Bruno de Sá, the Brazilian male soprano, is the latest artist to sign an exclusive contract with Warner Classics-Erato.
His first album, Roma travestita, recorded with Il Pomo d’Oro and conductor Francesco Corti, will be released in 2022. Comprising arias by Vivaldi, Alessandro Scarlatti, Galuppi and Piccini, among others, it explores repertoire that arose after 1588, when Pope Sixtus V banned women from singing on public stages in the Papal States, and male singers were called upon to portray female characters.
As a male soprano, Bruno de Sá has a voice with a particular colour and texture that distinguishes him from both female sopranos and countertenors (whose range generally equates to a mezzo-soprano). His philosophy is “to sing roles that my voice allows me to sing”. On stages in Brazil and Europe these have included roles in operas by Handel (Sesto in Giulio Cesare), Mozart (Sesto in La clemenza di Tito, the First Lady in Die Zauberflöte and Barbarina in Le nozze di Figaro), Wagner (the Shepherd in Tannhäuser), and the contemporary American composer Jherek Bischoff (the 2019 world premiere of Andersens Erzählungen, given in Basel, where Bruno de Sá sang the role of the Little Mermaid).
Bruno de Sá began singing at a very early age and while still a student made his professional debut in São Paulo in Kurt Weill’s Der Jasager. Following further appearances in Brazil, in works by composers ranging from Bach to Rossini to Scott Joplin, he made his German debut in 2016. His repertoire has also encompassed Puccini, Britten, Bernstein, Adams, the 19th century Italian composer Giuseppe Balducci, and, in 2019 in Potsdam and Bayreuth, Giovanni Bononcini’s Polifemo, which dates from 1702.
At the beginning of the 2019/20 season Bruno de Sá was a member of Theater Basel’s young artists’ programme, and his engagements in the 2020/21 season included Berardo in Porpora’s Carlo il calvo at the Bayreuth Baroque Opera Festival (singing beside Franco Fagioli and Julia Lezhneva in a staging by Max Emanuel Cenčic with George Petrou conducting), and Scarlatti’s Il primo omicidio, conducted by Philippe Jaroussky; presented in 2021 in Montpellier and Salzburg (Whitsun Festival).
Bruno de Sá is a laureate of a number of competitions, including the Maria Callas Competition (São Paulo), the Manhattan International Music Competition and the Concorso Spiros Argiris (Sarzana, Italy). In 2020 he received an OPER! Award for Best Newcomer of the Year.
Welcoming Bruno de Sá to the label, Alain Lanceron, President Warner Classics and Erato, says: “As a male soprano, Bruno de Sá makes an immediate impact. He sustains that impact with tone that is luminous and seamless throughout his voice – from the highest to the lowest notes – and with artistry of consistent elegance and insight. Over the years Erato has collaborated with a succession of distinguished countertenors, from Gérard Lesne to David Daniels, Philippe Jaroussky, Max Emanuel Cenčić and Jakub Józef Orliński. Now, with an outstanding male soprano in the form of Bruno de Sá, we can embark on further musical adventures.”
Bruno de Sá says: “I am overwhelmed with joy to join the Warner Classics / Erato roster beside all these incredible artists that have inspired me to sing. Only a few years ago, I left my homeland with a suitcase full of dreams… I cannot believe I achieved so much so quickly! I am now thrilled to share with you countless exciting recordings.”
Roma Travestita, Bruno De Sá’s debut album, is released internationally on 16 September 2022.
Watch Bruno De Sá perform with Orquestra Mozarteum and Carlos Moreno here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMaNFanLA1s