New York--With a voice that soars to startling highs and an ease in taking new roles, tenor Bryan Hymel has quickly found himself in the league of top opera stars -- and is pushing full speed ahead.
The 35-year-old New Orleans native recently released a first solo album entitled "Heroique," in which he devotes his robust yet expressive voice to valiant arias from the French opera tradition.
Hymel demonstrates the power of his instrument on "Heroique" with his mastery of high Cs -- the prized note at the top of a tenor's range, which was famously associated with the late Luciano Pavarotti.
Over a 73-minute album, Hymel hits no fewer than 19 high Cs -- and goes even further with two high C-sharps and, on Meyerbeer's "L'Africaine," a high D.
The album, released by Warner Classics, marks a bold prediction that Hymel can prove to be a hit outside the doors of opera houses as few opera singers --and even fewer of them Americans --achieve commercial success through CD sales.
Hymel has kept a hectic schedule. Switching to Italian, he is performing "La Boheme" this month at the Dallas Opera and will take a short break in April when he expects his second child with his wife, Greek soprano Irini Kyriakidou.
"Every direction in my life right now is going 100 miles an hour," Hymel told AFP with a hearty laugh.
AFP
