Takaoki Onishi

Takaoki Onishi, Baritone http://www.takaokionishi.com/

Takaoki Onishi, baritone, is a native of Japan. He was the Inaugural First Prize winner of the IFAC-Juilliard Singing Competition. This prize provided him with full scholarship to attend The Juilliard School. Upon graduation, he joined the prestigious Ryan Opera Ensemble of Lyric Opera of Chicago. He made his debut there as Father Arguedas in the World Premiere of BEL CANTO (telecast on PBS). He remained with the company for three years, singing many roles.

Each season, Mr. Onishi sings a wide variety of opera, concerts and recitals in the US, Japan and Europe.

This past summer, he sang the title role of EUGENE ONEGIN at the Seiji Ozawa Festival, conducted by Fabio Luisi. He made his Vienna debut at the Musikverein in Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, a work he also sang in Tokyo and Beijing. He also made his debut with NHK Symphony in FIDELIO, and very recently returned to that orchestra for their New Year’s Gala concert.

In 2019-20, he sings I PAGLIACCI with North Carolina Opera, Brahms’ German Requiem with The Oratorio Society of NY at Carnegie Hall, MADAMA BUTTERFLY with Opera Company of Philadelphia and DAS LIED VON DER ERDE in Osaka.

Mr. Onishi has won top prizes in many vocal competitions, including Opera Index, Gerda Lissner, Giulio Gari, and most recently, in the Premiere Opera International Competition, he received both 1st Prize and the special Dmitry Hvorostovsky Prize, in honor of that great singer.

Opera Repertoire

Composer Opera Role
Bellini I Puritani Riccardo*
Bizet Les Pêcheurs de Perles Zurga*
Cimarosa Il matrimonio segreto Count Robinson
Donizetti Roberto Devereux Nottingham
Donizetti Don Pasquale Malatesta
Gluck Iphigénie en Aulide Agamemnon
Gounod Faust Valentin*
Gounod Roméo et Juliette Mercutio
Handel Radamisto Tiridate
Leoncavallo I Pagliacci Silvio*
Lopez Father Arguedas Bel Canto
Massenet Cendrillon Pandolfe
Mozart Cosi fan tutte Guglielmo
Mozart Don Giovanni Don Giovanni
Mozart Don Giovanni Masetto
Mozart Le Nozze di Figaro Count Almaviva
Puccini La Boheme Marcello*
Puccini Turandot Ping*
Rossini La Cenerentola Dandini
Rossini La scala di seta Blansac
Tchaikovsky Eugene Onegin Onegin
Verdi Falstaff Ford

Concert Repertoire

Composer Composition Role
J. S. Bach St. Matthew Passion Jesus
Beethoven Symphony No. 9
Brahms Ein Deutsches Requiem
Handel Messiah
Haydn Die Schöpfung Adam, Raphael
Orff Carmina Burana
Schubert Mass No. 2 in G
Vaughan Williams Hodie
* In preparation

Press Acclaim

http://www.operanews.com/Opera_News_Magazine/2015/12/Departments/Sound_Bites__Takaoki_Onishi.html

Opera News

Mr. Onishi possesses a baritone voice of fine quality, capable of expressive lyricism or of vivid declamation; the role of Kullervo demands both, and the baritone sang forth with distinction.

Oberon's Grove

Takaoki Onishi (Count) looked and moved very well, displaying elegeant legato and polished phrasing.

David Shengold, Gay City News

“Takaoki Onishi chosen as New Artist of the Month by Musical America Worldwide

 

http://www.musicalamerica.com/news/newsstory.cfm?archived=0&storyid=32040&categoryid=2 “

MusicalAmerica.com

“Takaoki Onishi sang Jesus (Bach’s ST. MATTHEW PASSION) in a strong but pliant voice, as he did Onegin in Tchaikovsky’s EUGENE ONEGIN last month at Juilliard.”

New York Times

“A handsome pair of male leads engaged audience sympathy. Takaoki Onishi (Onegin) commands a remarkably attractive bel canto baritone with impressive dynamic span.”

David Shengold, Gay City News

“Takaoki Onishi made the role of Masetto unusually vivid.”

Opera News

In “LA SCALA DI SETA” the rich baritone Takaoki Onishi was impressive as Blansac.”

New York Times

Top Prize-winner Takaoki Onishi sang Silvio’s aria from I PAGLIACCI with ardent tone, and he truly possesses a baritone of stellar quality.”

Brooklyn Eagle

“His talent was unquestionable…displaying his ample lyric baritone.”

Opera News (EUGENE ONEGIN)

Onishi’s deep, smooth and tender voice, conveyed the poignancy of Thomas Hardy’s “Oxen,” turning centuries-old winter-season faith into transcendent human hope. Onishi’s account of George Herbert’s exultant “Pastoral” soared: it was operatic in its passionate scope and ineffably faith-filled, ending with a final line – “and my music shine” – that was huge and exquisite.- Jean Ballard Terepka

Theater Scene

Baritone Takaoki Onishi performed a wide-ranging operatic concert to the audience’s delight. The baritone range of Mr. Onishi’s voice filled the hall and touched everyone in the audience; his stage presence was well beyond his youthful years. Sarasota is extremely fortunate to have Mr. Onishi perform at our glorious theater.

Don411.com

Media

"Ford's aria" from Finals of Premiere Opera Competiton, December 2018. (Followed by announcement of First Prize and Dmitry Hvorostovsly Prize, presented by Mrs. Hvorostovsky.)
WQXR Greatest Young Singers
http://www.wqxr.org/#!/story/forty-more-under-forty-next-generation-great-opera-singers-part-one
Takaoki Onishi, Jonathan Ware, Piano Largo al Factotum from Il barbiere di Siviglia, Rossini, IMA, July, 2013
Takaoki Onishi and Deanna Breiwick, Jonathan Ware, Piano, Pronta io son, Don Pasquale, Donizetti, IMA, July, 2013
Kuchinashi (Gardenia), Japanese song
Takaoki Onishi - Mahler's Songs of a Wayfarer
Juilliard Opera Presents 'Le nozze di Figaro'
López's BEL CANTO at Lyric Opera of Chicago