+++
date = "2017-09-05T14:53:00-04:00"
discipline = "Bass-baritone"
lastmod = "2017-09-05T14:53:00-04:00"
primary_image = "https://res.cloudinary.com/schmopera/image/upload/v1545409169/media/webhook-uploads/1504637257318/Alfred%2520Walker%2520Square_o.jpg.jpg"
primary_image_credit = "Walter Hill"
publishDate = "2017-09-05T14:53:00-04:00"
related_companies = ["scene/companies/san-francisco-opera.md","scene/companies/the-metropolitan-opera.md","scene/companies/seattle-opera.md","scene/companies/deutsche-oper-berlin.md","scene/companies/teatro-alla-scala.md","scene/companies/los-angeles-opera.md","scene/companies/the-atlanta-opera.md","scene/companies/minnesota-opera.md","scene/companies/utah-opera.md","scene/companies/opera-north.md","scene/companies/san-diego-opera.md","scene/companies/toronto-symphony-orchestra.md", "scene/companies/canadian-opera-company.md"]
slug = "alfred-walker"
title = "Alfred Walker"
+++

Lauded by Opera News for his "inky bass-baritone and clear projection ideally suited to the role, capturing this isolated man's passion with telling grief," in the 2023-24 season Alfred Walker returns to the role of Enobarbus the European premiere of John Adams' _Antony and Cleopatra_ with Gran Teatre del Liceu, sing Orest in _Elektra_ with Dallas Opera, and returns to the Metropolitan Opera for Frere Laurant in _Roméo et Juiliette_ and Rambaldo in _La rondine_, and joins Vashon Opera for Iago in _Otello_. Last season, he returned to San Francisco Opera as Enobarbus in the world premiere of John Adams' _Antony and Cleopatra_, joined the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Vater in _Hansel und Gretel_, the Metropolitan Opera as Masetto in _Don Giovanni_, Detroit Opera for Amonasro in _Aida_, and returned to Bard Summerscape for the title role in Saint-Saëns' _Henry VIII_. He also sang Rachmaninoff's _The Bells_ with the LA Philharmonic under Maestro Gustavo Dudamel, and joined the Boston Philharmonic for Beethoven's Symphony No. 9. He recently joined San Francisco Opera as Scarpia in _Tosca_, returned to the Metropolitan Opera for further performances of Crown in _Porgy and Bess_, joined Washington National Opera as Mtchll in _It All Falls Down_ which is a part of _Written In Stone_, a tetralogy one-act operas by Carlos Simon and Marc Bamuthi Joseph. He also sang Nalikantha in _Lakme_ with Washington Concert Opera, sang Tom in _Un ballo in maschera_ with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Maestro Ricardo Muti, joined Michigan Opera Theatre as Alfio in Cavalleria Rusticana, the Metropolitan Opera for Crown in _Porgy and Bess_, San Francisco Opera for Vater in _Hansel und Gretel_, and Boston Lyric Opera for Oroveso in _Norma_.

The bass-baritone recently triumphed as the title role in _Der fliegende Holländer_ at Theater Basel and returned to the company for his first performances of both Amfortas in _Parsifal_ and Amonasro in _Aida_. Other recent performances include Kurwenal in _Tristan und Isolde_ at Angers Nantes Opera and Opéra de Dijon; his first performances of Wotan in _Das Rheingold_ with North Carolina Opera; Méphistophélès in Berlioz's _La damnation du Faust_ at the Teatro Municipal de Santiago; the title role of _Der fliegende Holländer_ with Oper Köln, Seattle Opera, Théâtre de Caen, Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg Boston Lyric Opera, and the Wagner Geneva Festival; the title role of Josh Gibson in the world premiere of Sonenberg's The Player King_ with Pittsburgh Opera; Pizarro in _Fidelio_ with Caramoor International Music Festival; Bluebeard in _Bluebeard's Castle_ with the New Japan Philharmonic; Amonasro in _Aida_ with Utah Opera; Creonte in _Medea_ with the Opéra national de Lorraine; Four Villains in _Les contes d'Hoffmann_ with Komische Oper Berlin and Den Norske Opera; and Il Prologo in Gnecchi's _Cassandra_ with the Deutsche Oper Berlin. His celebrated characterization of Orest in _Elektra_ has been seen at Teatro alla Scala, Seattle Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, and Spain's San Sebastián Festival and he received great acclaim for performances of Allazim in the Peter Sellars' production of _Zaide_ at the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence, Wiener Festwochen, London's Barbican Center, and Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival. He sang Telramund in concert performances of _Lohengrin_ in Oviedo, Spain under the baton of Semyon Bychkov and later joined the conductor and the WDR Sinfonie Orchester Köln for Lodovico in Otello. In lesser-known repertoire, he sang Kunrad in _Feuersnot_ with the American Symphony Orchestra and König Karl in Schubert's _Fierrabras_ at the Bard Music Festival.

