BENJAMIN BLOOMFIELD
bass baritone
ABOUT ME
Benjamin Bloomfield, bass baritone, grew up outside of Concord, New Hampshire. He has covered at both the Met and New York City Opera, and has been a regular performer at Lorin Maazel’s Castleton Festival in Virginia. Other career highlights include performances in Munich, Oman, Hong Kong, and an historic first full performance of Schubert’s Winterreise in Sarajevo. He was a Regional Finalist in New York for the Met National Council auditions in 2007, and finalist for Chicago Lyric Opera’s Ryan Center auditions in 2012. His concert career includes performances at many of the great halls of New York, including Carnegie, Avery Fisher, and Alice Tully. He is especially known for his interpretation of Mozart’s Requiem, and has performed it internationally and with ensembles such as the Munich Symphony and the New England Wind Ensemble under conductors such as Phillipe Entremont and John Rutter.
In the 2017-18 season he sang Scarpia in Amore Opera’s production of Tosca, then travelled to San Francisco to participate in Opera on Tap’s AR Opera experience The Parksville Murders by Kamala Sankaram. Mr. Bloomfield returned to Crested Butte Music Festival this season to perform the title role in Verdi’s Falstaff.
In the 2016-17 season he returned to Bronx Opera as Sir John Falstaff in Vaughn Williams’ Sir John in Love. In March he sang Alberich in Wagner’s Das Rheingold with Trilogy: an Opera Company in Newark, NJ. In May he performed the title role of Verdi’s Falstaff with Resonanceworks in Pittsburgh, PA. In the summer of 2017 Mr. Bloomfield performed the title role in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi at the Crested Butte Music Festival in Colorado.
The 2015-16 season began with a world premier in the role of Arthur Ruskin in the new opera Bonfire of the Vanities by Stefania de Kenessey at El Teatro de Barrio in New York City. In November he sang another premier in the role of J. Edgar Hoover in Garvey with Trinity Opera in Newark, NJ. In December he performed Ben Hubbard in Blitzstein’s Regina with Bronx Opera. In April he sang Arturo in Pacini’s Malvina di Scozia with Brooklyn’s Vertical Player Repertory. In June he performed Don Magnifico in Rossini’s Cenerentola with Opera on Tap for their playground opera series. In July Benjamin performed Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with Ken Kiesler at the Medomak Conductor’s Retreat in Maine before returning to New York to sing Nick Shadow in Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress with the String Orchestra of Brooklyn and Tito Muñoz.
The 2014-15 season began with Marcello in La Boheme with DC Public Opera in September. In October Mr. Bloomfield sang Leporello in Don Giovanni with Opera Company of Brooklyn, and in November Tonio in I Pagliacci with Vocal Productions NYC. January brought a world premier of the new revision of Nolan Gasser’s opera The Secret Garden, whose original version premiered at San Francisco Opera in 2013. Mr. Bloomfield performed the role of Ben Weatherstaff, the gardener. In March he performed as the soloist in Brahms’ Ein Deutches Requiem with the Rochester Oratorio Society, and in April performed the role of Robert Schumann with Victoria Bond in a workshop of her new opera Clara. In June he joined New York’s On Site Opera in their new production of Paisiello’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia, singing Svegliato/Notario while covering Figaro. In July he rejoined the Castleton Festival to sing roles in Ravel’s L’heure Espagnol and Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette. His summer season concluded with the title role in Rigoletto with Hubbard Hall Opera Theater in Cambridge, NY.
In the 2013-14 season Mr. Bloomfield travelled to Chautauqua Opera to cover Sharpless in Madama Butterfly, and to sing Barney in the Ballad of Baby Doe. He also returned to Carnegie Hall with John Rutter in May to perform Mozart’s Requiem with MidAmerica Productions. He joined Amore opera as Tonio in I Pagliacci, after singing Monastatos in the American Premier of Das Labyrinth, the newly rediscovered 1798 sequel to Die Zauberflöte. In January and February he debuted with St. Petersburg Opera in Florida as Elder Ott in their new production of Susannah. In March he was a finalist of the Art Song Preservation Society’s competition in New York.
In the 2012-13 season, Mr. Bloomfield debuted in Germany with the Munich Philharmonich under the baton of Maestro Lorin Maazel, singing Alcindoro in La Boheme, then travelled with the Maestro’s Castleton Festival to Oman, where he sang Benoit and Alcindoro. He has performed often with New York Lyric Opera, singing the title roles of Rigoletto and Don Giovanni and Peter in Hansel and Gretel. In July he appeared with Martina Arroyo’s Prelude to Performance, singing Luther, Schlemil, and Crespel in their new production of Les Contes d’Hoffmann. He also appeared in performances of Mozart’s Requiem with the Arkansas Symphony and the Cayman Arts Festival, and participated in Schubert & Co.’s New York recital project, bringing many musicians together to perform Schubert’s entire song works over the course of the season.
In the 2011-12 season, he understudied Baron Douphol in New York City Opera’s new production of La Traviata. Other appearences included Michele in Il Tabarro with Brooklyn’s Vertical Player Repertory, Betto in Gianni Schicchi with Opera Noir/Dance Opera Theater, and Alcindoro in La Boheme with the Castleton Festival. In concert his appearences included the Munich Symphony tour of Mozart’s Requiem with Maestro Phillipe Entremont and a concert in Carnegie Hall with John Rutter of Rutter’s own music. In the summer of 2012, he joined the Sarajevo Chamber Music Festival to perform Schubert’s Winterreise, an historic first performance of the entire cycle for the city.
In the 2010-11 season, he joined the roster of the Metropolitan Opera, covering Lewitsky in Stephan Wadsworth’s new production of Boris Goudonov. Mr. Bloomfield also made his international debut this season, singing Belcore in L’Elisir d’Amore with Hong Kong’s Musica Viva Productions. Other opera appearences included a full season with Lorin Maazel’s Castleton Festival singing Spt. Budd in Albert Herring, L’Arbre in L’Enfant et les Sortileges, Il Notaio in Gianni Schicchi, and Alcindoro in La Boheme while covering Don Quixote in El Retablo de Messer Pedro, Mother in Seven Deadly Sins, Schaunard in La Boheme, and Michele in Il Tabarro. His concert appearences included Brahms’ Ein Deutches Requiem under the baton of John Rutter in Carnegie Hall.
While singing is by far his main and favorite activity, he can often be found playing his accordion or reading science fiction. He also loves to celebrate his half-Chinese heritage with Chinese and fusion dishes. Wherever his travels take him, Mr. Bloomfield’s favorite souvenir is a new recipe.
