Zachary Altman bass-baritone
Bass-Baritone Zachary Altman is gaining notice for wide ranging repertoire in major theaters across Europe and the United States. In the 2023-24 season, he debuts at the Nederlandse Reisopera as Der Pförtner in Das Wunder der Heliane, returns to Teatro dell'opera di Roma as the Speaker in The Magic Flute and First Nazarene/First Soldier in Salome, and debuts with the Bard SummerScape Festival as Count Oberthal in Meyerbeer's Le prophète. In 2024-25 he will return to Opera Philadelphia for Missy Mazzoli's The Listeners, and join the Czech Philharmonic as the bass soloist in Honegger's Jeanne d'Arc.
In 2022-23, he debuted as Trinity Moses in Weill's Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny with three theaters: Opera Vlaanderen, Komische Oper Berlin, and Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg. In addition, he made a role debut as Vodnik in Rusalka with Opera Idaho, and debuts with the Cleveland Orchestra as Billy Jackrabbit in La Fanciulla del West, conducted by Franz-Welser Möst. His 2021-22 engagements included Bottom (A Midsummer Night's Dream) and Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle with Opera Malmö, a return to Leporello (Don Giovanni) to debut with Scottish Opera, and a debuts with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (1st Apprentice in Wozzeck) and with Opera Tampa (Four Villains in Tales of Hoffmann).
Zach has performed with Virginia Opera as Leporello, with Opera Philadelphia as Starveling (A Midsummer Night's Dream), with the Royal Danish Opera as Henry Kissinger in a new production of Nixon in China, and then returned to Opera Philadelphia as Leandro in Love for Three Oranges. His 2017-18 season saw debuts with Teatro Massimo di Palermo as Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream, with Opéra de Lyon as Tschao in Zemlinksy's Der Kreidekreis, with Teatro La Fenice as Lovell in Battistelli's Richard III, with the Spoleto Festival dei due Mondi in Honegger's Jeanne d'Arc. He also returned to Teatro dell'opera di Roma as Mr. Flint in Deborah Warner's new production of Billy Budd, conducted by James Conlon.
He made his debut in Rome in May 2017 as the Athlet/Tierbändiger in Lulu, after performing the same roles earlier the same season at the Hamburgische Staatsoper. In addition, the 2016-17 season saw Zach's role debut as Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream with performances in Brescia, Cremona, Pavia, Como, and Reggia Emilia.
Mr. Altman recently debuted with the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino as Mr. Gedge in Albert Herring. His 2015-16 performances also included joining Teatro dell'Opera di Roma for Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny and Henze's The Bassarids; Dritte Schäfer in Daphne with the Hamburgische Staatsoper; Tierbändiger/Athlet in Lulu with West Edge Opera; and Il Mandarino in Turandot with the Pacific Symphony. As a member of Theater Basel in the 2014-15 season, he performed six roles, including Tarquinius (The Rape of Lucretia), Schlemil/Hermann (Les contes d'Hoffmann), and Montano in a new production of Otello directed by Calixto Bieito. He was also featured in concert with the Sinfonieorchester Basel and the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra.
From 2012-2014, Zachary was a Principal Resident Artist at Opera San Jose, performing as Zurga (The Pearl Fishers), Count Di Luna (Il Trovatore), Dr. Falke (Die Fledermaus), Ford (Falstaff), Sharpless (Madama Butterfly) and the title roles in Don Giovanni and Gianni Schicchi. He has also performed with Gotham Chamber Opera, the Castleton Festival, Caramoor Festival, and Chautauqua Institution, and sang the world premiere of Simon Sargon's Out of the Depths with Voices of Change in Dallas, TX, a piece expressly written for Mr. Altman.
He made his Los Angeles Philharmonic debut at the Hollywood Bowl as Herman Augustus and Second Inquisitor in Bernstein’s Candide, conducted by Bramwell Tovey. Zach spent three years as a fellow at the Music Academy of the West, where he sang the title role in Don Giovanni, Dr. Miracle in The Tales of Hoffmann, and Breedley in Bolcom’s A Wedding. He has also been a young artist with both Fort Worth Opera and Sarasota Opera, and received awards from the Marilyn Horne Foundation and the Metropolitan Opera National Council District Auditions.
He received both his graduate and undergraduate degrees from Manhattan School of Music, where he sang his first Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus, Tarquinius in The Rape of Lucretia, and Joe Harland in John Musto’s Later the Same Evening, which was recorded and released on Albany Records.
