosky’s staging of Die Gezeichneten at Opernhaus Zürich under Vladimir Jurowski, Tambour Major in William Kentridge’s Wozzeck at both Salzburg Festival under Jurowski and Opéra de Paris under Susanna Mälkki, Hindemith’s Mathis der Maler at Semperoper Dresden under Simone Young, Grishka Kuter’na in The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh at Dutch National Opera, staged by Dimitri Tcherniakov and conducted by Marc Albrecht and Zinovy Ismailov in Calixto Bieito’s production of Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk at Grand Théâtre de Genève under Alejo Pérez.
Further appearances include as Kaufman (Jakob Lenz) at Festival d’Aix-en-Provence with Ingo Metzmacher, Aegisth (Elektra) at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden with Andris Nelsons, Shuisky (Boris Godunov) at Opernhaus Zürich with Kirill Karabits, Jimmy (Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny) at Komische Oper Berlin with Stefan Blunier, Gustav von Aschenbach (Death in Venice) at Teatro Real with Alejo Pérez, Prince Vasily Golitsïn (Khovanschina) at Opéra de Paris with Hartmut Haennchen, Hauptmann (Wozzeck) at Theater an der Wien with Leo Hussain and Aleksej (The Gambler) at Dutch National Opera with Marc Albrecht.
John Daszak has long been a regular presence on the stage of Munich’s Bayerische Staatsoper where he has performed the title role in Der Zwerg, Le Lépreux (St François d’Assise), Die Knusperhexe (Hänsel und Gretel), Alviano Salvago (Die Gezeichneten), Prince Vasily Golitsïn (Khovanshchina) and Tambour Major (Wozzeck) among many others. After his role debut as Herod in David McVicar’s acclaimed staging of Salome at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden under Henrik Nánási, Daszak has continued to great acclaim in the role in new productions at Salzburg Festival under Franz Welser-Möst, at Festival d’Aix-en-Provence under Ingo Metzmacher, at Opernhaus Zürich under Erik Nielsen and at Opéra de Paris under Simone Young.
Daszak’s 2023/24 season includes Skuratov (From the House of the Dead) at Ruhr Triennale under Dennis Russel Davies, Salome at Staatsoper Hamburg with Kent Nagano, at Teatro Dell’Opera di Roma with Marc Albrecht and, in concert performances, with Houston Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Juraj Valčuha. He returns to Bayerische Staatsoper in Wozzeck and Elektra, both conducted by Vladimir Jurowski, and expands his already impressively eclectic repertoire as Abel in Rudi Stephan’s Die ersten Menschen at Teatro Arriaga Bilbao in collaboration with Calixto Bieito and Robert Treviño.
John Daszak features on a number of DVD releases including Pfitzner’s Palestrina from Bayerische Staatsoper (EuroArts), La Fura del Baus’ spectacular production of Das Rheingold from Valencia’s Palau de Les Arts (Unitel), Dutch National Opera’s The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh (Opus Arte), Death in Venice from Teatro Real (Naxos) and Salome from Salzburg Festival (Unitel).
Beyond the operatic stage, Daszak is a highly regarded concert performer. His repertoire encompasses a wide range of masterpieces including Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass, Beethoven’s Symphony No.9, Mahler’s Symphony No.8 and Verdi’s Messa da Requiem. He has had the privilege of working with esteemed conductors and orchestras, including Donald Runnicles and BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Vladimir Jurowski and London Philharmonic Orchestra and Thomas Hengelbrock and NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra.
Engagements in Bayreuth
| Year | Opera | Part |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Das Rheingold | Loge |
| 2015 | Das Rheingold | Loge |
