Benjamin Bernheim

»›Perfect‹ is the word that immediately comes to mind to describe Benjamin Bernheim’s performance as Hoffmann. Vocally, in his diction, gestures, and spirit, the role is tailor-made for him.« Diapason on Les Contes d’Hoffmann at the Opéra de Paris, December 2023 As one of the leading tenors of a new generation of singers, Benjamin Bernheim is highly sought after at the most prestigious international opera houses. His interpretations of the great lyrical roles by Puccini, Verdi, Donizetti, Gounod, and Massenet earn admiration from critics and audiences alike. He is praised for his masterful artistry and »alluringly beautiful voice« (Süddeutsche Zeitung) and is known for impeccable diction, tonal variety, and an astonishing range of expression – all revealing a rare dedication to the art and craft of singing. »I always try to play with all vocal colors to tell a story,« he told GQ Spain in July 2021. »That’s what’s most important to me: to use my voice to transport the audience to other worlds.« Benjamin Bernheim signed a long-term exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon in April 2019. His first album for the yellow label, released the following November and featuring arias from operas by Berlioz, Donizetti, Godard, Gounod, Massenet, Puccini, Tchaikovsky, and Verdi, received enthusiastic reviews. The London Sunday Times wrote, »[Bernheim] seems destined to be the pre-eminent French tenor of our time. The arias from Werther, Roméo et Juliette, Manon, Faust, Berlioz’s Damnation and, a rarity, Godard’s Dante reveal a sensitive artist whose combination of text and music lends a special magic to these underrated works.« In his next album, Boulevard des Italiens, Bernheim explored the history of Italian opera in Paris. With the Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna and conductor Frédéric Chaslin, he recorded arias by Cherubini, Spontini, Donizetti, Verdi, Puccini, and Mascagni – all in French. BBC Music Magazine welcomed the release in April 2022: »With his very clear, lyrically charming voice, Bernheim sings a dreamlike Puccini. But he also offers lesser-known works in the most beautiful abundance: elegantly serene in Donizetti’s La favorite, full of heroic verve in Spontini’s La vestale, and effortlessly commanding the high C in Cherubini’s Ali Baba…«. In August 2024, the tenor will release his first lieder album, Douce France – Mélodies & Chansons. Together with his musical partner Carrie-Ann Matheson, he explores French Romanticism in works by Berlioz (Les nuits d’été), Chausson (Poème de l’amour et de la mer), and Duparc, as well as classic chansons by Brel, Kosma, and Trenet. Bernheim began the 2023/24 season with his role debut as Ruggero in Puccini’s La rondine at the Opernhaus Zürich. This was followed by the title roles in Offenbach’s Les contes d’Hoffmann at the Opéra de Paris and Massenet’s Werther again in Zurich (»Bernheim’s performance was masterful… Passion and sorrow filled the quiet passages, while his high notes shone with luminosity and despair« – Bachtrack). After his house debut at the Metropolitan Opera in October 2022 as the Duke in Rigoletto, he returned in March 2024 as Roméo in Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette (»Bernheim, as much a poet as a singer, knew how to use rich sound elegantly, transitioning between registers with seamless fluidity« – The New York Times), and in June, he appeared as Werther on the stage of La Scala in Milan. During the season, Bernheim performed in recitals at La Scala and the Vienna State Opera with Carrie-Ann Matheson, in an opera gala at the Philharmonie Luxembourg in October, and in concerts with soprano Lisette Oropesa in Paris, Milan, and Baden-Baden in April and May. On August 11, 2024, Bernheim participated in the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris, captivating the audience with his performance of Fauré’s Hymne à Apollon. Fauré had adapted the melody from an ancient chant found on stone tablets in the ruins of Delphi, and his new version was performed during the first Olympic Congress, the birth of the modern games. As Hoffmann, Bernheim will be on stage at the Salzburg Festival this summer (August 13-30), and at the beginning of next season, he will reprise the role at the Metropolitan Opera in New York (September 24 - October 18). He will also give recitals with the Douce France repertoire in Los Angeles (November 9), Vienna (November 14), Prague (November 19), Paris (November 24), and Monte Carlo (February 9, 2025). In the upcoming season, he is expected in the title role of Massenet’s Werther at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris (March/April), as well as Roméo in Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette at the Vienna State Opera (May) and Des Grieux in Massenet’s Manon at the Opéra de Paris (May/June). Born in Paris in 1985 and raised in Geneva, Benjamin Bernheim was introduced to singing as a child by his opera-loving parents. At the age of ten, he joined the children’s choir of the Geneva Conservatory and soon after discovered his love for opera when the choir participated in Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci at the Grand-Théâtre in Geneva. Bernheim studied at the Conservatory in Lausanne with Gary Magby, attended masterclasses with Giacomo Aragall, and visited Carlo Bergonzi’s renowned Accademia Verdiana in Busseto. In 2008, Bernheim joined the International Opera Studio of the Oper Zürich. Two years later, he became a member of its esteemed ensemble and soon became a highly sought-after guest at leading international opera houses in roles such as Alfredo, Rodolfo, and Lenski, in addition to appearances at the Salzburg Whitsun and Summer Festivals. Alongside his intensive opera work, he is now increasingly active as a concert singer and in solo recitals. In 2020, Bernheim received the award for »Opera Singer of the Year« at the Victoires de la Musique, France’s most prestigious classical music awards. The Syndicat professionnel de la critique de théâtre, musique et danse named him »Musician of the Year.« His first DG album earned him an Opus Klassik in the category »Young Artist of the Year« (2020), as well as a Diapason d’or and a Choc de Classica, and was, among other accolades, The Sunday Times’ »Album of the Week.« In February 2022, Benjamin Bernheim was appointed Chevalier de l’ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Minister of Culture. In 2024, he was again honored as »Opera Singer of the Year« at the Victoires de la Musique. 8/2024