Wayne Tigges

Bass-Baritone

Lauded by the Chicago Sun-Times for his “rich, dark tone and beautiful legato,” Wayne Tigges begins the 2011-12 season with San Francisco Opera as Sam and Ted in the world premiere of Theofanidis’ Heart of a Soldier, Ariodate in Xerxes, and Zuniga in Carmen. Also this season, he sings his first performances of Blitch in Susannah with Florentine Opera and returns to Opera Colorado for Ferrando in Il trovatore and Santa Fe Opera for Nourabad in Les pêcheur de perles.  Additionally, he joins the Arizona Music Festival for Verdi’s Requiem. Last season, he sang Willy Wonka in the European premiere of Peter Ash’s The Golden Ticket at the Wexford Festival and Count Walther in Luisa Miller with Chautauqua Opera. He also returned to San Diego Opera for Escamillo in Carmen and, after acclaimed performances of Don Giovanni, sang his first Leporello with Tulsa Opera.

Recent performances include his debuts at the Glyndebourne Festival as Escamillo in Carmen and at the Opéra National de Paris debut as Kolenaty in The Makropolous Case. He sang Achilla in Giulio Cesare in his Metropolitan Opera debut and returned to the Lyric Opera of Chicago the following season for further performances of the role as well as Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia. Mr. Tigges enjoys a strong relationship with the Lyric Opera of Chicago where he sang the title role in Le nozze di Figaro to great critical acclaim while still a member of the prestigious Ryan Opera Center (formerly Lyric Opera Center for American Artists). Also with the company, he sang Snook in Bolcom’s A Wedding, commissioned by the company for a world premiere, Capulet in Roméo et Juliette, Angelotti in Tosca, Sam in Un ballo in maschera, and Bonze in Madama Butterfly.

His other recent engagements include the Villains in Les contes d’Hoffmann, Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia and Hercules in Gluck’s Alceste with Santa Fe Opera; Donner in Das Rheingold and both Zuniga and Escamillo in Carmen with Los Angeles Opera; the title role of Don Giovanni with Opera Pacific and Austin Lyric Opera; Jochanaan in Salome with Arizona Opera; further performances of Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Opera Colorado; Bonze in Madama Butterfly with Los Angeles Opera and at the Ravinia Festival under the baton of James Conlon, Sacerdote in Nabucco at the Gran Teatro del Liceu, and Zuniga in Carmen with San Diego Opera.  He has joined Cincinnati Opera for roles that include Angelotti in Tosca, Sam in Un ballo in maschera, and Sprecher in Die Zauberflöte. With Opera Omaha, he has sung Mother in Seven Deadly Sins, Gideon March in Little Women, and Balthazar in Amahl and the Night Visitors.  He has also sung the Father in Hänsel und Gretel with the Fort Dodge Symphony Orchestra. 

In addition to his performances on the opera stage, Mr. Tigges maintains a busy concert schedule.  He recently joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic for Mozart’s Mass in C minor, Chicago Symphony Orchestra for Nielsen’s Symphony No. 3, Orchestra of Saint Luke’s for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in his Carnegie Hall debut, and Teatro Regio di Parma for Haydn’s Creation.  He made his Avery Fisher Hall debut with the Collegiate Chorale as Erasto in the American premiere of Handel’s Giove in Argo.  He sang Stravinsky’s Les Noces with the Cleveland Orchestra; Britten's Serenade under the baton of Sir Andrew Davis; Zemlinsky's Psalm 83 at the Cincinnati May Festival; Verdi’s Requiem with the Washington Chorus, Tulsa Oratorio Chorus, and Cathedral Choral Society in Washington D.C.; and the title role in Elijah with both Soli Deo Gloria with John Nelson conducting and the Apollo Chorus and Orchestra. Other performances include Bach's St. John Passion and St. Matthew Passion with the Knox Chamber Orchestra, Handel's Messiah with the Beyer Music Chamber Orchestra, Poulenc's Stabat Mater with the Musica Antiqua Chamber Orchestra, and concerts of operatic arias at Oregon’s Britt Music Festival.

Originally from Dubuque, Iowa, Wayne Tigges received a graduate degree and Artist Diploma from the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music and his Bachelor of Music from Iowa State University.