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Bass
Ivo Stanchev

Reviews
On Stage


  BIOGRAPHY  

 

 Ivo Stanchev sings at the Staatsoper Wien such roles as SPARAFUCILE in” Rigoletto”, KING RENÉ in “Iolanthe”, the MONK in “Don Carlo”, TITUREL in “Parsifal” , COLLINE in “La Bohème”, NOURABAD in “Les Pêcheurs de Perles” just to name a few.

In 2026 he makes his debut as WODNIK in “Rusalka” at the Opéra de Limoges and sings DOTTORE GRENVIL in “La Traviata” bei den Bregenz Festival.

In 2022 Ivo Stanchev made his debut as COLLINE in “La Bohème” at the Glyndebourne Festival and was invited here to sing the COMMENDATORE in “Don Giovanni” in 2023.

Moreover, he portrayed BORIS GODUNOV at the Landestheater Innsbruck, JÖRG in “Stiffelio” in Aachen, the GRAND INQUISITORE in “Don Carlo” at the Theater Freiburg and FILIPO in “Don Carlo” at the Sofia National Opera, SURIN in “Pique Dame” at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona. In the beginning of the year 2023 he enjoyed great success in concerts as IVAN LE TERRIBLE with the Orchestre National de France e.g. at the Paris Philharmonic.

Recently, he succeeded as ZACCARIA in “Nabucco” at the Prague State Opera and returned as POPE in “Lady Macbeth of Mzensk” at the Leipzig Opera.

Als BASILIO in Il barbiere di Siviglia gefiel er an der Opéra Toulon, als SPECTRO in Hamlet am Gran Teatre de Liceu Barcelona, TOM in Un ballo in maschera an der Israeli Opera Tel Aviv, IL FRATE am Nationaltheater Mannheim und TIMUR in Turandot beim Internationalen Festival Gut Immling.

From 2018 to 2021 he was FERRANDO in “Il Trovatore” at the Heidenheim Festival, TIMUR at the Aachen Theatre, the OLD HEBREW in “Samson and Delilah”at the Rheinoper Düsseldorf-Duisburg. He sang Prokofief’s IVAN LE TERRIBLE with the National Radio Symphony Orchestra Madrid and at the Bolshoi Theatre in Minsk he performed in an opera gala concert. At the Hagen Theatre he was the GOLD DEALER in “Cardillac”, the SACRISTAN in “Tosca” and LUTHER and CRESPEL in “Les Contes d’Hoffmann”.

He was BASILIO in “Il barbiere di Siviglia” at the Opéra de Toulon, SPECTRO in “Hamlet” at the Gran Teatre de Liceu Barcelona, TOM in “Un ballo in maschera” at the Israeli Opera Tel Aviv, IL FRATE at the Nationaltheater Mannheim and TIMUR in “Turandot” at the International Music Festival Gut Immling.

He also portrayed RAMFIS in “Aida” at the Teatro Principal Palma de Mallorca, LEONE in “Attila” in concerts at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona, ZABULÓN in “La dogaressa” and CANO in “Juan José” under the musical direction of Miguel Gómez Martinez at the Teatro de la Zarzuela in Madrid. Here, he also enthralled as PASCUAL in the Spanish opera “Marina” by Emilio Arrieta and as SALIERI in Rimsky-Korsakov ‘s opera “Mozart and Salieri”.

The Bulgarian bass works with such renowned conductors and producers such as Philipp Jordan, Christian Thielemann, Jeffrey Tate ,Franz Welser-Möst, Tugan Sokhiev, Carlo Rizzi, Daniel Oren, Yoel Gamzou, Alejo Pérez, Kirill Serebrennikov, Herbert Wernicke, Evgeny Titov.

After his studies at the Music Academy ‚Pantcho Vladigerov‘ in Sofia he attended master classes with Vladimir Galousine, Roberto Scandiuzzi, Teresa Berganza and Deborah Polaski.

His first opera performances included DOCTOR GRENVIL in” La Traviata” and RAIMONDO in “Lucia di Lammermoor” in concerts in the Royal Palace in La Granja de San Ildefonso (Spain).

In Salamanca he made his debut as IL RE in “Aida”. He was SIMONE in “Gianni Schicchi” at the Opera Festival in Calviá in Palma de Mallorca and STEPÁN in Mussorgsky's “The Wedding” at the Teatro Real Madrid, where he could also be admired in “Der Rosenkavalier”, in concerts of Roberto Devereux together with Edita Gruberova and Josep Bros and in Britten’s “Death in Venice”.

He made his debut in Italy in Bottesini’s opera “Ero e Leandro” in Crema.

