JOHN DUYKERS
Tenor
Internationally acclaimed tenor, John Duykers,
made his professional operatic debut with Seattle Opera. Since then he
has appeared with many of the leading opera companies of the world including
The Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera,
Royal Opera Covent Garden, Netherlands Opera, the Grand Theatre of Geneva,
Frankfurt Opera, Opera de Marseille, the Canadian Opera Company, Santa
Fe Opera, Los Angeles Opera, San Diego Opera and the Opera Company of
Philadelphia.
He is particularly known for his performances of contemporary music, having
sung in nearly 70 contemporary operas including 41 world premieres. He
created the role of Mao Tse Tung in John Adams' Nixon in China, which
he performed throughout the world. In fall 1996 he made his debut at Paris’
Theatre du Chatelet, and in 1997 he was Dr. Lobo Guerrero in the premiere
of Myron Fink's The Conquistador with San Diego Opera. Other notable performances
include Mime in Siegfried with the Opera de Marseilles, and the role of
Fattie in Mahagonny with the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
He has been a frequent performer at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and likewise
has appeared regularly with San Francisco Opera in Thomson's The Mother
of Us All, Janacek's Cunning Little Vixen and Ligeti’s Le Grand Macabre;
and at Los Angeles Opera where he sang in Strauss' Die Frau Ohne Schatten.
John Duykers has had a close association with a number of contemporary
composers, notably John Adams, Philip Glass and Paul Dresher. He sang
the premiere of Glass' In The Penal Colony and 2001 and Galileo Galilei
in 2002.
John Duykers has appeared frequently with symphony orchestras throughout
the United States including the National Symphony Orchestra, American
Composers Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Kansas City Symphony, Tri-Cities
Symphony, Sacramento Symphony, Santa Rosa Symphony and the San Jose Symphony.
His appearances at major festivals have included Aspen, the American Music
Theater Festival, the Gaudeamus Music Week, Kaitheater Festival, the Brooklyn
Academy of Music's 'Next Wave' Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, the London
International Festival of Theatre, Internationale Teaterfestival in Copenhagen,
Edinburgh Festival, the Festival Internacional de Teatro of Granada and
Juneau Jazz and Classics.
John Duykers has received critical acclaim in numerous productions of
George Coates Performance Works, the Paul Dresher Ensemble and the A.Ga.Pe
Performance Group, which have been seen on the world's most important
contemporary music and theater stages.