PAST PERFORMANCES
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Die Walküre - Miami Music Festival
...[T]he most notable event of the night was that Walküre act. And that was because of its three singers, and its two men, tenor Dominic Armstrong and bass Soloman Howard in particular. Armstrong, who as Siegmund has the lion’s share of the singing in that exposition-heavy act, was simply wonderful, with a voice that had presence, thrilling coloration and endurance without being specifically a Heldentenor voice. It has more of an Italianate cast than it does the bronze quality of the heroic Wagnerian tenors of the past, but somehow that made it even better. What we had with Armstrong, who only very briefly in the middle of the act appeared to husband his strength for a minute or two, was a more conversational, more approachable voice for this character, without in any way sounding like a Puccini lyric tenor who’d wandered onto the stage by mistake. There was something relatable about his big, radiant voice that made Siegmund more appealing than he often is. He is a singer of considerable intelligence and musicality as well; he sang all that text with real variety and sensitivity. His is an instrument of real beauty, skillfully deployed. - Palm Beach Arts Paper Dominic Armstrong has sung leading roles in Puccini and Bizet operas with regional companies but he is definitely a budding heldentenor with an authentic Wagnerian timbre and baritonal bottom. There is fervor is his declamation of the text and his high range is free of strain or harshness. Armstrong’s singing was nothing short of thrilling, capped by a subtly quiet “Winterstürme” that spanned the full lyrical spectrum. [Maestro Michael] Rossi did his best conducting of the night in this act, melding romanticism with agitated phrasing. This outstanding performance deservedly received the largest ovation of the evening. - South Florida Classical Review El Siegmund de Dominic Amstrong exhibió un dominio del personaje francamente notable y una voz generosa de poderoso esmalte que pareció velarse apenas en el grito de Wälse....mientras que Winterstürme se integró feliz a las arias de su hermana amante. - Miami Clásica Breaking the Waves - Prototype Festival
Dominic Armstrong, in the pivotal role of Dr. Richardson, best captures a sense of mastery of the material, bridging the chasm between the sweeping music and the vernacular lyrics. His scenes with Bess are likewise among the most memorable of the evening. His performance possesses a uniquely unwavering sense of purpose. - The Theatre Times The Scarlet Letter - Opera Colorado
The articulate tenor Dominic Armstrong captured his increasing guilt and torment with wide-eyed bewilderment and his public confession was the opera’s one moment of real connection. -The Wall Street Journal The two male leads proved effective vocally and dramatically...As Dimmesdale, tenor Dominic Armstrong sang with impeccable control and focus, smartly balancing a secret love for Prynne against his self-righteous pose as the moral leader of the community. -Opera News Tenor Dominic Armstrong plays that role with an almost unbearable emotional intensity. Laitman gave him a powerful soliloquy toward the end of Act I, perhaps the most gripping number of the opera. He is also marvelous in his extended Act II love duet with Claycomb. Armstrong's piercing high register is breathtaking, and his forceful delivery penetrates the hall. -The Daily Camera Dominic Armstrong was powerful in the role of Arthur Dimmesdale...His two confession scenes were highlights. -operalounge.de Les Mamelles de Tirésias - Memphis Opera The performers are splendid. [...] Tenor Dominic Armstrong’s strong voice and comedic sensibility provided a lot to like in his performance as the husband. -The Commercial Appeal The Magic Flute - Piedmont Opera
As Prince Tamino, Dominic Armstrong used his warm tenor to nimbly deliver the emotionally charged music. His song to Pamina’s portrait, “This image is enchantingly beautiful,” was heart melting. -Winston-Salem Journal The Magic Flute - Dayton Opera American tenor Dominic Armstrong captured the audience from his first notes. A handsome hero, his voice is Mozartian with tones of Wagner lurking near the surface. His stage presence made the quest for his love, Pamina, both fantasy and real. Dominic has vocal versatility that could mean many returns to Dayton Opera. -The Oakwood Register |
