Overview
Biography
Thomas Walter Hampson(born June 28, 1955) is an American lyric baritone, a classical singer who has appeared world-wide in major operahouses and concert halls and made over 170 musical recordings.
Hampson's operatic repertoire spans a range of more than 80 roles, including the title rolesin Mozart's Don Giovanni, Rossini's Guillaume Telland The Barber of Seville, Ambroise Thomas' Hamlet, and Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. The center of his Verdirepertoire remains Posa in Don Carlo, Germont in La traviata, the title roles in Macbethand Simon Boccanegra, and more recently also Amfortas in Wagner's Parsifaland Scarpia in Puccini's Tosca.
As a recitalist Hampson has won worldwide recognition for his thoughtfully researched and creatively constructed programs that explore the rich repertoire of song in a wide range of styles, languages, and periods. He is one of the most important interpreters of German Romantic song – especially known for his interpretations of the music of Gustav Mahler– and, with his "Song of America" project collaboration with the Library of Congress, has become known as the "ambassador" of American song.
Hampson's diverse and expansive discography has earned him an Edison Awardfor Lifetime Achievement, four Edison Awards, four Echoprizes, numerous VEB Deutsche Schallplatten, Gramophone Awards, and Grand Prix du Disque, as well as six Grammy Awardnominations, and one Grammy Award.
Dame Elisabeth Schwarzkopfonce said of her student, "[Thomas Hampson is] the best singer in Europe right now."
Personal life
Hampson is married to Andrea Herberstein, and has a daughter, Catherine, from his first marriage, which ended in divorce in 1986; she is married to singer Luca Pisaroni,to whom she was introduced by her father. Having settled in Vienna long-term, Hampson later began dividing his time between New York and Zurich.
Teaching and scholarship
In addition to his performance schedule, much of Hampson's modern career has centered on music scholarship and education. In 2007, he was instated as a member of the board of the Manhattan School of Musicwhere he is also part of the Artistic Advisory Board, positions which allow him to frequently teach master classes for the school's Distance Learning Program that are streamed live to Internet and smart phone users worldwide.
In March 2011, Hampson continued his dedication to song with the opening of the first LiedAcademy as part of the Heidelberger Frühling Festival. Under the artistic direction of Hampson, and with the contribution of prominent visiting artists, such as Graham Johnson, Brigitte Fassbaender and Nikolaus Harnoncourt, the Academy each year transforms the German city into an international meeting point for the Lied.
