Paata Burchuladze, Bass, born in the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Feb. 12th 1955, he received his vocal education in his hometown with Olimpi Khelashvili. He has been as member of the local opera company since 1986.Together with fellow artists from the former USSR, he was chosen to participate in finishing studies with Giulietta Simionato and Edoardo Mueller at Milan's Teatro alla Scala.
In 1981 he emerged as winner from the international vocal competition Voci Verdiane in Busseto and he won the gold medal and first prize at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow the following year. In 1985 he triumphed again at the International Luciano Pavarotti Competition..
He first caused a major sensation at London's Royal Opera House, where he made his debut with Ramfis/AIDA alongside Katia Ricciarelli and Luciano Pavarotti and conducted by Zubin Mehta.
From then on, he conquered all the major opera houses around the globe. To mention some of them: Teatro all Scala (NABUCCO, AIDA, LUISA MILLER, SIMON BOCCANEGRA, MACBETH, I LOMBARDI, THE FIERY ANGEL), the Vienna State Opera (LUISA MILLER, BORIS GODUNOV, KHOVANSHCHINA), the Bavarian State Opera (BORIS GODUNOV, NABUCCO, MACBETH, AIDA), the Hamburg State Opera (KHOVANSHCHINA, MACBETH, IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA, LA FORZA DEL DESTINO, BORIS GODUNOV), the Opéra National de Paris (BORIS GODUNOV, FAUST, NABUCCO), the San Francisco Opera (PRINCE IGOR), Washington Opera (DON CARLO) as well as the Metropolitan Opera New York (BORIS GODUNOV, DON GIOVANNI, AIDA, KHOVANSHCHINA).
Invited by Herbert von Karajan (who referred to him as the second Schaljapin) he sang Commendatore in Mozart's DON GIOVANNI at Salzburg Festival in 1987 and with this legendary conductor he starred in the Requiem Masses by Verdi and Mozart as well. Paata Burchuladze will return to Salzburg in summer 2002 for a new production of TURANDOT
Paata Burchuladze received special acclaim for this portrayal of Boris Godunov he was invited to inaugurate the Met season 1990/91 with that role which he sang at Covent Garden and the State Operas of Vienna and Munich as well (the latter opera company saw him singing his 100th performance of Boris in July 1995).
Apart from his operatic fame, Paata Burchuladze is a celebrated and refined concert and recital singer as well, performing regularily with the most important festivals and producers worldwide (La Scala, Musikverein and Konzerthaus Vienna, Salzburg Festival, Covent Garden, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Bavarian State Opera, Stuttgart State Opera, Tonhalle Zurich,La Monnaie in Brussels, La Bastille and Salle Gaveau in Paris, Solothurn, the Palau in Barcelona, Sevilla, Warsaw and Moscow etc.).
Mr. Burchuladze's discography comprises IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA, SIMON BOCCANEGRA, AIDA and ERNANI for DECCA, Mozart's DON GIOVANNI and MESSA DA REQUIEM, LA FORZA DEL DESTINO, EUGEGE ONEGIN and KHOVANSHCHINA with Deutsche Grammophon, RIGOLETTO with EMI, LA BOHEME and NABUCCO with Koch-Schwann as well as SAMSON ET DALILA for Philips.In February 1998, Paata Burchuladze became the first Georgian to be acclaimed Prince by the russian orthodox church. The State Opera of Stuttgart awarded his loyalty with the Kammersänger title in July 1998.