Stuart Burrows

Stuart Burrows OBE (born 7 February 1933) is a Welsh operatic tenor.

The Cilfynydd-born singer scaled the peaks of musical distinction during his lengthy career which saw him give up teaching to pursue a new life on the opera stage. He was of a unique pedigree, having been born in William Street, which was the same birthplace as fellow opera star Sir Geraint Evans, Welsh rugby international Glyn Davies and politician Lord Merlyn-Rees.

He began his working career as a teacher in Bargoed but his magnificent talent as a tenor soon brought him enduring fame and good fortune. His recitals included works by Beethoven, Berlioz, Schubert, Sullivan, Adams, Tippett, Tchaikovsky, Mallote, Mahler, Offenbach and Handel. He has earned worldwide recognition for being adept at oratorios, operas and specialising in the music of Puccini, Verdi, Donizetti and especially Mozart, earning him the title of "The King of Mozart".

It was a far cry from the days when he sang as a boy soprano from his bedroom window to neighbours on the street below. As a member of the congregation at the local Bethel Chapel he first performed as a soloist by singing "Bless This House".

He occupied the top rung of the operatic lyric tenor ladder for 20 years from the mid-1960s, particularly known for his fine performances of Mozart's works. Few people realise he could have been a professional rugby player before converting his career to the opera and concert stage.

In 1963, Stuart Burrows debuted with the Welsh National Opera as Ismael in Verdi's Nabucco. In 1967, his phenomenal performance during the Athens Festival brought him international acclaim. The well-crafted version of Igor Stravinsky's Oedipus rex was certain evidence of Stuart being one of the world's finest lyric tenors of all time. It was a performance requested by Stravinsky himself.

He performed in Don Giovanni in Brussels; Madam Butterfly in Vienna; in Milan, he played in Faust; he performed both in L'elisir d'amore and The Magic Flute in San Francisco; Die Entführung aus dem Serail at the Paris Opéra; in Buenos Aires, he performed in Tales of Hoffman at the Theatre Cologne and at the Théâtre de la Monnaie, Belgium; the Mozart Requiem at the Cardiff Festival of Choirs in Wales; Don Giovanni at the San Diego Opera; and many times with the Royal Opera including roles in Don Pasquale, Maria Stuarda and La sonnambula, and touring both Japan and the USA.

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