Levy Sekgapane
The young, South-African tenor Levy Sekgapane studied under Kamal Khan and Hanna van Niekerk at the South African College of Music at the University of Cape Town. Already during this time, he participated in different opera productions in South Africa. Winning the 1st price at the International Belvedere singing competition as well as the 1st price at the Monserrat Caballé singing competition in 2015, he became known in the international opera scene. In the summer of 2017, he won the 1st price at Placido Domingo’s OPERALIA, whereupon many debuts at major opera houses, like Paris National Opera, Bavarian State Opera Munich or Liceu Barcelona, followed.
He will open the 22/23 season with BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA at Vienna State Opera, followed by his role debut of Idreno in SEMIRAMIDE at German Opera Berlin. In this season he will return to Teatro Petruzelli in Bari so sing DON PASQUALE as well as BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA. After his jump in last season, he will give his official house debut with LA CENERENTOLA at Zürich Opera. After that, he will return to his home country to debut the role of Nadir in LES PECHEURS DE PERLES at Cape Town Opera. He will finish the season with his return to Semperoper Dresden to sing LA CENERENTOLA. Future projects will bring him amongst others to Paris, Vienna, Toulouse, Dresden.
Last season, he debuted with the world premiere of THE TIME OF OUR SINGING at La Monnaie in Brussel and made with Ramiro in LA CENERENTOLA his US debut at Los Angeles Opera. At Malmö Opera, he sung Conte Almaviva in a new production of IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA. He returned to Hamburg State Opera to sing Ernesto in a new production of DON PASQUALE. Besides his operatic engagements, Levy sang concerts at Theatre Capitole Toulouse, Salle Gaveux in Paris, Basilica Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona and at Vienna State Opera.
In the last seasons he made his debut at Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro and at Wexford Opera with Rossini´s ADINA. Furthermore, he debuted at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie Liège with LA CENERENTOLA and returned to Bavarian State Opera Munich to sing the same role. With IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA he returned to Teatro Massimo Palermo and gave his South America debut in Santiago di Chile. Besides that, he sang for the first time at Donizetti Festival in Bergamo. As Conte d’Almaviva he made his house debut at National Opera Bordeaux and he returned to State Opera Hamburg to sing IL TURCO IN ITALIA. In a new production of IL BABRIERE DI SIVIGLIA in Glyndebourne Levy gave a wonderful Conte d’Almaviva. Additionally, he made his house and role debut as Ernesto in Donizetti’s DON PASQUALE at Latvian National Opera Riga. With his debut as Arbace in Mozart’s IDOMENEO he debuted at Salzburg Festival.
Other highlights of his young career include his debut as Conte d’Almaviva at National Opera Paris and at German Opera Berlin. At the Royal Opera Copenhagen, he sang Conte di Libenskof in a new production of IL VIAGGIO A REIMS. He debuted as Ramiro in LA CENERENTOLA at Bavarian State Opera and Hamburg State Opera. During the Whitsun Festival at State Theatre Wiesbaden, he debuted as Nemorino in Donizettis L’ELISIR D’AMORE. On the concert stage he made his debut at Elbphilharmonie Hamburg singing the first New-Years-Eve-Gala concert together with Olga Peretyatko under the baton of James Conlon.
In August 2019, his first solo CD with Rossini arias was released by Prima Classic – recorded with the Munich Radio Orchestra conducted by Giacomo Sagripanti.