Biography of opera singer Jána Galla.
Ján Galla completed his studies of opera singing at the Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts and his tutor was prof. I. Černeská. During his studies he was on a scholarship assignment in Siena, Italy. In 1981, he as the best graduate from the Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts became automatically a soloist of the Opera of the Slovak National Theatre. In 1985, he won the international competition in Rio de Janeiro and was awarded the Golden Medal for the best interpretation of Brazil song. Contracts with the Opera in Rio de Janerio, Arena di Verona, Italy, followed. In the same year, he sang the part of Gremina in the opera Eugen Onegin accompanied by Mirella Freni and Peter Dvorsky.
In 1988, Ján Galla appeared in Teatro Communale in Bologna accompanied again by stars, Mirella Freni and Peter Dvorsky, and he also took part in a concert tour in China. In 1989, he sang the Dvorak's Stabat mater with the Munich Philharmonic and appeared in the opera Aida in Chicago. In 1990, he appeared in the opera Faust and Margaret presented by the Opera of the Slovak National Theatre during the festival in Edinburgh where this piece directed by Bednarik won a prestigious main prize. In the same year, Ján Galla sang the Galgol Mass in Cologne. The year 1991 was also rich in performances. He made a guest appearance in Ludwigshafene accompanied by K. Ricciarelli. Later he sang in the opera "Attila" in Leeds, England, and appeared as Raimond in the opera Lucia di Lammermoor in Dublin.
Ján Galla returned to the Glagol Mass with a performance in Musikvereine, Vienna. He returned to Bologna and Salzuburg and performed with the ensemble of the Slovak National Theatre during a festival in Jerusalem. In 1992, he sang the Rossini’s Stabat mater in Athens; he appeared in the Barber of Seville in Madrid and presented himself in the opera Simon Boccanegra in Bremen.
A year later Ján Galla sang Janacek in the Barbican Centre, London, and Verdi's Requiem in Amsterdam and Strasburg. He won a great success with a performance of the Tales of Hoffmann in the prestigious Opera Comique in Paris. The performance was greatly appreciated by the director of the Opera himself. He sang the part of Filipp II. in the Verdi's opera Don Carlos on the home scene of the Slovak National Theatre and appeared as Sarastro (Magic Flute), Zacharias (Nabucco), Sparafucile (Rigoletto), Claudius (Hamlet), Commandant (Don Giovanni), Rodolfo (Sleepwaker), Water-Goblin (Rusalka), Alidoro (Cinderella) etc. Ján Galla's recent successes include the April guest appearance (2003) in Dvorak's Stabat mater, Oviedo, or the part of Sarastra in Soul. Among other extraordinary successes of his was collaboration with the opera scene in Antwerp involving the production of Janacek's Kata Kabanova and the concert and recording of Beethoven's 9th Symphony and Ode to Joy conducted by Chihiro Hayashi, featuring the Slovak Philharmonic. The opera and concert repertoire of Ján Galla is very extensive and he performed in all European countries as well as in many Asian countries and North and South America. He cooperates with many famous stage directors and conductors, for example R.Carsen and F.Layer in Antwerp, Patrice Chéreau and Pierre Boulez in Vienna, Amsterdam and at the international festivale Aix-en-Provence in summer 2007 (From the house of the dead) - following this success he bacame an invitation for year 2010 to La Scala, and also on his home stage in Bratislava with Peter Konwitschny in the opera Eugen Onegin and Madama Butterfly. In January 2008 presented himself in the opera The magic flute, in the role of Sarastro, on the tourneé with the National Theatre of Praque.