Walter Planté, tenor
The American tenor Walter Planté studied at the Indiana University School of Music in Bloomington and at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. He made his Opera Debut with the Israel National Opera in Tel Aviv with "Lensky" in EUGENE ONEGIN. After three years in Israel Mr. Planté was heard by Marcel Prawy and invited to the Wiener Staatsoper where he made his European Debut singing "Belmonte" in DIE ENTFÜHRUNG AUS DEM SERAIL. From Vienna Walter Planté accepted a contract with the Vereinigten Städtischen Bühnen Krefeld and Mönchengladbach, for a "Mozart Cycle", including DIE ENTFÜHRUNG AUS DEM SERAIL, COSI FAN TUTTE, DON GIOVANNI and DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE. With success in the Mozart Repertoire invitations to guest in other European houses followed: Opernhaus Zürich, Niederländische Oper Amsterdam, Opera de Paris, Stockholmer National Opera, Deutsche Staatsoper Unter den Linden, Dresden Semperoper and other houses in Germany such as Braunschweig, Mainz, Wiesbaden, Hannover, Freiburg and Kassel.
This season Walter Planté has in his repertoire: "Nerone" in L'INCORONAZIONE DE POPPEA, Monteverdi; "Bajazet" in TAMERLANO, Handel; the "Knusperhexe" in HÄNSEL UND GRETEL, Humperdinck; "Hans" in DIE VERKAUFTE BRAUT, Smetana; "Tassilo" in GRÄFIN MARIZA, Kálmán and "Oberst Ollendorf" in DER BETTELSTUDENT, Millöcker.
Mr Planté returns frequently to the United States for solo recitals and orchestral appearances with the symphonies of Atlanta, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco and St. Louis under the musical direction of such outstanding conductors as Leonard Bernstein, Sara Caldwell, Eugene Ormandy, Robert Shaw, Leonard Slatkin and Walter Süsskind. Also, Mr. Planté has been a soloist with the Cleveland Orchestra Blossom Festival and the Santa Fe Opera.
With the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra Mr. Planté recorded his first CD, Rachmaninoff's, THE BELLS under the musical direction of Leonard Slatkin. Soon after followed other recordings with RCA Red Seal of Schumann's, DAS PARADIES UND DIE PERI with the Bamberger Sinfonikern under the musical direction of Gustav Kuhn, Puccini's, LA FANCIULLA DEL WEST with the Bayerischen Rundfunkorchester, Bernstein's, SONGFEST, with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra both under the musical direction of Leonard Slatkin. Mr. Planté has also sung two world premiere's: Mendelssohn's "6 LIEDER FOR HIGH VOICE and ORCHESTRA" arranged by Siegfried Matthus with the Konzerthaus Orchester Berlin, Gendarmenmarkt, heard on National German Radio and later released on compact disc. The German Premiere of Detlev Glanert's, RIESE VOM STEINFELD where he created the role of the Klammerschneider.
In November 1992 Mr. Planté made his Carnegie Hall Debüt with William Bolcoms, SONGS OF INNOCENCE AND EXPERIENCE under the musical direction of Leonard Slatkin.
