The Maltese Tenor, Joseph Calleja's New Decca Classics Solo Album, Debuts as Vocal Bestseller on German Chart

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“The Maltese-born Calleja ... has matured into one of the finest lyric tenors before the public today.” — Associated Press


Joseph Calleja’s third solo album on Decca, The Maltese Tenor, has become an instant bestseller in Germany, debuting high on its classical chart as the top vocal recording. On the new CD, 33-year-old Calleja sings some of the best Italian and French arias in his repertoire, including "E lucevan le stelle" from Tosca, the ballad of Kleinzach from The Tales of Hoffmann, and arias from La bohème, Simon Boccanegra, Faust, Manon, The Pearl Fishers and more. Many of these arias he has sung onstage at the Metropolitan Opera, performances that had the New York Times praising Calleja's "ardor, stamina and poignant vocal colorings." The Maltese Tenor debuted in the number two position on the German chart, surpassed only by crossover star David Garrett’s new release, Classic Romance. The North German broadcasting network NDR made the disc its album of the week, praising its "intelligence and taste" and the way Calleja's voice “flows freely and easily as it climbs the highest heights."

The Maltese Tenor will have its US release this fall. But music lovers across America will have a chance to see and hear Calleja before then, when he stars in “Live from Jerusalem” on July 28. In the concert, which will be beamed (with a time delay) to 480 theaters across the U.S., he stars alongside Renée Fleming, as well as Zubin Mehta and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, in a program of arias and duets with the superstar soprano; the occasion will mark Calleja’s first trip to Israel and his debut with the IPO.

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