Jonas Kaufmann withdraws from full Royal Opera House run due to Covid-19

<img src=”https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/24/2022/07/Kaufmann-4586a26.png?quality=90&resize=620,413″ srcset=”https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/24/2022/07/Kaufmann-4586a26.png?quality=45&amp;resize=1200,799 1200w, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/24/2022/07/Kaufmann-4586a26.png?quality=90&amp;resize=960,639 960w, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/24/2022/07/Kaufmann-4586a26.png?quality=90&amp;resize=720,479 720w, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/24/2022/07/Kaufmann-4586a26.png?quality=90&amp;resize=576,383 576w, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/24/2022/07/Kaufmann-4586a26.png?quality=90&amp;resize=360,239 360w, https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/24/2022/07/Kaufmann-4586a26.png?quality=90&amp;resize=180,119 180w, ” sizes=”(max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px” width=”620″ height=”413″ class=”wp-image-168783 alignnone size-landscape_thumbnail” alt=”Kaufmann” title=”Kaufmann” /> <p><strong><a href=”https://www.classical-music.com/magazine/issues/april-0/”>Jonas Kaufmann</a></strong> has been forced to withdraw from all performances of <strong><a href=”https://www.classical-music.com/features/recordings/cavalleria-rusticana-best-recordings/”><em>Cavalleria Rusticana</em></a></strong> at London’s Royal Opera House due to Covid-19.</p> <p>The German tenor had announced a partial withdrawal on his Facebook page on 1 July: he was due to perform in both Leoncavallo’s <em>Pagliacci</em> and Mascagni’s <em>Cavalleria</em>, programmed as a double bill, but initially decided to abandon <em>Pagliacci</em> and was replaced by Fabio Sartori. He had also cancelled the first two performances of <em>Cavalleria</em> on 5 and 8 July and was replaced by South Korean tenor SeokJong Baek.</p> <p>Explaining that decision, he wrote on his Facebook page: ‘Having caught Covid yet again, this time on top of an ongoing recovery from the flu, I have had to withdraw from the original plan of singing these wonderfully contrasting parts – Turiddu and Canio – in order to concentrate only on <em>Cavalleria Rusticana</em> for my comeback. I’m keep my fingers crossed that I will be back on track and ready to perform later in the run.’</p> <section class=”highlight “> <div class=”highlight__content editor-content”> </p> <ul> <li><a href=”https://www.classical-music.com/features/recordings/cavalleria-rusticana-best-recordings/”><strong>Cavalleria rusticana: a guide to Mascagni’s dramatic masterpiece and its best recordings</strong></a></li> <li><a href=”https://www.classical-music.com/features/recordings/la-boheme-best-recordings/”><strong>La bohème: the best recordings of Puccini’s masterful opera</strong></a></li> <li><a href=”https://www.classical-music.com/composers/the-greatest-opera-composers-of-all-time/”><strong>The greatest opera composers of all time</strong></a></li> <li><a href=”https://www.classical-music.com/features/works/20-greatest-operas-all-time/”><strong>The 20 Greatest Operas of all time</strong></a></li> </ul> <p> </div> </section> <p>However, he has subsequently pulled out of the entire run of performances of <em>Cavalleria</em>, as the Royal Opera House explained in a statement: ‘Mr Kaufmann is continuing to recover from Covid-19 and is not well enough to sing the remaining performances.’ SeokJong Baek will perform in Kaufmann’s place.</p> <p>The double bill has suffered a number of cancellations, including the withdrawal of Sartori from several performances, also due to Covid-19, in which he was replaced by Roberto Alagna.</p> <p><em>Photo © Gregor Hohenberg / Sony Classical</em></p>

Written by Classical-Music.com