BIOGRAPHY

Heralded for his “superbly refined voice” and “laudable performances” (Washington Classical Review), Chilean born American baritone Javier Arrey has appeared in houses like The Vienna State Opera, The Metropolitan Opera, Opéra de Monte-Carlo, Palau de Les Arts, Boston Lyric Opera, Opera Nacional de Chile, Washington National Opera and San Francisco Opera.

Javier Arrey has collaborated with conductors including Eun Sun Kim, Lorin Maazel, Roberto Rizzi Brignoli, James Gaffigan, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Plácido Domingo, Anthony Walker and Marco Armiliato. His leading roles include Enrico (Lucia diLammermoor), Belcore (L’Elisir D’Amore), Malatesta (Don Pasquale), Conte di Luna (Il Trovatore), Conte Almaviva (Le Nozze di Figaro), Renato (Un Ballo in Maschera), Alfio (Cavalleria Rusticana), Giovanni (Don Giovanni), Jago (Otello), Riccardo (I Puritani), Diego (El último sueño de Frida y Diego) and Rodrigo (Don Carlo).

Of his debut performance as Jago in Otello at the Castleton Festival under Lorin Maazel, The Washington Post wrote that Arrey portrayed the character his as “menaced and connivingbut [Arrey] did so subtly and with a voice so lovely to listen to that his scheming seemed all the more threatening.” Praises came also from Mo. Lorin Maazel who said: “Jago was stunningly sung and acted by Javier Arrey [who] manages to give shape to the jealous demon within Otello”.

Baritone Javier Arrey had the privilege and honor of performing twice in the U.S. Supreme Court for the Honorable Justices invited by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Justice Ginsburg declared: “[Arrey] has what it takes, both as a vocal artist and as a dramatic performer, to attract new audiences to opera venues, particularly young people needed to ensure that opera will remain a vital part of the contemporary musical scene.”

Praised by his vocal beauty, deep musicality and acting skills, one of his teachers and mentors, baritone Sherrill Milnes, declared: “A first class singer/artist is not just an individual with a great voice, it is also a person who possesses a great musical preparation and accuracy, charismatic acting skills, high discipline and a deep commitment and love for music, I see clearly all those qualities in Javier.

In addition to his work on the opera stage, baritone Javier Arrey is a world-class interpreter of Lieder and concert repertoire. Recent performances include Mahler’s Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen at Teatro Municipal in Chile and Dvořák’s Biblical Songs and Gypsy Songs in the Czech Republic.

In 2017, Javier was given the prestigious “Congressional Medal of Honor” at the National Congress of Chile in recognition of his artistic accomplishments and his social labor to bring the Opera to populations who have no access to live performances. In 2011 Javier won the CulturArte Prize at Operalia Competition in Moscow and was a finalist at the Cardiff Singer of the World Competition (Song prize). Arrey is a graduate artist of The Washington National Opera’s Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program and Dolora Zajick’s Institute for Young Dramatic Voices.