ABOUT

Jimi is excited to add another Baltimore area company to his performance venues; Baltimore Concert Opera in the roles of Tonio and Alfio. The busy baritone has maintained a steady performance schedule, appearing again as Dr. Bartolo in Il barbiere di Siviglia, a reprise of his 9 foot tall stilt-walking Papageno in The Magic Flute, Germont in La Traviata, Messiah, Capulet in Romeo et Juliette, the Requiem of Verdi, The Pirate King, and a recital of John Ireland songs and soloist in Rutter’s 2003 Mass of the Children.

These performances were with Mercury Opera, Syracuse Opera, Granite State Opera, Syracuse Symphony Orchestra and Springfield Symphony Orchestra, Young Victorian Theatre, Canandaigua Music Festival and Nashua Symphony Orchestra. Last season marked the artist’s directorial debut with Music Arts Alive, in which capacity he not only directed Amahl and the Night Visitors, but also performed the role of King Melchior, and acted as set designer, builder and decorator.

Having leaped at a professional performance career just six years ago, Jimi is considered a performer of unusual versatility and equally unusual pedigree. In this brief time, the artist has amassed a varied and extensive repertoire, now counting 20 staged roles: Escamillo, Dr. Bartolo, Tonio, Figaro, Papageno, Schaunard, Gianni Schicchi, Giuseppe, Thomas Garret, Masetto, Enrico Ashton, Mustafa, Rigoletto, Germont, Plunkett, Billy Bigelow, Emile de Becque, Monterone, Capulet and The Pirate King.

Born in Hawaii, raised on Cape Cod, and settled in Syracuse, Jimi’s repertoire is as varied as his travels. The baritone’s concert credits include Carmina Burana, the requiem settings of Brahms, Fauré, Mozart and Verdi, Bach cantatas 211, 145, 78 and 68, Songs of Love and War (Moravec), Mefistofele in Boito’s prelude and conclusion, Elijah, Pizzaro, Schubert Mass in G, Messiah, Polar Express and The Wolf in Peter vs. the Wolf and Songs of Travel. The artist’s performance venues include Syracuse Opera, Opera Memphis, Opera Vivente, West Virginia Symphony, Annapolis Opera, Mercury Opera, Granite State Opera, Annapolis Chorale, Finger Lakes Chorale, Tri-Cities Opera, Connecticut Concert Opera, Syracuse Symphony Orchestra and Roanoke Symphony Orchestra.

Jimi is particularly fond of his outreach performances, in which he has appeared in over 900! These include The Three Little Pigs, Jack and the Beanstalk, Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood, Little Red’s Most Unusual Day, Never Tickle a Mule and Love Cabaret – Love Songs of the Gershwin Brothers. The baritone was a finalist in the Chester Ludgin Verdi Competition, winner of the JDAF Vocal Competition and recipient of the Manfred Meyer Artist of the Year award. Jimi’s upcoming performances include Messiah and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and The Creation.