World-famous for his intense and original interpretations of opera characters, as well as for his unconventional and innovative concert performances, tenor José Cura is a familiar name atop the marquees of the most prestigious theaters.

But Cura is much more than an operatic star: he is a trained composer and conductor, an opera director, a stage designer, a brilliant performer, and a natural showman determined to use the best music to engage, entertain, and educate.

After studying Composition and Orchestra Conducting in his home town, Rosario, Cura moved to Buenos Aires in 1984 to hone his skills. To gain insights into stage life in general and the art of singing in particular, he worked in one of the professional choirs at the Teatro Colón from 1984 to 1988, where his voice developed into the distinctive bold and bright tenor with tints of dark baritone that would eventually lead to international fame. In 1991 he moved to Europe to pursue the singing career that has since become legendary.

In 1999, José Cura resumed his conducting career, working with top orchestras like the London Philharmonia, the London Symphony, the Vienna Philharmonic, Sinfonia Varsovia, the Toscanini Orchestra, and the Hungarian Philharmonic, among others, in both operatic and symphonic works, thrilling audiences with his performance both in the pit and on the platform. Cura has also released several well-received recordings, including a powerful, intense Rachmaninov Symphony #2 that earned wide critical acclaim: “I have heard several recordings of this work recently. Janssons with the St Petersburg sounds more natural but lacks the same rush as Cura. Sanderling and the Philharmonia are so much broader, but are nowhere near so excitingly presented. Svetlanov’s battered and cut 1960s recording is perhaps the closest in urgency to Cura’s. A performance you imagined, but never dreamed you would experience.” (Classical Music Editor)

2007 saw the world-premiere of La Commedia è finita—a creative re-imagining of Pagliacci coupled with dance and mime, designed and directed by José Cura—which marked the beginning of his career as a stage director and designer. In 2010 Cura set scenery, directed, and starred in Saint-Saëns’s Samson et Dalila at the Badisches Staatstheater, crafting an innovative, modern take on the classic that left audience and critics raving: “Cura has been following his calling as conductor even at the major houses on a number of occasions and has been thoroughly successful, but in Karlsruhe he was given the special honor of directing, designing and singing the lead role. The exceptional project lent wings to the ensemble and created an artistic result that would do credit to any international operatic stage.” (Opernglas). The production is available on DVD. The unanimous plaudits of the audience and critics for his La Rondine at the Opéra de Nancy and Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci at the Opera Royal de Wallonie, both in 2012, sealed his stature as a director of distinction. More recently, his production of Otello at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires was selected as one of the most successful productions of 2013 by international voting.