Bizet invented astonishingly credible sounding Spanish melodies to create this French opera's exotic atmosphere. These tunes are both sensual and passionate, the most important ingredients of the drama's edgy and heart-wrenching feel. Premièred in 1875 and considered a precursor to verismo, Carmen includes a host of Spanish-sounding segments that became hits. It comes as no surprise that an actual Spanish musician - Pablo de Sarasate - would go on to use them to construct his popular Carmen Fantasy. The international cast for this performance features French tenor Jean-François Borras as Don José, a role he also sang at the Opéra de Marseille last season, as well as at the Met in 2014, when he made his début there jumping in to replace Jonas Kaufmann. Singing the part of the toreador Escamillo will be the superb Italian bass Riccardo Fassi, a regular fixture in Europe's leading theatres best known for his work in the bel canto repertoire and the operas of Mozart and Verdi. The indisputable star of the evening, however, will sing the title role. Elīna Garanča pursued her music studies in Vienna and the United States. From Mozart and Rossini to Massenet and Saint-Saëns, she is adept in numerous styles, and she has worked with many top conductors, ranging from Nikolaus Harnoncourt to Paavo Järvi. Müpa Budapest's concert performance of the opera is a 'family production', as the British-Gibraltarian conductor Karel Mark Chichon, a former student of the Viennese Leopold Hager, is Garanča's husband in real life. Performing under his baton this evening will be the Hungarian State Opera Orchestra and Chorus.

Presented by: Müpa Budapest