Admired for his interpretive depth, vocal strength, and range of expressivity, tenor Paul Appleby is one of the most sought-after voices of his generation. He graces the stages of the world’s most distinguished concert halls and opera houses and collaborates with leading orchestras, instrumentalists, and conductors. Opera News writes, “[Paul’s] tenor is limpid and focused, but with a range of color unusual in an instrument so essentially lyric... His singing is scrupulous and musical; the voice moves fluidly and accurately.”
Mr. Appleby’s concert calendar for the 2024- 2025 season includes the title role of Berlioz’ La damnation de Faust with Hannu Lintu leading the Gulbenkian Orchestra and Choir; Haydn’s The Creation with Martin Pearlman and Boston Baroque; concert performances of Puccini’s La Rondine with Sir Antonio Pappano and the London Symphony Orchestra; John Corigliano’s captivating Poem in October, inspired by a rich and imaginative poem by Dylan Thomas, with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center; and Evangelist in Bach’s Matthäus-Passion with Kent Tritle at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. The tenor returns to the stage of The Metropolitan Opera for the company premiere of John Adams’ Antony and Cleopatra, reprising the role of Caesar which was written for him, in a staging by groundbreaking director Elkhanah Pulitzer.
Mr. Appleby gave the world premiere of Antony and Cleopatra at San Francisco Opera conducted by Music Director Eun Sun Kim and other highlights of the recent past include the title role of Bernstein’s Candide for the Opéra de Lyon, Los Angeles Philharmonic performances of John Adams’ Girls of the Golden West under the baton of the composer as well as Die Zauberflöte with Music Director Gustavo Dudamel, Handel’s Samson with the Dunedin Consort at the Edinburgh International Festival, Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius with David Zinman and the Bamberger Symphoniker, Bach’s Matthäus-Passion both with the New York Philharmonic and Hong Kong Philharmonic conducted by Jaap van Zweden, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with Marin Alsop leading the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings with the Met Orchestra Chamber Ensemble at Carnegie Hall, and a wide range of repertoire and on numerous occasions in North America and Europe with his frequent musical partner Manfred Honeck.
A leading artist of The Metropolitan Opera, where his association with the company has yielded critically acclaimed performances, Mr. Appleby has bowed in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg led both by Sir Antonio Pappano and James Levine, Rodelinda conducted by Harry Bicket, the title role of Pelléas et Mélisande conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, The Rake’s Progress under the baton of James Levine, and the North American premiere of Nico Muhly’s Two Boys with David Robertson. Celebrated as a distinguished Mozartean, he has bowed at The Metropolitan Opera in the leading tenor roles of Don Giovanni and Die Entführung aus dem Serail.
Mr. Appleby is a founding core member of the American Modern Opera Company (AMOC) and is a graduate of The Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. A recipient of an Artist Diploma in Opera Studies at The Juilliard School, he also earned a Master’s Degree from Juilliard and a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature and in Music from the University of Notre Dame.