With Elizabeth Baldwin photo by Kristin Pulido
Kiera Duffy and company photo by Dominic Mercier
From Lori Laitman's Scarlet Letter photo by Matthew Staver
With the company of Mamelles de Tirésias
With Caitlin Cisler and Christopher Brandon Morales
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Spring Symphony
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The tenor Dominic Armstrong, also making a [New York] Philharmonic debut, intrepidly agreed to take on the challenge of the “Spring Symphony,” even though he had never seen the score before Thursday morning, Mr. Gilbert said. Looking purposeful, he sang the demanding solo role with assurance, stamina and subtlety...“The Merry Cuckoo,” the next movement, with words from a Spenser poem, heralds this traditional “messenger of Spring,” with his “trumpet shrill.” But there is tension below the merriness in this animated tenor aria, with its leaping lines, which Mr. Armstrong dispatched with vibrant sound and crisp diction. -The New York Times
The first stern test for Mr. Armstrong came with "The Merry Cuckoo," the work's second movement. He bit cleanly into the bright melody and sprightly text, a setting of the poetry of Edmund Spenser. Soprano Kate Royal answered with "The Driving Boy," echoed by the children's chorus. Mezzo Sasha Cooke dominated the second movement, soaring through "Welcome Mais of Honour" and the gambol of "Out on the Lawn." Mr. Armstrong and Ms. Royal brought their voices together for "Fair and Fair", the most memorable song of the third part of the symphony. All the forces came together for the complex finale, a performance that juxtaposes the poem "London, to thee I do present" with the medieval round "Soomer is i-coomen in". In the final pages, it was Mr. Armstrong who sang the last line, "And so my friends I cease!" as the mighty juggernaut of sound came shuddering to a halt under Mr. Gilbert's baton. For this singer who stepped up in this difficult part at the last minute, spring had indeed come in the middle of the fall. -Superconductor Brightly voiced tenor Dominic Armstrong excelled in his unexpected Philharmonic debut, despite seeing the score for the first time on the morning of the performance. Armstrong handled the leaping tenor parts with apparent ease and elegance. He was joined on stage by Mezzo-Soprano Sasha Cooke and Soprano Kate Royal, whose dense duet with Armstrong, “Fair and Fair,” was spectacular. -Feast of Music |
with Mo. Alan Gilbert, Kate Royal, and Sasha Cooke.
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Turn of the Screw
In the New York City Opera’s updated production, which opened on Sunday afternoon
at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, as the Prologue (the clarion-voiced tenor Dominic Armstrong) tells us the story, we see it depicted: The Governess is in a job interview with a man who turns out to be the uncle and absent guardian of the troubled children.[…]In this production Mr. Armstrong sang the lines with such crisp clarity and full-bodied sound that the situation he described seemed all the more creepy. -The New York Times ...tenor Dominic Armstrong as the Prologue and Peter Quint gives a masterly performance. Early on, a handful of times, we hear the inhaled syllables and gluey slides that sometimes marred the singing of the great Sir Peter Pears, who created the Prologue and Quint, but Armstrong quickly leaves such foibles behind. He has a richer, more seductive timbre than Pears, and he excels in Britten’s declamatory writing—his words preternaturally crisp and distinct—and in the sultry, lavish fioritura with which Quint seeks to bewitch Miles, or so the governess hears and believes. Armstrong makes the most of his standard-issue zombie getup, his eyes wild and glazed, his presence a black hole of venomous purpose. -The Classical Review ...Dominic Armstrong’s macabre Quint, sung in a colorful tenor ranging from whispers to blood-chilling cries. -NY Post George London FoundationDominic Armstrong’s gripping rendition of the mad scene from “Peter Grimes” on Friday afternoon was all the more remarkable: an unsettling, powerful performance in which Mr. Armstrong used his muscular tenor as a vehicle to bring Britten’s art to life.
