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Adolfo Corrado thrills in BBC Cardiff Singer triumph
Mozart, Rossini and Verdi prove a winning combination for 29-year-old Italian bass
‘A dream come true’ is how Adolfo Corrado has described winning the 2023 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World. In an enthralling final at St David’s Hall, the 29-year-old Italian bass wowed with playful charm in arias from Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro and Rossini’s Barber of Seville before unleashing his more serious side with a moment of fraternal rage from Verdi’s I Lombardi. His victory secures him £20,000 and the Cardiff Trophy, engagements with leading orchestras and opera companies and, of course, the kudos of winning a competition that, in its 40 years, has launched the careers of the likes of soprano Karita Mattila (1983), baritones Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Bryn Terfel (1989), and mezzo Jamie Barton (2013).
From a field of 16 singers competing over ten days, five made it to the final, where they sang with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under conductors Ryan Bancroft and Michael Christie – as well as Corrado, Scottish mezzo Beth Taylor, Welsh soprano Jessica Robinson, and soprano Nombulelo Yende and mezzo Siphokazi Molteno from South Africa performed in front of a jury that included soprano Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and composer Errollyn Wallen.
Born in Apulia, Corrado first trained as an actor before beginning studies as a singer in Lecce. He is currently studying on the Young Artist Project at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and has recently appeared at venues such as La Scala in Milan, Venice’s Teatro la Fenice and the Salzburg Festival. ‘I’m full of joy and emotion,’ he reflected on his success. ‘It was fantastic because on my journey the audience were incredibly powerful and I think they helped my performance.’
Corrado’s ‘cannon of a voice’ earned glowing approval from Jamie Barton, commenting on BBC TV. ‘Especially in the top, when he opens it up: there’s no covering of it, it’s just beautiful and clarion-like!’ she enthused. Bass-baritone Neal Davies also praised Corrado’s all-Italian programme. ‘There was such variety to the style and to the use of the language,’ he explained. ‘It was an absolute object lesson in how to use the Italian language in different periods of writing.’
Cardiff Singer 2023
The prize-winners
Cardiff Singer of the World
Bass Adolfo Corrado, 29, Italy Dame Kiri Te Kanawa Audience Prize Soprano Julieth Lozano Rolong (p
