David Hobson (tenor)

David Hobson (born 1960 in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia), is an Australian opera singer. Hobson began as a singer and bass guitarist with rock bands while studying at The University of Melbourne. After his voice was heard on a demonstration tape of Macbeth (see below) he was invited to join the Victoria State Opera, understudying the role of Frederic in the VSO's Joseph Papp (Broadway) version of The Pirates of Penzance in 1986. This led to him becoming a member of the Company's Young Artists Programme, and making his debut as Rodolfo in a Victorian country tour production of La bohème in 1987. In 1988 he made his debut with The Australian Opera (now Opera Australia) when he created the role of Lawrence in the world premiere of Brian Howard's opera Whitsunday.

He is also the composer of Macbeth (a 1985 music theatre piece), Remembering Rosie (2001 chamber opera), The Loch Ard Suite (for the 2002 light/sound installation Shipwrecked at Warrnambool, Victoria) and the award-winning 2004 orchestral score for the Australian film One Perfect Day, as well as a number of songs including Inside This Room and the title song for One Perfect Day.

In 1990 he reprised the role of Rodolfo in a new production of La bohème for The Australian Opera, directed by a new young director from NIDA, Baz Luhrmann; this went on to become one of the Company's most successful productions. It was filmed during its 1993 return season and broadcast on ABC TV several times. Released on VHS in 1994, it was to become the first opera available on DVD (1998) and continues to be a best seller worldwide.

Hobson's Gilbert and Sullivan roles with Opera Australia, include "Nanki-Poo" in The Mikado, "Marco Palmieri" in The Gondoliers, "Ralph Rackstraw" in HMS Pinafore and "The Defendant" in Trial by Jury.

Hobson reprised the role of "Frederic" in the record-breaking Opera Australia production of The Pirates of Penzance with seasons during 2006 in Sydney at the Sydney Opera House, in Canberra, and in Brisbane at the Lyric Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre. The national tour continued in 2007, with seasons in Adelaide and Melbourne, making a total of 100 performances in ten months.

His Mozart roles include "Ferrando" in Così fan tutte, "Don Ottavio" in Don Giovanni, "Tamino" in The Magic Flute and "Belmonte" in The Abduction from the Seraglio.

His Rossini roles include "Lindoro" in L'Italiana in Algeri, "Ramiro" in La Cenerentola, "Count Almaviva" in The Barber of Seville, "Dorvil" in La scala di seta and "Florville" in Il Signor Bruschino.

Many other roles have included "Ernesto" in Don Pasquale (Gaetano Donizetti), "Nadir" in The Pearl Fishers (Georges Bizet), and a highly-acclaimed "Orphée" in Orphée et Eurydice, (the rarely-performed 1774 Paris version for tenor) by Christoph Willibald Gluck.

In 2008 he made his role debut as "Nemorino" in Donizetti's The Elixir of Love with the Victorian Opera (Melbourne), and created several roles in their World Premiere season of Through the Looking Glass by Alan John.

Hobson also created the role of the "Chevalier de Danceny" in the San Francisco Opera World Premiere of The Dangerous Liaisons by Conrad Susa, , as well as "The Architect" in The Eighth Wonder by Alan John and "Michael Chamberlain" in Lindy by Moya Henderson for Opera Australia.

In 2006 he sang the title role in a Perth International Arts Festival concert performance of Candide by Leonard Bernstein and received rave reviews. Just weeks later he had the honour of singing before HM The Queen and many other distinguished guests, at a State Dinner in Canberra.

Several of Hobson's operatic performances are available on DVD, and his CD albums include Inside This Room (a collaboration with David Hirschfelder), French and Italian Arias, Handel Arias, Cinema Paradiso (film songs), David Hobson — The Live Album (a retrospective), Tenor and Baritone (with Anthony Warlow), Presenting David Hobson (a compilation drawn from earlier albums), The Exquisite Hour (a collection of French Art songs) and The Promise (his arrangements of an eclectic selection of songs from musicals, pop, etc., and two of his own compositions), which achieved Gold status within three weeks of release in November 2007. His 2008 album, A Little Closer - covers of classic pop songs, and two more of his compositions - was released on October 4.

Hobson is a much sought-after concert artist, appearing in oratorios such as Messiah (Handel), and Elijah (Felix Mendelssohn) , as well as opera galas, recitals and solo concerts, displaying both his extensive classical and lighter repertoires. Since 1991 he has been a regular performer at the outdoor Christmas concerts in either Sydney (Carols in the Domain) or Melbourne (Carols by Candlelight) and, more recently, has appeared regularly in Christmas at the House at the Sydney Opera House . In February 2008 he made his debut at the prestigious Leeuwin Concerts in Margaret River, Western Australia with leading soprano Yvonne Kenny, and in March returned to Mildura, Victoria with another regular partner Marina Prior to sing at the Opera by the Lock. Working around his opera, recording and TV commitments, Hobson also performed a series of concerts between April and September, appearing in Melbourne and regional Victoria, and to mark the release of his new CD he will perform in two lavish concerts in the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, on November 21 and 23.

He was mentor to model and TV host Erika Heynatz when they won the Channel 7 reality singing show, It Takes Two in 2006, and returned in the 2007 season to partner celebrity Mimi Macpherson. In late 2007 Hobson appeared in Dancing With the Stars Series 7, with he and his mentor, Karina Schembri, finishing in third place. In 2008 he resumed his more familiar role of mentor to win It Takes Two Series 3, with Julia Morris.

At the end of March, Musica Viva Australia announced Hobson's appointment as the Musica Viva in Schools Ambassador for a programme to raise an awareness of the importance of music education in Australian schools.

Awards and nominations

• The Dame Joan Sutherland Scholarship 1988
• Sydney Theatre Critics Award for roles of "Rodolfo" and "Orphée" 1993
• Operatic Performer of the Year (Mo Awards) 1994
• The Melbourne Age Performing Arts Award for role of "Orphée" 1994
• ARIA (The Australian Record Industry Association) Award for Best Music Video: Now Until the Break of Day 1998.
• ARIA Award Nomination, Best Classical Recording ~ Handel Arias 2002
• The Handel Society International Recording Prize Nomination ~ Handel Arias 2003
• AFI (Australian Film Institute), APRA (Australian Performing Rights Association), Inside Film Awards Nominations, and the Film Critics Circle of Australia Award for Best Music Score, One Perfect Day 2004.
• Nominee in the 2008 Mo Awards (Classical/Opera Performer category)

References

External links

• David Hobson Official Website
• David Hobson Fan Club (Discussion Group)
• David Hobson biography, It Takes Two website
• David Hobson tenor (Fan Site)