Johann Tilli Bass

Johann Tilli was born in Kerimäki, Finland. In 1987, he took second prize in the National Lappeenranta Singing Competition and first prize in the Timo Mustakallio Singing Competition. In 1990, he took first prize again in the Kangasniemi Competition and in 1991 was awarded the first ever Martti Talvela Prize. In 2002, Johann Tilli was awarded the prestigious Theo Adam Prize in Dresden. Awarded only once every four years, this prize recognises specific success in Wagnerian roles.

Johann Tilli has been a regular guest at both the Helsinki’s Finnish National Opera where he has sung Fafner/Siegfried, Fasolt, Hunding and Grand Inquisitor, and at the Savonlinna Opera Festival where he has sung Sarastro, Banquo, Landgraf, Ramphis and the Judge in Salinnen’s The Horseman, which in the 2006/2007 season was also taken on tour to Moscow.

Johann Tilli commenced his international career as a contract artist in Hamburg where he built up a wide and varied repertoire of Wagner, Verdi, Beethoven and Mozart roles before performing as a guest artist in many of Europe’s main opera houses; in Berlin at both the Deutsche Oper and Staatsoper, at Munich’s Bayerische Staatsoper, in Köln, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Zurich as well as in Madrid, Barcelona, Rome, Montpellier, Amsterdam, Brussels and Tel Aviv. In 1995, Johann made his Tokyo debut in Tannhäuser, and appeared for 5 consecutive years at the Bayreuth Festival as Fasolt.

Recent season highlights include Johann’s portrayal of Alban Berg’s Doktor in a new production of Wozzeck by Calixto Bieito in a co-production between Barcelona’s Liceu and Madrid’s Teatro Real, his first Hagen/Goetterdaemmerung in Linz, Tannhäuser in Barcelona, Die Walkure in Garmisch and Stuttgart, and a highly acclaimed Die Soldaten in New York, a co-production between Ruhr Triennale and the Lincoln Center Festival. Last season saw Johann return to Barcelona in Tiefland as well as Tannhauser at Madrid’s Teatro Real.

Since 1998 Johann Tilli has been a guest artist at the Semperoper Dresden where he has sung Rocco, Sarastro, Ramphis, König Heinrich, König Louis, Landgraf, Pogner, Fasolt, Zaccaria, Daland, Hunding and Gurnemanz.

As a concert artist, Johann Tilli has performed regularly throughout Europe and America and has worked with such esteemed conductors as Wolfgang Sawallisch, Claudio Abbado, Nicholas Harnoncourt, Semyon Bychkov, Sir Andrew Davis, the late Giuseppe Sinopoli, Jeffrey Tate und Christian Thielemann. His repertoire includes works by Bach, Berlioz, Rossini, Verdi, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Haydn and Dvorak.

Johann Tilli has recorded with Deutsche Grammophon, Bis, Sony Classical, Finlandia Records, Orfeo and Capriccio.

The current season includes Gurnemanz in a new Parsifal at the Stuttgart opera, conducted by Manfred Honeck as well as Daland/Flying Dutchman in Las Palmas.

2009/’10 Season

This is for information only and should not be reproduced. Please see full biography for further details.