Thomas Michael Allen

Thomas Michael Allen was born in Chicago and began his musical studies as a pianist. After earning a degree in English literature he received a Master’s Degree in voice from the Manhattan School of Music in New York in 1991. He has established a reputation for his vivid representations of a wide range of operatic roles, especially in leading bel canto parts and in haute contre roles of the French baroque.

In opera he has worked with many prominent directors including David McVicar, Laurent Pelly, Nigel Lowrey, Dieter Dorn and Graham Vick. He has sung at the Théatre des Champs-Élyées in Paris, Zurich Opera, Staatsoper Berlin, La Monnaie in Brussels, Grand Théatre de Geneve , Opera de Lyon, Suntory Hall in Tokyo and the Stuttgart Opera. In 2004 he received great acclaim for the role of Calisis in Rameau’s Les Boréades in Lyon and Zurich under the baton of Marc Minkowski as well as the role of Lenia in Cavalli’s Eliogabalo at the Innsbruck Festival with René Jacobs. In 2005 he enjoyed a major success as the Demon in Hans Werner Henze’s L’Upupa at the Opera de Lyon.

As a concert artist he regularly appears in the great concert halls of Europe and has worked with such conductors as Kurt Masur, Helmut Rilling, Simone Young, Julia Jones, William Christie or Gary Bertini with such orchestras as the New York Philharmonic, the Academy for Ancient Music, the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, Les Musiciens du Louvre and the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig. He has a wide and varied concert repertoire and has earned a reputation as one of the most sought-after Evangelists in the Passions of Bach.

Thomas Michael Allen has made several commercial recordings including a recent release of Galuppi’s La Diavolessa and a critically acclaimed DVD world premiere of Jacob ter Veldhuis’s Paradiso for Chandos.

He sang the role of the Maler in Berg’s Lulu at opening of the new Trianti Hall at the Megaron Complex in Athens, Arnalta/Mercurio in Monteverdi’s L’Incoronazione di Poppea at the Staatsoper Berlin and La Monnaie in Brussels under the baton of René Jacobs and Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with Hemuth Rilling and the National Symphony (Washington, D.C.) and concerts of Bach and Mozart with the Chicago Symphony again with Helmuth Rilling. In June 2006 he sang Pisandro in Philippe Arlaud’s new production of Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria at the Grand Théatre de Geneve under the baton of Attilio Cremonesi In July and August he performed concerts and made a recording for EMI of a selection of Purcell’s sacred music with William Christie and Les Arts Florissants.

Recent operatic appearances included Belmonte in Mozart’s Die Entführung aus dem Serail with the Göttinger Symphony Orchestra, Athamas in Handel’s Semele with William Christie at the Zurich Opera next to Cecilia Bartoli in a new staging by Robert Carsen, Pierre Audi’s Monteverdi Cycle at de Nederlandse Opera in Amsterdam and Henze’s L’Upupa in Tokyo.