Hailed by the Oregonian for “a rich, agile voice and high notes that could nearly part your hair,” baritone Marian Pop creates the title role in David di Chiera’s Cyrano de Bergerac in its world premiere at Michigan Opera Theatre as well as sings subsequent performances of the role at Opera Company of Philadelphia in the 2007-08 season. His season also includes this season Valenin in Faust in a return to Theater Basel and Carmina Burana with the St. Petersburg Philharmonia. In the 2006-07 season, he sang his first performances of Posa in Don Carlo as well as Lescaut in Manon, Taddeo L’italiana in Algeri, and Prokofiev’s Pantalone in The Love for Three Oranges with Theater Basel and Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia at Munich’s Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz.

A frequent guest at the Staatsoper Stuttgart, his numerous roles with the company have included his signature performances of Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Beckmesser in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, and Ulisse in Monteverdi’s Il ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria. With the Vienna Staatsoper and Volksoper, he has sung a variety of roles including Malatesta in Don Pasquale, Dandini in La Cenerentola, Valentin in Faust, Ping in Turandot, Graf Homonay in Zigeunerbaron, and Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus.

Among the baritone’s other international engagements are by Carmina Burana with the Teatro Municipal in Chile for his South American debut where he later sang Brahms’ Requiem and Marcello in La Bohème. He has sung Malatesta in Don Pasquale with New Israeli Opera; Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia, the Count in Le nozze di Figaro and Dandini in La Cenerentola in Klagenfurt; more performances of Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia and Dr. Falke in Die Fledermaus with Enschede Opera in Holland; Falke in Die Fledermaus in St. Gallen; Belcore in L’elisir d’amore in Klosterneuburg; Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia in Basel, Switzerland; and Marullo in Rigoletto at the Opera Bastille.

Mr. Pop made his North American debut as Malatesta in Don Pasquale with the Portland Opera and has since joined the company for Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia. He has also sung Ping in Turandot with Cincinnati Opera and Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia and Marcello in La Boheme with Michigan Opera Theatre.

In his native city of Cluj, Rumania Mr. Pop has appeared as the title role in Don Giovanni, Marcello in La Boheme, Der König in Die Kluge, Procolo in Donizetti’s Viva la Mamma, in Tom Johnson’s Four Notes Opera, and Dandini in La Cenerentola. His oratorio credits in the city include Carmina Burana and the Fauré Requiem. Additional Romanian credits include Count di Luna in Il Trovatore in Constanta.

His concert performances have also included Mahler’s Symphony No. 9 in Bucharest and an aria evening in Bayreuth, Germany. Mr. Pop also participated in a tour of La Cenerentola and Viva la Mamma to Austria, Germany; the Netherlands; and Great Britain with the Musical Theatre of Brasou.

The baritone represented Rumania in the 1997 Cardiff Singer of the World competition, and won 4th prize at the Nicolae Bretan competition in Cluj, Rumania.