James Westman

Whether performing song, concert or opera throughout the world, baritone James Westman’s passion and musicianship bring an extra dimension to his performances. Recent projects include Germont in La traviata for Edmonton Opera, Pacific Opera Victoria, and Opéra de Montréal, Britten’s War Requiem for the Colorado Symphony and the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Elijah for the Calgary Philharmonic, Carmina Burana for Chicago’s Grant Park Festival, the title role in Nabucco for Opéra de Québec, Puccini’s La bohème for Utah Opera, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 for the Vancouver Symphony, and Tippett’s Child of our Time for Chorus Niagara. This season, he joins Orchestre classique de Montréal for a program featuring the works of Bernstein.

His 2022-23 season included Carmina Burana for the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and Orchestre symphonique de Québec, and Elijah with the Grand Philharmonic Choir. In 2021-22, James joined Opera San Antonio for the title role in Rigoletto, Manitoba Opera for a concert of operatic favourites, and the Victoria Symphony for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.

Mr. Westman’s 2017-18 season was notable for Carmina Burana for the St. Louis and Vancouver Symphonies, Brahms’s Requiem with Orchestre symphonique de Québec, L’assedio di Calais with Odyssey Opera in Boston, and Germont in La traviata with Manitoba Opera. Of special note was his appearance for the Wall Foundation of Vancouver in a concert benefitting the Music Department of the University of British Columbia. 

His 2016-17 season was a rewarding mix of repertoire ranging from the modern era back to the heights of bel canto’s golden age. He starred as the Doctor in Barber’s Vanessa for the Wexford Festival, as Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor for Utah Opera, and triumphed in the iconic role of Sir John A MacDonald in Somers’s Louis Riel for Canadian Opera Company in a production seen in Toronto, Ottawa, and Quebec, celebrating Canada’s Sesquicentennial Year. In concert he was heard in Verdi’s Requiem for the Brott Festival, Elijah for Choeur St. Laurent in Montreal, the Ontario Premiere of Kuzmenko’s Golden Harvest for the Orpheus Choir of Toronto, Martin’s In terra pax for the Grant Park Music Festival and gala opera evenings at LA’s Disney Hall with the Los Angeles Symphony and for Brott Music in Hamilton. 

Recent seasons have included Germont in the Canadian Opera Company production of La traviata, Brahms’s Requiem for Ottawa’s National Arts Centre Orchestra and the Vancouver Symphony, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in Calgary, Messiah for the McGill Chamber Orchestra and Germont in La traviata with Jacques Lacombe and l’Orchestre symphonique de Trois-Rivières.    

Additional credits include Sharpless in Madama Butterfly for the Utah Opera, Lt. Gordon in Puts’s Silent Night for Calgary Opera, Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor for Pacific Opera Victoria, the Count in Le nozze di Figaro for Opera Lyra Ottawa, Baron Scarpia in Tosca for Opéra de Québec. On the concert stage he has been heard in Messiah with the New York Philharmonic and in Rimsky-Korsakov’s Mozart and Salieri with the Vancouver Symphony. Festival appearances have included the Seattle Chamber Society series with James Ehnes, and Verdi’s Requiem for the New Hampshire Music Festival. 

Nominated for two Grammy awards and three Juno awards, Westman has recorded for Decca, Opera Rara, CBC and BBC. Though widely regarded as an ideal exponent of the Verdi baritone roles, he has also been hailed for leading roles in the works of Puccini, Massenet, Donizetti, Janaček, Bizet, Britten and Mozart for many of the principal opera houses in North America and Europe including the Houston Grand Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Opéra de Montréal, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Vancouver Opera, English National Opera, Los Angeles Opera, San Francisco Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, New York City Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, the Dallas Opera, Canadian Opera Company, Wexford Festival (Ireland), the opera houses of Graz, Cologne and many more. 

Mr. Westman also thrives in art song repertoire, having performed recitals for the Marilyn Horne Foundation, the George London Foundation, the Aldeburgh Connection, the Canadian Arts and Letters Club, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Stratford Summer Music Festival, the Schawbacher Debut Recital Series, the Michigan Chamber Music Society, the Lanaudière Festival, Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyrique and the Wexford Festival, Ireland. 

His success on the concert stage continues to flourish and he has performed with many of the world’s leading orchestras; Messiah alone has taken him to the New York Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, National Arts Centre Orchestra (Ottawa), Vancouver Symphony, Baltimore Symphony and the Detroit Symphony. 

Baritone in Residence with the prestigious San Francisco Opera Adler Fellowship program, his critically acclaimed performances at the San Francisco Opera include Guglielmo (Così tan tutte); Marcello (La bohème); Silvio (Pagliacci); Germont (La traviata); Renato (Un ballo in maschera) and Sid (Albert Herring). Mr. Westman placed first in all the international competitions in which he has participated, including the George London Competition, the D’angelo Competition, the Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyrique, the Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation and the Marilyn Horne Foundation Award. He was a finalist and the audience favourite at the Cardiff Singer of the World Competition. 

Further credits include Sharpless in Madama Butterfly for Dallas Opera and Santa Fe Opera; Talbot in Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda for Opéra de Montréal; Sandy Keith in Tovey’s The Inventor remounted for Calgary Opera, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Indianapolis Symphony; plus recording and performing Britten’s War Requiem in Japan under Seiji Ozawa for Decca. 

Formerly a successful boy treble, Mr. Westman toured with the American Boys Choir, the Paris Boys Choir and the Vienna Boys Choir. Known as Jamie Westman, he was the first boy ever to perform the fourth movement of Mahler's Symphony No. 4 (Childs View of Heaven) and toured this work with the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra in Austria, Poland, Czechoslovakia, East and West Germany and Russia, performing in the Musikverein, Roy Thomson Hall and Carnegie Hall at the age of twelve. 

James Westman’s professional development has been influenced by such renowned artists as Dame Joan Sutherland, Richard Bonynge, Renato Capecchi, Paul Esswood, John F.M. Wood, Carl Duggan, Lois Marshall, Patricia Kern, Régine Crespin, Warren Jones, Martin Katz, Virginia Zeani, Marlena Malas, Theodore Uppman, Diane Forlano, and Marilyn Horne. 

August 2024

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