 

  
 
REVIEWS
 
Wiener Staatsoper – Roméo et Juliette – LE DUC
Solid the performance of Ivo Stanchev as the Duc,...
bachtrack
bachtrack.com
Staatsoper Wien – Iolanta – KÖNIG RENÉ
Ivo Stanchev convinced in the role of René with vocally pasty presence and masterly acting impetus.
DER NEUE MERKER 05/ 2025 - Maris Altmann-Althausen
From the back, one can hear Ivo Stanchev as Titurel with a delightful bass voice.
DER NEUE MERKER 05/ 2025 - Johann Schwarz
Ivo Stanchev’s King René is a commanding presence, his rich bass imbued with the paternal anxiety of a ruler desperate to protect his daughter from a painful truth.
European News Agency
european-news-agency.de
Ivo Stanchev’s King René is a commanding presence, his rich bass imbued with the paternal anxiety of a ruler desperate to protect his daughter from a painful truth.
European News Agency
european-news-agency.de
Ivo Stanchev portrays the difficult role of the father with the exact timbre between paternal love and despotic rigor.
Silvia Matras
silviamatras-reisen.at
Ivo Stanchev portrayed the part of King René with the necessary authority.
Stephan Burianek – Opern News April 6; 2025
opern.news
König René (equally powerful in the deep notes: Ivo Stanchev).
Salzburger Nachrichten
sn.at
Ivo Stanchev sings a voluminous, present King René.
Opera Online
opera-online.com
Iolanta’s father René enthuses with a powerful bass voice and knows how to move, as he begs for mercy for his stigmatized daughter.
Susanne Lukas- ORPHEUS 03/2025
...the great, dark but not black bass Ivo Stanchev (King René) with a high level of assertiveness…
Oper!
oper-magazin.de
King René powerful even in the low registers: Ivo Stanchev).
OE24
oe24.de
The role of King René, which is in this production not only a loving father, is a very characteristic bass for the Russian repertoire, sung here by Ivo Stanchev with his sonorous voice.
Online-Merker 4/2025, Valentino Hribernig-Körber
As Iolanta’s father, René, Ivo Stanchev’s imposing bass voice had cavernous depths and a noble tone,...
Seen and Heard International
seenandheard-international.com
Musically the production was even more than first class, outstandiing Ivo Stanchev as René,...
Klassik begeistert
klassik-begeistert.de
Her father, king René (outstanding: Ivo Stanchev)...
Der Standard - Ljubisa Tosi
derstandard.at
Ivo Stanchev as a loving but also imperiuous King René with his profound bass voice..
Salzburger Nachrichten – Ernst P. Strobl
pressreader.com
By the way the dark voices dominated, at the head Ivo Stanchev as royal father René.
Online Merker – Renate Wagner
onlinemerker.com
Staatsoper Wien – Rigoletto - SPARAFUCILE
Ivo Stanchev (role debut at the Vienna State Opera) with his striking, rough bass voice is captivating as the terrifying Sparafucile.
Der neue Merker, 11/2024 Wolfgang Habermann
Wiener Staatsoper – Don Carlos - MÖNCH
On his third evening at the Vienna State Opera, Ivo Stanchev in the minor part of the Monk sings with a beautiful, melodious bass voice. There is hope for a continuation of the Bulgarian bass tradition.
Der neue Merker, 11/2024 Wolfgang Habermann
In the role of the monk, Ivo Stanchev puts this second (but yet constant) role on a very high level, completing the bass charts of the evening.
Cult News
cult.news
Theater Freiburg - Don Carlos- MONK / GRAND INQUISITOR
Ivo Stanchev, as monk and inquisitor, is a nearly ideal cast. He sings from out of the audience area and his extremely voluminous , deep, almost black bass voice is so extensive it reaches even the most remote corners. I am truly fascinated by this voice.
Klassik begeistert
klassik-begeistert.de
Ivo Stanchev’s black, incredibly voluminous Grand Inquisitor bass voice was appropriately contrasting.
OPERNWELT 5/24 – Alexander Dick
Prague State Opera – Nabucco - ZACCARIA
A strong trio of guest singers mirrored the fraught atmosphere, (...) and Bulgarian bass Ivo Stanchev as Zaccaria, the leader of the Israelites.
(...) and Stanchev deftly combined hope and desperation in his vocals.
bachtrack
bachtrack.com
The character Zaccaria, sung singing by the Bulgarian bass Ivo Stanchev with constant sound quality and with a delightful timbre throughout the entire performance, plays an important role. His bass voice was probably the best male voice in the Nabucco opera.
Klasika Plus
klasikaplus.cz
Glyndbourne Festival – Don Giovanni – COMMENDATORE
The Commendatore is a great operatic bass role and Ivo Stanchev has the rich mahogany tones and power to make the most of it. The entrance given for him at the end of the opera is however a little pedestrian after the big the big build-up. The graveside statue of The Commendatore (in the hotel’s fairy-lit garden) has spoken, Stanchev offstage, and Giovanni has brazened it out and invited it to dinner. Dinner comes against the background of a thunderstorm and Leporello and Elvira, who has come to save him, are terrified at the approaching titanic statue crossing the garden. But Stanchev just walks in. Nevertheless, Stabchev makes an impression with his voice, rich and resonant, it puts over all the authority of the dead Commendatore. Ferma un po’! Stop a while, he commands, before giving him one last chance to repent.
