David Babayants Baritone

Armenian baritone David Babayants has been a soloist at the Yerevan State Opera since 2008, where he debuted in the role of Conte di Luna in Il Trovatore. His repertoire there also includes Severo in Donizetti’s Poliuto, the title roles of Rigoletto and Nabucco, Don Prudenzio in Il Viaggio a Reims, Silvio in I Pagliacci, Alfio in Cavalleria Rusticana, and Sharpless in Madama Butterfly. He has played several other Verdi roles including Paolo in Simon Boccanegra, Ezio in Attila, Germont in La Traviata and Amonasro in Aida. In 2011, he was named Best Verdi Baritone at the International Singing Competition for Verdian Voices in Busseto and won International Institute for Opera and Poetry’s Ninth International Singing Competition in Verona, where he sang the role of Amonasro at the Teatro Filarmonico. He later sang Scarpia in Tosca, Germont, and the Messe di Gloria of Mascagni and Puccini at the Teatro Filarmonico to great acclaim, as well as Sharpless in Frano Zeffirelli’s production of Madama Butterfly. For the Centennial Celebration of the Arena di Verona in 2013, he played the role of Germont in La Traviata. Recent performances include Marcello in La bohème, La Traviata in Toronto (where he debuted in 2012 as Scarpia), and Rigoletto. He has sung numerous concerts including the Domingo-Harding Gala, Palermo Classica, the Rossini Festival, International Conservatoire Week in Saint Petersburg, and the Kabaivanska Gala in Sofia. In the 2018/19 season he performed Rigoletto in Tours, Escamillo at Dubai Opera, and Scarpia in Oviedo. Upcoming performances include Andrea Chenier and Rigoletto in Yerevan and Florence.