Dec. 5 - Two hundred years separate us from the birth of Giuseppe Verdi, but two hundred is also the amount of times the baritone Ambrogio Maestri has performed the Falstaff, Verdi 's last opera. To cross such an important threshold, Maestri will perform at the Metropolitan in New York, where the Pavia-native baritone will go on stage tomorrow with the great American conductor James Levine and director Robert Carsen, the first to stage, in the past fifty years, Falstaff at the Met. Maestri already performed at the Met in New York as the opening 2012 - 2013 season for Donzinetti’s Elisir d'amore in the role of Dulcamara.  Maestri will now be engaged with Falstaff on Dec. 6 , 9, 14 , 27 and 30 and January 3 , 6 and 11 2014. The show will also be broadcast live in movie theaters around the world on December 14. The artist does not hide his pride and satisfaction: " Having reached this milestone I can say that Falstaff is like a life partner for me, a mirror in which I see reflected my personal and artistic growth. Sir John somehow represents my conscience: every performance reflects my moods, my changes, the way I see them." The baritone reminisced of his debut: "at 29, I was at La Scala in Milan, with conductor Riccardo Muti and director Giorgio Strehler. Since then, I have sung in more than 20 different theaters. Over the years, I began a journey of research and interpretive reading which led me to feel the character as a real alter ego. Every new production is a challenge that allows me to experiment with unusual shades."

MAESTRI’S CAREER

Ambrogio Maestri was born in Pavia, where he studied voice and piano. He made his debut in 2001 when he performs the Falstaff with Riccardo Muti and Giorgio Strehler at the Teatro La Scala in Milan and at the historical Teatro Verdi in Busseto. This performance earned him rave reviews from the international press and opened the doors of the largest opera houses in the world. The collaboration with Maestro Muti led him, in the following three years, to debut in some of the most iconic roles in the sector, such as Iago in Verdi's Otello, Renato in Un ballo in maschera, Don Carlo di Vargas in La forza del destino and Giorgio Germont in La Traviata. The range consolidated the foundations for his illustrious career, as guest of the most prestigious opera houses in the world (Metropolitan Opera , Opera de Paris , Covent Garden, the Vienna Staatsoper , Deutsche Oper Berlin ... ). Maestri continued his Verdi path, playing the Conte di Luna in Il Trovatore, Amonasro in Aida, Rolando in La Battaglia di Legnano, Simon Boccanegra, Rigoletto and Nabucco. Within a career full of diverse roles and satisfaction, Maestri continued to bring Falstaff on the most important world stages, deepening his research and interpretive reading of Sir John. The ten-year collaboration with the Arena di Verona led him to celebrate his 100th performance of Aida in 2012. The significant milestone results in a mature and complex interpretation of Amonasro. In 2006, Maestri met for the first time the character of Dulcamara, as the Paris Opera, designing a new production of L'Elisir d'amore, wished to entrust the role to the baritone. The success of the performance showcased Maestri’s vocal flexibility that allows him to range from funny to serious repertoire. Over the past four years, Maestri has explored Puccini’s operas and the Verismo movement. He made his debut with Tosca in Torre del Lago, with Cavalleria rusticana at the Metropolitan in New York and Pagliacci at La Scala in Milan. In 2012, film director Ferzan Ozpetek, who had already directed Maestri in Aida on occasion of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, offered him a role in his film Magnifica Presenza. Taking on the role of an opera singer in the 1940s, Maestri worked alongside an exceptional all-Italian cast.