Maria Biesu
Lucian Petrean

Romania


Baritone Lucian Petrean was born in 1975 in Bistrița and currently resides in Bucharest.

At the age of 7, he began studying violin in his hometown of Bistrița, and after the ninth grade, he moved to Cluj-Napoca. There, he studied theology at the Theological Seminary and the Faculty of Orthodox Theology in Cluj-Napoca. During this period, he took singing lessons under the guidance of Ioan Iercoșan, bass and lead soloist of the Romanian National Opera in Cluj.

He graduated from the "Gheorghe Dima" Music Academy in Cluj-Napoca, specializing in singing under the tutelage of Professor Ana Rusu, beginning his musical training with the late Professor Alexandru Fărcaș. He later obtained a Master's degree from the "Gheorghe Dima" Music Academy, studying singing with Professor Gheorghe Roșu. He participated in masterclasses under the guidance of tenor Constantin Nica (Switzerland), soprano Laura Niculescu (Romania), pianist Nicoletta Olivieri (Italy), baritone Alfio Grasso (Italy), and bass-baritone Ionel Pantea (Luxembourg).

In 2013, he earned a Ph.D. in Philology from the Faculty of Letters at "Babeș-Bolyai" University in Cluj-Napoca with the thesis "Colindatul la români în zona Ardealului" under the supervision of Professor Onufrie Vințeler.

In August 2014, in Verona, Italy, he took vocal improvement courses under the guidance of Maestro Giorgio Zancanaro. In June 2016, in Milan, Italy, he attended vocal improvement courses with Maestro Bonaldo Giaiotti.

After a series of recitals and concerts, he debuted in May 2010 with the role of Rigoletto in Giuseppe Verdi's "Rigoletto" at the "Viva Vox" festival on the stage of the Romanian National Opera in Cluj-Napoca, under the baton of conductor Gheorghe Dumănescu, professor at the "Gheorghe Dima" Music Academy in Cluj-Napoca.

Between 2013 and 2016, he performed on all the opera stages in Romania. Beginning with his first engagement in 2017 in Germany, specifically with the role of "Renato" in Giuseppe Verdi's "Un ballo in maschera" at the Theater in Regensburg—a role he also performed at the National Theatre in Prague—Lucian Petrean's international career developed with remarkable dynamism.

In 2017, he performed the role of "Scarpia" in Giacomo Puccini's "Tosca" at the Greco-Roman Theater in Catania. He then debuted in the role of "Amonasro" in the new production of Giuseppe Verdi's "Aida" at the Opernhaus Magdeburg (Magdeburg Theatre). This was followed by a series of performances at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein Düsseldorf and Duisburg (the German Operas in Düsseldorf and Duisburg). A crucial highlight was his performance as "Scarpia," a role that, due to his impressive vocal volume and stage presence, suits him particularly well.

Marking his debut in France, his next engagement was in the fall of 2018 at the Opéra National de Lorraine (Nancy Opera) in the role of "Amonasro" for a premiere celebrating the 100th anniversary of the opera's founding.

In 2019, he played the role of "Il Conte di Luna" in Verdi's "Il Trovatore" in a new production directed by Arnaud Bernard at the "Hrvatsko narodno kazalište u Zagrebu" (Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb). He debuted as "Scarpia" in a series of "Tosca" performances at the Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv under the direction of Maestro Daniel Oren.

In May 2019, he was invited by the "Teatro comunale Giuseppe Verdi di San Severo" (Giuseppe Verdi Theater in San Severo) to perform in a new production of "Rigoletto." In November 2019, he was invited by the Auditorio de Tenerife Adán (Auditorium of Tenerife) to participate in a new production of "Rigoletto." During this period, he focused on roles specific to his vocal typology, that of a Verdian and Verist baritone.

Lucian Petrean has been employed by the Romanian National Opera in Bucharest since 2016. In 2018, he received the "Excellence Award" at the National Opera Awards Gala, held at the Romanian National Opera in Iași. In Bistrița, he received the "Knight of Bistrițean Culture" distinction at the "Bistrițean Culture Awards Gala."