Mark Aspen
markaspen.com
Bulgarian Bass Ivo Stanchev as The Commendatore produces a suitably, doom-laden voice for Giovanni’s spectral nemesis.
Opera Wire
operawire.com
Ivo Stanchev makes a worthy Commendatore.
Opera Today
operatoday.com
Tiroler Landestheater Innsbruck – Boris Godunow - BORIS GODUNOW
Ivo Stanchev is a youthful Boris, who paints his part in sonorous, dark grey and who can do in his play without any false expressiveness.
OPERNWELT 5/23, Markus Thiel
In the title role was Bulgarian bass Ivo Stanchev. Although there have been rougher, wilder, more animated vocal characterizations that have brilliantly brought out Boris’ vicious and dominating personality, Stanchev’s more refined approach was no less convincing. He possesses a warm, attractive, versatile voice, which he used to create a multi-layered character. In the early scenes, he presented Boris as calm, cool and controlled, but with a dark undercurrent, which, in the latter scenes, he imbued with an increasingly violent emotional intensity. The contrasts made his dissent into madness very real, very believable and his suffering and isolation became painfully honest. Nothing was overstated. Likewise, his acting was finely crafted to develop his character. His confidence and strong physical presence allowed him to dominate.
Operawire
operawire.com
The Bulgarian bass singer Ivo Stanchev convincingly portrays the title role. His Boris Godunow is at the same time human and ruler, ruthless and marked by madness. His vocal perfection in tonal design and reproduction are simply astounding.
Opera Online
opera-online.com
What is needed in order to work it out, are singers of charisma. And the Innsbruck Theatre does have such artists. Starting with the youthful Ivo Stanchev, who paints the title role into deep grey.
Merkur
merkur.de
Although the cast is truly extensive, the title hero clearly portrays the central role. And by engaging the Bulgarian-born bass singer Ivo Stanchev, the Innsbruck Theatre has succeeded in pulling off another masterstroke. A young singer with a wonderful , perfectly trained voice, who also succeeded in constantly making a present impression as a stage personality. The name of this singer should be noted!
Online Merker
onlinemerker.com
Conductor Oliver von Dohnányi put his entire heart in his interpretation and spared no Pathos. The same can be said of the heavily tasked choir and the 14 soloists, above all the Bulgarian bass singer Ivo Stanchev in the title role…
BR Klassik
br-klassik.de
Philharmonie de Paris – IVAN LE TERRIBLE
...Ivo Stanchev convinces in the popular „Oath of the Oprichniki“ with his engagement on stage and the quality of his bass voice.
ResMusica
resmusica.com
Theater Aachen – Stiffelio – JORG
...the extremely respectable singer soloists landlord Stankar (Benjamin Bevan) and the old preacher Jorg (Ivo Stanchev) show profile.
Aachener Zeitung
aachener-zeitung.de
Glyndebourne Festival – La Boheme - COLLINE
Ivo Stanchev’s Colline offered a tender song to his coat, finding subtle shades and human warmth in his short spotlight moment.
Opera Wire
www.operawire.com
Bulgarian bass Ivo Stanchev as Colline brings a delicious tragi-comic sensibility and plangent tone to his aria ‘Vecchia zimarra, senti’ in which he bids farewell to his old coat that has served him so well before it is sold to fund help for the ailing Mimi.
London Unattached
www.london-unattached.com
Bulgarian bass Ivo Stanchev sang the role of Colline with a delicious warmth.
the arts desk
www.theartsdesk.com
Gran Teatre del Liceu – Pique Dame - SURIN
Bass Ivo Stanchev as Surin with arcuate, rich, dark, vocally decisive sound.
Olyrix
www.olyrix.com
Theater Hagen – Cardillac - GOLDHÄNLDER
The imposing power of Ivo Stánchev’s bass voice, who sings the gold dealer, literally pushes one in one’s chair.
Der Opernfreund
www.deropernfreund.de
Ivo Stánchev impresses as the gold dealer with his powerful bass voice.
Online Musik Magazin
www.omm.de
Nationaltheater Mannheim – Don Carlo – IL FRATE
Impressive, cultivated was the third black voice during the short monk passages (Ivo Stanchev).
Online Merker
www.onlinemerker.com
 
 
ON STAGE
Staatsoper Wien – Iolanta - RENÉ
© Staatsoper Wien
 
Prague State Opera – Nabucco - ZACCARIA
 
Tiroler Landestheater Innsbruck – Boris Godunow - BORIS GODUNOW
 
Glyndebourne Festival – La Boheme - COLLINE
 
Theater Hagen - Les Contes d´Hoffmann - LUTHER
 
Theater Hagen - Les Contes d´Hoffmann - CRESPEL
 
Theater Hagen - Cardillac - GOLDHÄNDLER