Biography
Due to his unique timbre and unusually wide repertoire Mr Silvasti has been one of Europe’s most remarkable tenors for several years. He has debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in New York as Boris in Katja Kabanova in 2004 and he will appear there as Laca in a new production of Jenufa in 2007.
Born in Finland, Mr Silvasti studied at the Savonlinna Music Institute, the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and in Frankfurt, Germany. In 1982 he won the renowned Timo Mustakallio Contest in Finland and signed a contract with the State Theatre Krefeld-Mönchengladbach in Germany.
From 1985 to 1988 he was an ensemble member at the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe.
Guest engagements have taken him to the opera houses of Los Angeles, the Royal Opera Copenhagen and the Wiener Staatsoper. Mr Silvasti also performs regularly at the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki and at the Savonlinna Opera Festival.
The performances of Loge in the Finnish premiere of the Ring and as Laca in Janáček’s Jenufa marked the transition to more dramatic parts in Mr Silvasti’s repertoire. Soon after this he performed as Loge at the Bayreuth Festival (1998), and in the following year he appeared as Erik in The Flying Dutchman. He was also featured in both roles at the Deutsche Oper Berlin and at the Berliner Staatsoper (D.Barenboim). Further he has sung Erik at the Hamburgische Staatsoper. He performed his first Max in Freischütz at the New Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv (1998) and subsequently in Hamburg and at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. An enormous success as Idomeneo at the Monnaie in Brussels was followed by his role debut as Parsifal in 1998. Further appearances include Peter Grimes in Helsinki, Jeník (The Bartered Bride) and Laca (Jenufa) at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Erik in Bilbao, Lulu and Janáček’s Osud in Wiener Staatsoper.
Jorma Silvasti is a welcome guest in the world’s opera houses and concert halls. His concert repertoire extends from Bach and Beethoven, through Mahler to Stravinsky, and also includes contemporary composers.