At the beginning of 2020, he studied in Parma with pianist Simone Savina. After these courses, he was chosen by the Parma Opera to perform the role of "Rigoletto" at the "Verdi Festival" in Busseto, the birthplace of composer Giuseppe Verdi. Unfortunately, due to pandemic restrictions, this project was suspended.

In September 2021, he received an invitation to perform the role of "Giorgio Germont" in the opera "La Traviata" at the "Maria Bieșu" International Opera and Ballet Festival in Chișinău. At this festival, artists from 11 countries were invited, he being the only guest from Romania. In December 2021, he returned to the Chișinău Opera to perform the role of "Rigoletto" in Giuseppe Verdi's opera of the same name.

In January 2022, he debuted in the role of "Jago" in Giuseppe Verdi's "Otello" at the Romanian National Opera in Bucharest. In April 2022, he performed in "Cavalleria Rusticana" and "Pagliacci" at the Massimo Theatre in Catania, Italy.

In June 2022, he was invited by the "Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe," Germany, to perform the role of "Amonasro" in the opera "Aida." In August 2022, he was invited to participate in the "Amore e vendetta" classical festival in Lech, Austria. Here, he performed excerpts from "Ballo in Maschera" by G. Verdi and the role of "Alfio" in "Cavalleria Rusticana" by Pietro Mascagni.

In March 2023, he debuted in the role of "Macbeth" in Giuseppe Verdi's opera of the same name at the "Maria Bieșu" National Opera and Ballet Theatre in Chișinău. In June 2023, he was invited to the open-air classical music festival "DescOperă" in the picturesque setting of Orheiul Vechi in the heart of Moldova. He performed the roles of Tonio and Prologue in Ruggero Leoncavallo's opera "Pagliacci," under the baton of Maestro Nicolae Dohotaru and the orchestra of the Opera and Ballet Theatre in Chișinău.

In July 2023, in Venice, under the guidance of Maestro Stefano Gibellato, he attended masterclasses in interpretive art and vocal technique, studying a series of roles from his personal repertoire. At the beginning of September 2023, he was admitted to the doctoral courses in the musical field at the "George Enescu" National University of Arts in Iași.

In September-October 2023, he was invited by the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe to perform the role of Nabucco in Giuseppe Verdi's opera of the same name in the theater's newest production. In November 2023, he was invited by the "Teatro Politeama Greco" in Lecce to perform the role of G. Germont in Giuseppe Verdi's "La Traviata."

In January 2024, at the invitation of the distinguished Luminița Arvunescu—president of U.C.R.R.M. (Union of Critics, Editors, and Music Producers from Romania)—he was invited to have a phone conversation at the opening of the direct transmission season from the "Metropolitan Opera House" in New York, being considered "one of the most significant Romanian interpreters of the role of Nabucco abroad."

In July 2024, he was invited by the Tel Aviv Opera to perform the role of Rigoletto in the opera's latest production.

Repertoire:

Rigoletto - "Rigoletto" by Giuseppe Verdi

G. Germont - "La Traviata" by Giuseppe Verdi

Conte di Luna - "Il Trovatore" by Giuseppe Verdi

Falstaff - "Falstaff" by Giuseppe Verdi

Nabucco - "Nabucco" by Giuseppe Verdi

Renato - "Un ballo in maschera" by Giuseppe Verdi

Amonasro - "Aida" by Giuseppe Verdi

Jago - "Otello" by Giuseppe Verdi

Macbeth - "Macbeth" by Giuseppe Verdi

Scarpia - "Tosca" by Giacomo Puccini

Tonio and Prologue - "Pagliacci" by Ruggero Leoncavallo

Alfio - "Cavalleria Rusticana" by Pietro Mascagni

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«National Theatre of Opera and Ballet "Maria Biesu"»