Additional highlights of recent seasons include his Los Angeles Opera debut as Porgy in _Porgy and Bess_; title role of _Don Quichotte_, Four Villains in _Les contes d'Hoffmann_ with Seattle Opera and Tulsa Opera; Méphistophélès in _Faust_ also with Tulsa Opera; Achilla in _Giulio Cesare_ and Colline in _La bohème_ with San Diego Opera, Atlanta Opera, and New Orleans Opera; Leporello in _Don Giovanni_ with Opera North; Raimondo in _Lucia di Lammermoor_ with Palm Beach Opera, Banquo in _Macbeth_ with Minnesota Opera; Donner in _Das Rheingold_ with New Orleans Opera; and Sarastro in _Die Zauberflöte_ with Minnesota Opera and Utah Opera. Also a frequent presence on the Metropolitan Opera stage, he recently returned to the famed house for Parsi Rustomji in its first presentation _Satyagraha_ in addition to joining the company for its productions of _Bluebeard's Castle_, _Il trovatore_, _Elektra_, _Le nozze di Figaro_, _Roméo et Juliette_, _Don Giovanni_, _Samson et Dalila_, _Pelléas et Mélisande_, _Les Troyens_, and _L'enfant et les sortilèges_.

Mr. Walker is an equally versatile concert artist. He has sung Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 and Verdi's Requiem with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Robert Spano as well as the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Stuttgarter Philharmoniker, Utah Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, and at the Sun Valley Music Festival. He has joined the Boston Symphony Orchestra for Rossini's Stabat Mater as well as previously for Porgy in _Porgy and Bess_ in performances conducted by Bramwell Tovey at Tanglewood and in Boston, the Grant Park Music Festival for Shostakovich's _The Execution of Stepan Razin_ and Elgar's _The Kingdom_, the Handel and Haydn Society for Mozart's Requiem, American Symphony Orchestra in Alice Tully Hall for Mahler's _Kindertoten-Lieder_ and _Rückert-Lieder_, and Los Angeles Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony and Toronto Symphony Orchestra for Porgy in concert performances of _Porgy and Bess_. Other concert performances include excerpts from _Parsifal_ with the Baltimore Symphony; his debut with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and Sir Colin Davis in _Beatrice et Benedict_; Verdi's Requiem with Marin Alsop conducting the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, with Boston Philharmonic, the Spoleto Festival U.S.A, and with the Greensboro Symphony and Reno Philharmonic; performances with the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Carnegie Hall; and a concert performance of Strauss' _Salome_ at the Tanglewood Festival with Seiji Ozawa. He has also presented recitals at the Manchester Music Festival. His recording credits include another collaboration with Semyon Bychov and the WDR Sinfonie Orchester Köln for Orest in _Elektra_ on the Hybrid label as well as performances on Placido Domingo's CD of Verdi tenor arias for Deutsche Grammophon.

A graduate of Dillard University, Loyola University, and the Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young Artist Program, the New Orleans native is the recipient of awards from the George London Foundation, Palm Beach Opera Competition, Houston Opera Studio's Eleanor McCollum Competition, and the Sullivan Foundation career grant.