J. Patrick Raftery

J. Patrick Raftery’s debut was with the San Diego Opera singing Schaunard in La Bohème sharing the stage with Luciano Pavarotti. After his years at The Boston Conservatory and The Juilliard School of Music, Mr. Raftery was awarded the Richard Tucker Music Foundation Prize and made his debut in New York’s Carnegie Hall in the Tucker Winner’s concert that same year.

Rossini’s Barber in the Washington Opera’s The Barber of Seville drew Mr. Raftery international attention and Figaro was his debut with The Paris Opera soon thereafter. Closely associated with the operas of Rossini, including two summers with the Rossini Festival in Pesaro, Mr. Raftery sang the role of Figaro over 200 times. Covent Garden’s Count in Le Nozze di Figaro and Guglielmo in Cosi fan tutte for the Festival of Glyndebourne gave Mr. Raftery two prominent debuts in Great Britain in quick succession. Leading up to his debut at New York’s Metropolitan Opera with Mirella Freni in Manon Lescaut, Mr. Raftery was one of North America’s most prominent baritones.

Mr. Raftery made his tenor debut with New York’s Mostly Mozart festival at Avery Fisher Hall (now David Geffen Hall) leading to his debut at the world’s most prestigious opera house, La Scala in Milan. Mr. Raftery has subsequently been re-invited as a tenor to the stages of London’s Covent Garden, The Paris Opera, The Hamburg State Opera, The Canadian Opera Company, and numerous others.

Professor Raftery has given Master Classes for the opera companies of The Pacific Opera Victoria, The San Diego Opera, Oper Graz, L’Opéra de Montpellier, and the Universities of Western Ontario, Southern California, Lethbridge, Alberta, Toronto, and The Catholic University of America. After his years as adjunct Professor at the University of Western Ontario and University of Toronto, Professor Raftery joined the full time faculty at The University of British Columbia in 2014. 

Highlights Concert May 5, 2018

Phillip T. Young Recital Hall, 7:30pm

B125, MacLaurin Building, University of Victoria, Ring Rd