Equally at home on the concert stage and in the opera house, American conductor Christopher Franklin has been praised for his keen theatrical instincts and vibrant performances. His continued success in the Italian operatic repertoire is a natural result of having launched his career in Italy, conducting at several major Italian opera houses and festivals including the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, Teatro Regio di Torino, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Teatro San Carlo di Napoli, Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova, Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, Teatro Massimo di Palermo, Teatro Verdi di Trieste, Sferisterio in Macerata.
Mr. Franklin has performed in theatres throughout the world such as the Musikvereinssaal and the Konzerthaus in Vienna, Herculessaal in Munich, Teatro Real Madrid, Philharmonie in Köln, Musikhalle in Hamburg Alte Oper in Frankfurt, Festspielhaus in Baden-Baden, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, Palau de les Arts in Valencia, Teatro de Bellas Artes in Mexico City, Konzerthaus in Dortmund, Cadogan Hall in London, Carnival Center of Miami, International House of Music in Moscow, Dvořák Hall and the Smetana Municipal Hall in Prague, War Memorial Opera House with the San Francisco Opera, at the Ordway with Minnesota Opera. Over the years Mr. Franklin has established a collaboration with famed tenor Juan Diego Flórez, appearing with him on tour in many concert venues around the world.
Upcoming projects include Adriana Lecouvreur and Zauberflöte at the Teatre Royal de Wallonie in Liege, Manon in Tenerife, concerts at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, a new production of Barbiere di Siviglia at the Teatro Coccia in Novara, Beethoven 9 and the Verdi Requiem.
Recent projects include Turandot and Hansel und Gretel at San Francisco Opera, Peter Grimes and Turn of the Screw at the Palau de les Arts in Valencia, Die Fledermaus at the New National Theatre in Tokyo, I Puritani and Otello at the Teatro Liceo in Barcelona, Tosca in Trieste, La Boheme, Nabucco, Tristan und Isolde, at the Teatro Verdi di Trieste, a CD recording project with the Czech Philharmonic in Prague, Attila at Opera de Tenerife, La Traviata and Thais at MN Opera, L’Amant anonyme of Joseph Bologne Chevalier de St. Georges at Minnesota Opera, Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny at the Teatro Regio di Parma, L’Occasione fa il ladro in Oman, symphonic engagements with the Russian National Philharmonic, Turco in Italia at the Teatro Comunale in Bologna, Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci at the Macerata Sferisterio, and La sonnambula at Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris.
A sought-after guest conductor, Mr. Franklin has conducted the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Czech National Symphony Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Prague Philharmonia, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, National Philharmonic of Russia, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, a German tour with the Münchner Symphoniker, SWR Orchester in Germany, Orchestra of the Maggio Musicale Firenze, Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale RAI di Torino, Hungarian National Opera Budapest, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Orchestra de Comunitat di Valencia, Orchestra Verdi di Milan, Orchestra della Toscana, Orchestra Filarmonica dell’Arena di Verona, Orchestra ‘900 of the Teatro Regio di Torino, Orchestra Toscanini of Parma.
Mr. Franklin was first-prize winner of the Gino Marinuzzi International Conducting Competition. After winning the La Bottega-Toti dal Monte Competition in Treviso he was named Resident Conductor and assistant to Peter Maag at the Teatro Comunale di Treviso where he had his Italian debut. He also attended the conducting class of Gianluigi Gelmetti at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena where he was awarded the prestigious Franco Ferrara Prize.
He began studying the violin at the age of six in his hometown of Pittsburgh (USA). After completing a BA in violin and German literature at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, he earned his MM in conducting at the University of Illinois and his DMA at the Peabody Conservatory with Frederik Prausnitz. He was awarded a scholarship to study at the Tanglewood Music Center, where he worked with Seiji Ozawa, Robert Spano, and Gustav Meier, and subsequently, a Fulbright Fellowship to study at the Musikhochschule in Saarbrücken. He began his conducting studies with Charles Bruck at the Pierre Monteux School for Conductors in Hancock, USA. Christopher lives in Lucca, Italy.