+++
date = "2017-10-17T18:38:00-04:00"
discipline = "Conductor"
lastmod = "2017-10-17T18:42:00-04:00"
primary_image = "https://res.cloudinary.com/schmopera/image/upload/v1545409169/media/webhook-uploads/1508279511969/Riccardo%20Frizza%20%C2%A9%20Joan%20Toma%CC%81s%20-%20Fidelio%20Artist.jpg.jpg"
primary_image_credit = "Joan Tomás"
publishDate = "2017-10-17T18:38:00-04:00"
related_companies = ["scene/companies/the-metropolitan-opera.md","scene/companies/teatro-alla-scala.md","scene/companies/opra-national-de-paris.md","scene/companies/canadian-opera-company.md","scene/companies/gran-teatre-del-liceu.md","scene/companies/san-francisco-opera.md","scene/companies/the-dallas-opera.md"]
slug = "riccardo-frizza"
title = "Riccardo Frizza"
website = "http://riccardofrizza.com/"
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+++

Award-winning	Italian	maestro	Riccardo	Frizza	is	a	galvanic	presence	on	the	podium,	inspiring	 performances	as	exhilarating	as	they	are	expressive.	Championed by	Alberto	Zedda,	Bruno	Cagli,	and	Gian	 Carlo	Menotti,	he	is	a	leading	exponent	of	bel	canto repertoire,	collaborating	with	a	who's	who	of	today's	 most	iconic	singers	at	opera	houses	from	Milan's	Teatro	alla	Scala	to	the	Metropolitan	Opera	in	New	York.	 In	the	concert	hall,	he	graces	the	podiums	of	such	world-class	ensembles as	the	Leipzig	Gewandhaus,	 Rome's	Orchestra	dell'Accademia	Nazionale	di	Santa	Cecilia,	London's	Philharmonia	Orchestra,	and	the	 Tokyo	Symphony,	while	his	extensive	discography	includes	Decca's	Una	furtiva	lagrima,	winner	of	the	 2004	Cannes	Classical	Award. Frizza	maintains	a	strong	international	presence	in	2015-16.	

To	launch	the	new	season,	he	leads	back-toback productions	of	*La	traviata* and	*Tosca* at	Italy's	Teatro	la	Fenice.	After	premiering	Stéphane	 Braunschweig's	new	staging	of	Bellini's	*Norma* at	the Theatre	des	Champs-Elysées	in	Paris,	he	returns	to	 the	Metropolitan	Opera	for	Donizetti's	*Maria	Stuarda*,	with	Sondra	Radvanovsky	in	the	title	role.	Also	in	 Bellini,	he concludes	the	season	at	the	Gran	Teatre	del	Liceu,	conducting	Elina	Garanca	and	Patrizia	Ciofi	in	 the	Vincent	Boussard/Christian	Lacroix	production	of	*I	Capuleti	e	i	Montecchi* that	he	debuted	and	 recorded at	San	Francisco	Opera.	These	engagements	follow	a	festival-opening	run	in	Nabucco at	Italy's	 Arena	di	Verona,	bookended	by	two	new	Spanish	productions	of	Otello at	Ópera	de	Bilbao	and	the	Festival	 de	Peralada	respectively. 

In	2014-15,	Frizza	made	his	Dallas	Opera	debut	conducting	*La	bohème*,	which	was	also	the	vehicle	for	 warmly	received	returns	to	the	Met	and	the	Semperoper	Dresden.	He	took	the	podium	for Linda	Brovsky's	 staging	of	*Rigoletto* at	Seattle	Opera,	and	led	Bayerische	Staatsoper	productions	of	*I	Capuleti	e	Montecchi* and	Rossini's	*Cenerentola* with	Lawrence	Brownlee.	Besides	helming	a	revival	of	Rossini's	*L'italiana	in	 Algeri*	at	the Paris	Opera,	Frizza	joined Roberto	Alagna	and	Dmitri	Hvorostovsky	for a	concert	 performance	of	Verdi's	*Otello* with	the	Orchestre	Nationale	d'Ile	de	France	at	the	French	capital's	Salle	 Pleyel. 

