Der Rosenkavalier Cast Change - Baron Ochs

Last week, we announced a cast change for our cast of Der Rosenkavalier.

Our dear friend Ferruccio Furlanetto decided not to add the role of Baron Ochs to his repertoire at this time. Luckily, the celebrated British bass-baritone Andrew Greenan was available and has joined our cast.

Those of you who attend our performances regularly will remember Andrew for his 2008 house debut as Biterolf in Tannhauser. Later that season, he sang an incredibly powerful Lord Cecil opposite Kate Aldrich in Mary, Queen of Scots (Maria Stuarda). Andrew will come to San Diego immediately from singing Titurel in Parsifal with English National Opera.

It should be interesting to note, that Andrew was originally scheduled to make his Company debut with us in 2005's Simon Boccanegra but asked to be released so he could sing his first Baron Ochs in Nancy, France. The wheel, it seems, has come full circle.

For those of you wondering when you'll get to see Ferruccio next, you'll need to wait now until 2013 when he sings his first American Thomas Beckett with us in Pizzetti's Murder in the Cathedral.

Our General and Artistic Director, Ian Campbell had this to share: "“Although sorry to loose Ferruccio, I am excited to have Andrew join a splendid cast. Andrew, Anja and the rest of the cast promise to make the perfect combination for this masterpiece of Romantic music."

You can read a bit more about Andrew in his bio which you will find below.

Der Rosenkavalier opens Sunday, April 3, 2011 for four performances.

Andrew Greenan, Baron Ochs
British bass-baritone Andrew Greenan made his San Diego Opera debut as Biterolf in Tannhäuser in 2008 and returned the same year to sing Lord Cecil in Mary Queen of Scots (Maria Stuarda). Greenan has appeared at the Metropolitan Opera as Heinrich in Lohengrin, The Royal Opera, Covent Garden as Landgraf Hermann in Tannhäuser, Pietro in Simon Boccanegra, Tom in A Masked Ball, Crespel in The Tales of Hoffmann, and Swallow in Peter Grimes which he has also sung with the Hamburgische Staatsoper, Klingsor in Parsifal with Grand Théâtre de Genéve. Other recent appearances include the title role in Falstaff at the Prague National Theatre, Superintendent Budd in Albert Herring at the Opéra Comique, Paris, Waldner in Arabella at Théâtre du Châtelet and his latest performances as Baron Ochs at Cape Town Opera. Earlier this season he achieved a notable success in the central role of Arnolphe in the French premiere of Liebermann's Die Schule der Frauen at Opéra National de Bordeaux and will come to San Diego directly from performances of Titurel in Parsifal with English National Opera, a company with which he has enjoyed a long association covering a large and varied repertoire. An accomplished recording artist, he appeared on the Grammy Award-winning recording of Les Troyens with the London Symphony Orchestra with Sir Colin Davis.