Gerald Finley
Canadian-born bass-baritone and Grammy Award winner Gerald Finley is one of the leading singers and dramatic performers of his generation. He can be heard at the world’s most important opera and concert venues and is represented by award-winning CDs and DVDs in a wide-ranging repertoire on major labels. Gerald Finley dedicates himself to a broad spectrum of vocal artistry in opera, concert and lieder, working regularly with the great orchestras and conductors of our time.
He began his career with Mozart roles; his Don Giovanni and his Count in Le nozze di Figaro can be heard on the opera stage and on DVD worldwide. Key roles in the recent past include Guillaume Tell, J. Robert Oppenheimer in John Adam’s Dr. Atomic and Jaufré Rudel in Saariaho’s L’amour de loin. He sang the role of Harry Heegan in the world premiere of Mark Anthony Turnage’s The Silver Tassie.
Highlights of the 2024/2025 season include Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin, the title role in Verdi’s Macbeth at the Vienna State Opera and the Bavarian State Opera, and the role of Helge in Marc-Anthony Turnage’s new opera Festen, Wagner’s Flying Dutchman at the Bavarian State Opera, John Adams’ Antony and Cleopatra at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the role of Don Alfonso in a new production of Mozart’s Cosí fan tutte at La Scala in Milan. Recitals have taken him to the Liceu in Barcelona and the Bavarian State Opera.
Most recently, Finley appeared as Hans Sachs in Laurent Pelly’s new production of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg in Madrid, as Antonius in the world premiere of John Adams’ Antony and Cleopatra at the San Francisco Opera, as Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca and Count in Netia Jones’ new production of Le Nozze di Figaro at the Opéra national de Paris. He made his debut in the title role of Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer at the Staatsoper Berlin, and was critically acclaimed as Wolfram in Wagner’s Tannhäuser at the Royal Opera House. He also sang Iago in a new production of Otello at the Bavarian State Opera and the Canadian Opera Company, the title role in Bluebeard’s Castle and Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro at the Metropolitan Opera, as Count Almaviva at the Bavarian State Opera, in the title role in Verdi’s Falstaff.
Recent years have brought important successes in the Wagner repertoire: as Hans Sachs at the Glyndebourne Festival and at the Opéra de Paris, as Amfortas in Parsifal at the Royal Opera Covent Garden and as Wolfram at the Lyric Opera in Chicago. His extended repertoire includes Verdi’s Falstaff at the Canadian Opera (for which he won a DORA Award), an “incomparable” Iago in Otello with Sir Colin Davis and the LSO (LSO Live) in Japan, the Bavarian State Opera and the Canadian Opera, as well as the title role in Rossini’s Guillaume Tell with the Accademia di Santa Cecilia and Sir Antonio Pappano (EMI), including at the Royal Opera Covent Garden. His other important roles include Golaud, Eugene Onegin and Nick Shadow.
In contemporary opera, Gerald Finley has distinguished himself by premiering numerous leading roles, notably J. Robert Oppenheimer in John Adams’ Doctor Atomic (New York Met, ENO London, San Francisco, Chicago and Amsterdam), as Harry Heegan in Turnage’s The Silver Tassie at ENO, Howard K. Stern in Turnage’s Anna Nicole at London’s Covent Garden and Jaufré Rudel in Kaija Saariaho’s L’amour de loin for the highly acclaimed premieres in Santa Fe, Paris and Helsinki. He sang the role of Mr. Fox in the world premiere of Tobias Picker’s Fantastic Mr Fox at L.A. Opera. Concert appearances include the title role in Dallapiccola’s Il prigioniero (New York Phil with Alan Gilbert and the BRSO) and Chou en Lai in Adams’ Nixon in China with the BBC Symphony at the Proms under the composer’s baton.
An acclaimed lieder singer, Gerald Finley works regularly with pianist Julius Drake; recent appearances include concerts at the Schubertiade, recitals throughout Europe, a residency at Wigmore Hall and Carnegie-Zankel Hall and acclaimed performances at the Salzburg Festival, Edinburgh and Tanglewood. He has appeared on stage with Sir Antonio Pappano, Malcolm Matineau, Simon Lepper and Michael McMahon, among others. Gerald Finley also regularly gives masterclasses, including at the Juillard School of Music, with the Jette Parker Program for Young Artists at the Royal Opera Covent Garden and with the Lindemann Program at the Met.
His numerous CD releases are dedicated to songs by Barber, Britten, Ives, Ravel and Schumann’s song cycles Dichterliebe and Liederkreis Op. 24 and 39, all together with Julius Drake for Hyperion, and have been widely praised, including three Gramophone Awards in the solo vocal category. The release of Schubert’s Winterreise won a Canadian Juno Award in 2015 and last season’s release of Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin completed their Hyperion Schubert trilogy. His CD Great Operatic Arias in English, released by Chandos, won the Canadian Juno Award for Best Album in the Vocal Performance category. In 2012, the DVD release of Doctor Atomic, with Gerald Finley as J. Robert Oppenheimer, was awarded the Grammy for Best Opera Recording.
Gerald Finley was born in Montreal and began his musical training as a boy singer in Ottawa before completing his studies at the Royal College of Music, King’s College, Cambridge and the National Opera Studio. He is a visiting professor at the Royal College of Music. In 2014, he climbed Mount Kilimanjaro for the charity Help Musicians UK. In 2017 he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire, having previously been appointed Officer of the Order of Canada. There is also a Canadian stamp dedicated to Gerald Finley, honoring Canadians in the opera world.