WeiLong Tao

The dramatic tenor WeiLong Tao was born in Hefei near Shanghai, China, where he also graduated from Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Soon after he attended the music school of University of Southern California, Los Angeles and the Juilliard Opera Center, New York. At the same time he was also scholarship recipient of the Aspen Music Festival, Colorado and the Music Academy of the West, Santa Barbara, California. He won the Palm Springs International Vocal Competition, the Los Angeles Opera Buffs Competition and was finalist at the Metropolitan National Auditions, New York. In 1992 he came to Europe as member of International Opera Studio Zurich. Since then he was engaged at opera houses and concert halls in Germany, Austria, Italy, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Finnland, Great Britain, Greece, China, Singapore, Japan, Canada and the US.

His sung parts include Otello, Hoffmann, Tannhäuser, Calaf, Radames, Tristan (3rd Act, concert-version), Andrea Chénier, Maurizio (Adriana Lecouvreuer), Manrico, Canio, Florestan, Cavaradossi, Turiddu, Don Carlo and Luigi (Il tabarro) and also the tenorparts of Verdi’s Messa da Requiem, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Mahler’s “Das Lied von der Erde” and Dvořák’s Stabat Mater.

In january 2008 he was engaged as Calaf-Cover at La Scala di Milano.

In october 2008 he made his Czech republic-debut in “Tales of Hoffmann” in Ústí nad labem. For his performance as Hoffmann he was given the Thalie-Prize as the best operasinger of the year 2008.