biography
Tenor David Portillo is praised by Opera News for “high notes with ease, singing with a luxuriant warm glow that seduced the ear as he bounded about the stage with abandon.”
Projects for 2022-2023 include Tamino in The Magic Flute at the Metropolitan Opera, Ferrando in Così fan tutte with The Dallas Opera, title role of Jephtha with Jane Glover conducting the Music of the Baroque, Nadir in The Pearl Fishers with Austin Opera, and Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni in Osaka, Japan.
An accomplished recitalist and clinician, David Portillo recently collaborated with pianist Craig Terry for appearances with Vocal Arts DC, Harris Theater, Collaborative Arts Institue of Chicago, and the Cleveland Art Song Festival, and he presented a recital as part of the Source Song Festival in Minneapolis with pianist Warren Jones. He also celebrates collaborations with pianists Yasuko Oura and Kristin Roach.
Mr. Portillo’s singing career is diverse and dynamic on the concert and opera stage. At the Metropolitan Opera, he has performed Steuermann in the newest production of Der fliegende Holländer, Count Almaviva in The Barber of Seville, Eduardo in Ades’ The Exterminating Angel, Camille de Rosillon in The Merry Widow, Chevalier de la Force in Dialogues des Carmélites, Jacquino in Fidelio. As Tamino in The Magic Flute he has performed at Washington National Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Glyndebourne Opera, Opera Frankfurt, and Pittsburgh Opera.
David was an alumnus of the Ryan Opera Center at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, where he later performed in Idomeneo as Arbace, as David in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, and Andres in Wozzeck, all conducted by Sir Andrew Davis. Other highlights include Opera Australia (Ferrando in Così fan tutte), Opera Philadelphia (Don Ottavio, Dr. Richardson in Breaking the Waves), Opera Theatre of St. Louis (Don Ottavio; Ferrando), San Diego Opera (Don Ramiro), Palm Beach Opera (Count Almaviva, Ernesto in Don Pasquale), the Saito Kinen Festival in Japan (Gonzalve, L’heure espagnole) Wiener Staatsoper (Count Almaviva), Bayerische Staatsoper (Pasquale, Orlando Paladino), and Festival d’Aix-en-Provence (Lurcanio).
In concert, Mr. Portillo has sung under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel at LA Philharmonic, Roberto Abbaddo at the Salzburg Festival, Yannick Nézet-Séguin at Opera Metropolitaine in Montreal, and Harry Bicket with English Concert, among others. In Handel’s Messiah alone, he has performed with the Milwaukee Symphony, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Kansas City Symphony, US Naval Academy and Richmond Symphony.
David was born in San Antonio, TX and is a proud alumni of Univ of Texas at San Antonio (BM Music Ed) and Univ of North Texas (MM Vocal Performance); he currently resides in Hoboken, NJ with his husband and dog named Ruth.