A baritone noted for his thoughtful programming and rich, elegant voice, CHRISTOPHER MALTMAN has enjoyed a flourishing and wide-ranging career since he won the Lieder Prize at the 1997 Cardiff Singer of the World Competition. Having displayed flair in operatic, recital and symphonic performances, the young British singer's talent ranges from theatrical, cutting-edge presentations to probing lieder recitals. Of his Lincoln Center recital debut in Spring 2004, The New York Times concluded, "His voice is immediately arresting [and] he sings with easy authority. He uses clear diction in the best sense, shaping words with care so that they effortlessly convey significance and become vehicles of communication."

Mr. Maltman's North American engagements in the 2004-2005 season include orchestral performances with the Philadelphia Orchestra in December, where he performs works by Schoenberg and Brahms under the direction of Christoph Eschenbach. He joins the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Esa-Pekka Salonen in February for Schoenberg's Gurrelieder and travels to Washington and San Francisco for recitals at the Kennedy Center and Herbst Theatre, respectively. Abroad recently, the vocalist has enjoyed success in his first roles at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden: Sebastian in the world premiere of Thomas Adès' The TempestGuglielmo in Mozart's Così fan tutte. Mr. Maltman also gave two solo recitals to astonishing acclaim at the Salzburg Mozarteum this year; an extraordinary achievement for a young, British vocalist. Additional engagements this season include performances of the title role in Britten's Billy Budd at the Turin Opera, Ned Keene in Peter Grimes at the Salzburg Easter Festival, orchestral performances with the Strasbourg and Berlin Philharmonics and a return to the Glyndebourne Festival in his role debut as Papageno in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte. Mr. Maltman looks forward to his 2005 debut as Harlequin in the Metropolitan Opera's production of Ariadne. Other future engagements include Nardo in La finta giardiniera at Covent Garden, Guglielmo and Billy Budd in Munich, Rossini's Figaro in San Diego and Guglielmo in Seattle.

Past concert engagements include performances with the BBC, Boston and London Symphony Orchestras; Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, New York Philharmonic, Concentus Musicus Vienna and Dresden Staatskapelle. Christopher Maltman has appeared in recital at the Edinburgh, Brighton, Bath, City of London and Cheltenham Festivals, at the Konzerthaus in Vienna, Gulbenkian in Lisbon, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Mozarteum in Salzburg, Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, Alte Oper in Frankfurt and New York's Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. He is a regular guest at London's Wigmore Hall and the Schubertiade Festival.

On the opera stage, Mr. Maltman has sung Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia (Deutsche Staatsoper, Berlin), Tarquinius in The Rape of Lucretia (Bayerishce Staatsoper, Munich), Laurent in Therese Raquin (San Diego Opera), Targuinius and Guglielmo (English National Opera) and the title role in Billy Budd (Welsh National Opera and Seattle Opera). His roles at the Glyndebourne Festival include Ned Keene in Peter Grimes, Sid in Albert Herring and Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro.

Mr. Maltman has recorded the Vaughan Williams Serenade to Music for Decca; Warlock, Holst and Somervell songs for Collins Classics; and the Beethoven Folk Song project for Deutsche Grammophon. His recording of Schumann's Dichterliebe for Hyperion was released to tremendous critical acclaim and he has recently recorded Schumann's Liederkreis, Op.24, with Graham Johnson, a Debussy album with pianist Malcolm Martineau and a disc of English songs with Roger Vignoles. Mr. Maltman has appeared in both concert and film versions of John Adams's award-winning opera The Death of Klinghoffer.

Christopher Maltman studied biochemistry at Warwick University and singing at the Royal Academy of Music. He currently resides in Brighton, on the south coast of England, with his wife and son, Max.