Mr. Armstrong was one of the few memorable winners of this year’s seven $10,000 George London Foundation Awards." -The New York Times
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As Peter Quint at BAM
As Peter Quint at BAM
George London Foundation in NYC
Twickenham Fest in Huntsville
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Moscow, CheryomushkiVocal standouts among the exuberant cast included tenor Dominic Armstrong, with his honeyed account of the lovesick Glushkov... -Opera News
Dominic Armstrong was a consistently engaging presence as Boris’s shy chauffeur friend Sergei, showing ease in the musical vernacular and singing sweetly with his high tenor. -Chicago Classical Review Tenor Dominic Armstrong, as the shy but big-hearted Sergei, is a cleverly nuanced artist with a silvery voice who won his audience over immediately, belying the timid fellow he played. -Chicago On the Aisle |
As Sergei in Chicago
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L'Elisir d'amoreThe opera belongs to the tenor and Dominic Armstrong's Nemorino is a star turn, extremely funny and endearing without bathos. His singing is consistently strong, with bright tone and firm control. The high point of the role is the great aria Una furtiva lagrima. This staple of the repertoire can easily become hackneyed, but Armstrong sang it with affecting simplicity and feeling, winning a deserved ovation from the audience. -South China Morning Post
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As Nemorino in Hong Kong
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A Quiet PlaceWith tenor Dominic Armstrong, a strong François, the three make an unbeatable trio -The Wall Street Journal
Doing double duty as the Jazz Trio and Dede, François and Junior, Sara Jakubiak, Dominic Armstrong and Joshua Hopkins, respectively, were all superb, singing and acting with urgency, clarity and a sense of occasion. -ClassicsToday.com |
As François in New York
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Peter GrimesAmong other members of the cast, tenor Dominic Armstrong as Reverend Adams and contralto Elena Zilio as Mrs Sedley were especially keen on pointing out the hypocrisy of their characters. -The Opera Critic
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As Reverend Adams in Torino
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Ghosts of VersaillesTenor Dominic Armstrong was a find as Almaviva. -St. Louis Post Dispatch
Best Opera of 2010 - Irish Times Theatre Awards |
As Count Almaviva in Wexford
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Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patriaIn the title role of the Trojan War hero trying to return home, tenor Dominic Armstrong left a sizable mark. His phrasing invariably burned with import, so that every word communicated, and his solid tone rang out handsomely. -Opera News
Dominic Armstrong was a vocally strong, passionate Ulysses. -The Washington Post Tenor Dominic Armstrong showed a more heroic side to his voice, after his more lyric Macheath in the Castleton Festival's Beggar's Opera -Ionarts |
As Ulisse at Wolf Trap
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The Beggar's OperaDominic Armstrong was phenomenal as Macheath, the opera's central character. His broadly comic acting style was perfect for the role, and his crystal-clear, magnificent tenor voice predicts a great future ahead. -The Washington Times
Tenor Dominic Armstrong was a charming Macheath, with a sweet upper register -Ionarts Standouts among a large, impressive cast included the versatile Dominic Armstrong as a suave, oily Macheath - New York Times While all the singers and players performed admirably, tenor Dominic Armstrong's acting made him a clear standout. -The Dresser Blog |
As Macheath at Castleton Festival
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CandideAs Candide, Dominic Armstrong had....a lustrous, sweet voice [that] came through in "It Must Be Me." -The Washington Post
Tenor Dominic Armstrong was powerful but affecting as the confused Candide. -The Washington Times |
As Candide at Wolf Trap
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La Clemenza di TitoTenor Dominic Armstrong...offered a beautiful timber and prodigious breath control in Tito's 'Se'all impero' -Opera News
Tenor Dominic Armstrong tackles the difficult role of Tito with a palpable love of its challenges -Chicago Sun-Times Emperor Titus literally staggers under the burden of power. Hearing Armstrong's powerful, warm tenor hurtling through Mozart's demanding arias and duets, however, it was difficult to accept Alden's vision of a weak-willed Tito. -Musical America Armstrong's Tito wielded a strong, attractive tenor... -Chicago Tribune Dominic Armstrong, who sang the role of Tito, possesses a strong and beautiful voice, and if this performance is any guide, he will have a bright career ahead of him. -OperaOnline.us Dominic Armstrong's Tito belted his excellent tenor with ablomb and emotional range -ChicagoCritic.com |
As Emperor Tito in Chicago
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