After	serving	as	Music	Director	to	the	Symphonic	Orchestra	of Brescia	from	1994	to	2000,	it	was	in	2001	 that	the	conductor	launched	his	international	career	with	breakthrough	performances	at	two	Italian	 festivals.	At	the	centennial	Verdi	Festival	in	Parma,	the	composer's	birthplace,	he	conducted	*Rigoletto*,	his	 first major	production,	while	his	appearance	at	Pesaro's	star-studded	Rossini	Opera	Festival	drew	the	 notice	of	Juan	Diego	Flórez	and	many	other	singers	with	whom	he	would	forge	key	connections.	Under	 Menotti's	mentorship, Frizza	led	an	award-winning	Macbeth at Italy's	Spoleto	Festival	in	2002,	prompting	 Italian	daily	Il	Sole	24	Ore to	hail	him	as	"the	new	Verdi	conductor	of	his	generation."	After	his	triumphant	 return	to	the	Rossini	Opera	Festival	for	*Matilde	di	Shabran* two	years	later,	there	followed	a	succession	of	 important	debuts.	In	2009,	he	led	*Rigoletto* at	the	Met	and *Don	Giovanni* at	the	Theater	an	der	Wien,	with	 Erwin	Schrott	in	the	title	role.	Two	years	later,	he	conducted	Renée	Fleming in	Donizetti's	*Lucrezia	Borgia* at	San	Francisco	Opera,	followed	by	*La	Cenerentola* at	the	Paris	Opera	(2012)	and	Verdi's	*Oberto* at	La	 Scala	(2013).	As	the	first	staging	of	Verdi's	operatic	debut	in	35	years,	this	last	marked	a	major	career	 milestone	for	the	conductor	and	proved	a	notable	critical	success.	Subsequent	landmarks	include	his	 leadership	of	the	Met's	*La	bohème*,	featuring	Bryan	Hymal	(2014)	and	of	the	Metropolitan	Opera	Orchestra	 and	a	host	of	operatic luminaries in	2013's	centennial	Richard	Tucker gala	at	Lincoln	Center,	which	later	 aired	on PBS as *Richard	Tucker at	100:	An	Opera	Celebration*.

Beyond	the	opera	house,	Frizza	followed	his	Brescia	directorship	with	a	number	of	significant	 international	orchestral	collaborations.	Under	Menotti's	guidance,	he	made	his	acclaimed	debut	with	New	 York's	Juilliard	Orchestra in	2001,	and	led his	first	full	symphonic	concert	with	the	Philharmonia	 Orchestra	at	London's	Royal	Festival	Hall	the	following	year.	He	gave	first	performances	with	the	 Accademia	Nazionale	di	Santa	Cecilia	in	2005	and	the	legendary	Leipzig	Gewandhaus	two years	later,	 besides	appearing	with	a	host	of	high-profile	ensembles,	including	the	Staatskapelle	Dresden,	Bayerische	 Staatsorchester	of	Munich,	Mahler	Chamber	Orchestra,	Orchestre	National	de	Belgique,	Tokyo	Symphony,	 Kyoto	Symphony,	and	Russian	National Orchestra.	Over	the	course	of	his	concert	career,	the	conductor	has	 undertaken	concerto	collaborations	with	many	of	today's	foremost	instrumentalists,	violinists	Joshua	Bell	 and	Ray	Chen,	cellist	Steven	Isserlis,	and	pianists	Hélène	Grimaud	and	Simon	Trpceski	among	them. 

Frizza's	distinguished	discography	includes	numerous	live	opera	recordings	on	DVD and	Blu-Ray.	Most	 recently,	San	Francisco	Opera	released	*I	Capuleti	e	i	Montecchi*,	starring	Joyce	DiDonato	(2014),	and	 *Lucrezia	Borgia* (2013).	Other	notable DVD	issues	include	*Don	Giovanni* with	Ildebrando	D'Arcangelo	at	 Teatro	la Fenice	(Unitel	Classica,	2013), Rossini's	*Armida* with	Renée	Fleming	and	Lawrence	Brownlee	at	 the	Met (Decca	2010), and	*La	fille	du	regiment* starring	Juan	Diego	Flórez	and	Patrizia	Ciofi	at	Genoa's	 Teatro	Carlo	Felice	(Decca,	2006).	Frizza's output	also	includes	live	recordings	of	*L'Italiana	in	Algeri* with	 Olga	Borodina	and	Ildar	Abdrazakov	at	Washington	National	Opera	(2009)	and	*Matilde	di	Shabran* from	 Rossini	Opera	Festival	(Decca,	2006),	a	finalist	for	the	2007	Gramophone	Award.	He	has	recorded	 orchestral	aria	albums	with	Ramon	Vargas	(Capriccio,	2013),	Erwin	Schrott	(Decca,	2009),	and	Juan	Diego	 Flórez,	the	title	track	of	whose	award-winning	compilation	*Una	furtiva	lagrima* (Decca,	2003)	has	since	 been	anthologized	numerous	times. 

A	passionate	educator,	Frizza	has	given masterclasses	at	the	Milano	Music	Master	School,	Bologna's	School	 of	Italian	Opera,	and	Barcelona's	Third	"Eduard	Toldrà"	Orchestral	Conducting	Course.	Several	of	his former	students,	including	Michael	Balke	and	Diego	Martin	Etxebarria,	have	gone	on	to	launch	 professional	careers. 

After	learning	harmony	and	counterpoint	with	Elisabetta	Brusa	at	the	Conservatorio	di	Musica	Giuseppe	 Verdi	in	Milan,	Riccardo	Frizza	studied	conducting	with	Gilberto	Serembe	at	the	Music	Academy	of	Pescara	 and	Gianluigi	Gelmetti	at	Siena's	Chigiana	Academy. He	made	his	first	professional	appearance	with	the	 Soloists	of	Prague	in	1993,	five	years	before	taking	first	prize	in	the	Czech	Republic's	International	 Competition	of	South	Bohemia	State-Philharmonic	Conductors.	With	his	wife,	Spanish	soprano	Davinia	 Rodriguez,	he currently	lives in	Brescia,	Italy.

