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Leon, Jesus Tenor
Praised for his stratospheric high notes, innate musicality and dashing good looks, Jesús Léon is quickly earning a place among today’s most promising young lyric tenors. Born in Mexico to musical parents and initially dabbling in guitar lessons, his destiny changed when on a trip to Disneyland in 2004 and singing at a restaurant by chance, he was discovered by a famous voice teacher and several LA opera singers in attendance. They found him to be an exceptional talent and in short order procured financial assistance, a place to stay and a spot in the UCLA Opera Studio for him. So started Leon’s professional singing career and he has since made a mark in such diverse roles as Alfredo, Il Duca di Mantova, Nemorino and Edgardo. Fresh from his successful 2009 debut at Royal Albert Hall with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Raymond Gubbay's Classical Spectacular – later also appearing at Barbican Hall, Wigmore Hall, and Birmingham’s Symphony Hall – he has since established himself as an artist to watch on both sides of the Atlantic. Recently he sang the tenor solos in Verdi’s Requiem with Orchestra Verdi and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. With the Festival Euromediterraneo he performed the tenor solo in Carmina Burana in the Roman Amphitheater Ostia Antica. Engagements during 2011/12 see him perform Cavaradossi in Tosca at Grange Park Opera and give concerts with the Camerata Manchester Orchestra and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra as well as a Mozart Requiem with Orchestra Verdi in Milan. In 2013 he will sing Arturo in I Puritani at Grange Park Opera. Past operatic performances include Riccardo in Donizetti’s Maria di Rohan in Berlin, Cavaradossi in Tosca at NI Ireland Opera, Pinkerton/Madama Buttefly at the Grange Park Opera, Alfredo/La Traviata at the West Bay Opera, Nemorino/L’Elisir d’Amore in Mexico with the Sonora Philharmonic, Fenton/Falstaff (cover) at Glyndebourne, Don Ottavio/Don Giovanni, Rinuccio/Gianni Schicchi and Arkady/A Month in the Country at the Opera Institute in Boston; Il Duca/Rigoletto with San Francisco Lyric Opera, Edgardo/Lucia di Lammermoor with Riverside Opera; Almaviva/The Barber of Seville at the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Ferrando/Cosi fan tutte (cover) at Santa Fe Opera, Cavaradossi/Tosca and Don José/Carmen (covers) both at the Royal Albert Hall. During his young career, he has already won many grants and awards. In 2010, he received an award from the Mexican government and was presented in recital in the Festival Alfonso Ortiz Tirado. Other grants include the Vilcek Foundation, Nando Peretti Foundation, Solti Foundation, the Palm Springs Opera Guild, the Institute Sonora of Culture, the American Institute of Fine Arts, and the Opera Buffs Inc. of Los Angeles. In addition to the UCLA Opera Studio, he was a member of the 2006 Solti Accademia di bel Canto where he was coached by Mirella Freni. He was an inaugural member of the Domingo-Thornton Young Artist Program in 2006/2007 at the Los Angeles Opera. Ms. Freni continues to be his main teacher and mentor to this day. June 2011
Buffs Performance(s): 4/3/05, 10/10/04, 10/13/02
Discography:
Website: www.jesusleon.com

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