Paskalis, Kostas

▪ 2008

      Greek operatic baritone

born Sept. 1, 1929 , Levadeia, Greece

died Feb. 9, 2007, Athens, Greece)

was admired for his vocal artistry, acting skills, and compelling stage presence, especially in Giuseppe Verdi operas. Paskalis made his principal debut with the Greek National Opera in 1951, singing Verdi's Rigoletto in Greek. He appeared in Verdi's Un ballo in maschera with the Vienna State Opera in 1958, and by 1986 he had given 640 performances in 34 roles there. In 1966 Paskalis created the role of Pentheus in the premiere of German composer Hans Werner Henze's Die Bassariden at the Salzburg Festival, and the next season he performed the role in Italian at Milan's La Scala. For a short time (1988–90), Paskalis was artistic director of the Greek National Opera.

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