Krassen Karagiozov,
Baritone

 McCann and Schmidek Fellow*

During the 2009 - 2010 season, Krassen Karagiozov appears as Lescaut (Manon), Dandini (La Cenerentola), Count Almaviva (The Marriage of Figaro) and Rambaldo (La Rondine). He made his debut last season appearing in the title role of Eugene Onegin, Sgt. Belcore (The Elixir of Love), Guglielmo (Così fan tutte) and Escamillo (Carmen).

Other roles performed recently by Mr. Karagiozov include Marcello (La bohème) with the Bulgarian Radio-Symphony Orchestra in Sofia, Bulgaria, Masetto (Don Giovanni) for Opera Carolina, Germont (La traviata)  and Sharpless (Madama Butterfly) with Capital Opera Raleigh, Peter (Hansel and Gretel) and Schaunard (La bohème) with Opera Roanoke, and Raoul de Gardefeu (La Vie Parisienne) for Lake George Opera Festival.

On the concert stage, Mr. Karagiozov has appeared as baritone soloist with Winston-Salem Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Mozart's Vespers,  and has also been a featured soloist with North Carolina Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Symphony.

Awards received include First Prize Winner in the Charlotte Opera Guild competition, and he was named  District Winner in North Carolina's Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. Mr. Karagiozov also received a scholarship to attend the Aspen Music Festival where he performed roles in Rake's Progress and Gianni Schicchi at Aspen Opera Theater.

Born in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria, Mr. Karagiozov studied piano and vocal performance at the State Academy of Music in Sofia when he was 18. He went onto win international competitions in both piano and voice, including the "TZ. Diakovich" in Sofia. He also received a Professional Artist Certificate from the Fletcher Opera Institute of the North Carolina School of the Arts and a Masters degree in piano from Southeastern Lousiana University.

Mr. Karagiozov's residency made possible in part by  Fellowship Grants from Jeanne McCann and Don and Jan Schmidek.