Michael Devlin (bass-baritone)


Michael Devlin is an American opera singer who is internationally known as a bass-baritone and singing-actor.

New Orleans Opera

The protégé of the great Norman Treigle, Devlin began his career with the New Orleans Opera Association, where he debuted in a small role in La bohème, in 1963. His next appearance was as Spalanzani in Les contes d'Hoffmann, with Beverly Sills and Treigle, in 1964. He was subsequently seen in Werther, Carmen, Ariadne auf Naxos, Aïda and, in 1999, returned for The Ballad of Baby Doe.

New York City Opera

At the New York City Opera, Devlin first sang the Ermitaño Ciego in the North American premiere of Ginastera's Don Rodrigo, conducted by Julius Rudel and staged by Tito Capobianco, in 1966. Further appearances there included L'amour des trois oranges, Giulio Cesare, The Crucible, Bomarzo, Nine Rivers from Jordan, La bohème, Le coq d'or, Lucia di Lammermoor, Manon, Œdipus rex, Le nozze di Figaro, Mefistofele, Louise, Carmen, Maria Stuarda, Susannah, Così fan tutte, Les contes d'Hoffmann, Faust and Pelléas et Mélisande. He returned to the company in 2000, for The Mother of Us All, portraying Daniel Webster.

Metropolitan Opera

Devlin made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 1978 as Escamillo in Carmen. His other performances at that venue have included Hänsel und Gretel, Les contes d'Hoffmann, Die Fledermaus, Bluebeard's Castle, Salome, Samson et Dalila, Faust, and Wozzeck, altogether singing 229 performances in over thirty years with the Met. He has also appeared with companies in Chicago, Amsterdam, Salzburg, Verona, Madrid, London, Paris, Prague, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Fe,etc.
In a fifty-year career, he collaborated with such conductors as Leopold Stokowski, Eugene Ormandy, Sir Georg Solti, Erich Leinsdorf, James Levine, Sir Bernard Haitink, Leonard Bernstein, Sir Neville Marriner, Riccardo Muti, Christoph von Dohnányi, Pierre Boulez, and many others.
In January 2012, Mr Devlin portrayed Pope St Leo I, "the Great," in Attila for the Seattle Opera. He is now retired and lives in Seattle.

Discography

Works in his discography include Handel's Giulio Cesare, Ginastera's Bomarzo, Haydn's L'infedeltà delusa, Rameau's Dardanus, and Schönberg's Moses und Aron.

Videography