James Levine Conducts Rare Met Performances Of Verdi's Requiem Beginning 11/24

Music Director Emeritus James Levine will conduct four performances of Verdi's Requiem, the first Met performances of Verdi's masterpiece since 2008. Joining the Met Orchestra and Chorus are Bulgarian soprano Krassimira Stoyanova, Russian mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Semenchuk, Latvian tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko, and Italian bass Ferruccio Furlanetto.

Since it was first performed at the Met in 1901, Verdi's Requiem has been presented by the company 49 times, 13 of these led by Maestro Levine. The last time as many as four performances were given at the Met within a single season was in 1909, conducted by Arturo Toscanini.

Over the course of his career, Levine has conducted more than 2,560 performances at the Met in a broad-ranging repertory. He served as the company's Music Director from 1976 to 2016 and retired at the end of 2016 to become the Met's first Music Director Emeritus. Later this season, he will conduct revivals of Verdi's Il Trovatore and Luisa Miller, and a new production of Puccini's Tosca.

Krassimira Stoyanova has previously sung Verdi's Requiem in concert at the Zurich Opera and with the Köln Philharmonic Orchestra. She made her Met debut as Violetta in Verdi's La Traviata, followed by Liù in Puccini's Turandot, Nedda in the double bill of Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana and Leoncavallo's Pagliacci, Donna Anna in Mozart's Don Giovanni, Mimì in Puccini's La Bohème, and Desdemona in Verdi's Otello.

Ekaterina Semenchuk has sung Verdi's Requiem at the Mariinsky Theatre and with the Gothenburg Symphony. Her previous roles with the company include Sonya in Prokofiev's War and Peace, Pauline in Tchaikovsky's The Queen of Spades, Olga in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, and Princess Marina in Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov. She will sing Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana with the company later this season.

Aleksandrs Antonenko most recently sang Calàf in Puccini's Turandot with the company earlier this season. He starred in the Met's 2015-16 season premiere in the title role of Otello, Don José in Bizet's Carmen, Pollione in Bellini's Norma, Grigory in Boris Godunov, Luigi in Puccini's Il Tabarro, and the Prince in Dvo?ák's Rusalka.

Ferruccio Furlanetto has sung Verdi's Requiem at the Mariinsky Theatre and with San Diego Opera. After making his company debut in 1980 as the Grand Inquisitor in Don Carlo, he has sung over 200 performances with the company, including roles such as Jacopo Fiesco in Verdi's Simon Boccanegra, Philip II in Verdi's Don Carlo, the title roles in Mozart's Don Giovanni and Le Nozze di Figaro, and de Silva in Verdi's Ernani.

Requiem Radio Broadcasts

The November 24 performance will be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS XM Channel 75. The November 24 performance will also be streamed live on the Met's Web site, www.metopera.org.

The December 2 matinee performance will be broadcast live over the Toll Brothers-Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network.

For more information on Verdi's Requiem, including casting by date, please click here.