Born in the province of Naples, Raffaele Abete graduated with honours
from the Domenico Cimarosa Conservatory of Music in Avellino. He began his
studies under the guidance of Maestro Pasquale Tizzani, subsequently
perfecting his skills with soprano Lella Cuberli.
His first debuts saw him starring in the role of Conte d'Almaviva in Il
Barbiere di Siviglia in Pescara and Tirana, as well as singing Don
Ottavio in Mozart's Don Giovanni. He continued his career singing
Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Teatro Marrucino in Chieti
and at the Opera House in Craiova, Verdi's Requiem conducted by
Gianluigi Gelmetti, Tosca at the National Opera in Iași,
Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with I Pomeriggi Musicali di Milano and
Puccini's Messa di Gloria at the Teatro Filarmonico in Verona.
Raffaele Abete stands out for his talent and versatility, winning
prestigious competitions such as the Atena Opera Festival, the Etta and
Paolo Limiti Prize and the Ottavio Ziino Competition.
In 2015 he further affirmed himself by winning the prize Una voce per
l'Arena, instituted by the Fondazione Arena di Verona, which gave him the
opportunity to debut in the role of Ishmael in Nabucco during the
93rd Arena season. The same year he played Edgardo in Lucia di
Lammermoor at the Teatro Donizetti in Bergamo and made his debut as
Rodolfo in La Bohème at the Teatro Filarmonico in Verona and at
the Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago. He returned to the Arena di Verona
in the show Lo spettacolo sta per iniziare, singing a scene from
Gounod's Roméo et Juliette, and later starred in La Traviata
in the role of Alfredo, again for the Arena season.
2016 marked his US debut with Tosca (Mario Cavaradossi) for the
reopening of the New York City Opera, where he returned for Italo
Montemezzi's L'Amore dei tre Re (Avito). He went on to perform the
Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto in numerous international productions,
including the Filarmonico in Verona, the Festival Verdi in Parma, the
Teatro Greco Antico in Taormina, the Teatro dell'Opera in Chişinău, the
Comunale in Bologna, and finally in the United States at the Opera
Carolina, the Toledo Opera and the Grand Rapids Opera.
He has participated in numerous productions of Madama Butterfly in
the role of Pinkerton, in theaters such as Teatro Bellini in Catania,
Teatro Filarmonico in Verona, Teatro Comunale in Bologna, Festival Puccini
in Torre del Lago, Staatsoper in Vienna and Copenhagen Opera House.
In 2020, he participated in the concert Nuove Voci Alla Scala, marking the
exceptional reopening of the Teatro Alla Scala.
In 2021 he debuted in the role of Roberto in Puccini's Le Villi
at the Teatro Lirico di Cagliari and sang Rodolfo in La Bohème and
Verdi's Requiem at the National Opera of Tirana. The following
year he took part in two productions directed by director Hugo De Ana: Tosca
(Cavaradossi) at the Teatro G. Verdi in Trieste and La Traviata
(Alfredo) at the National Opera in Zagreb. At the Festival della Valle
d'Itria he debuted in the world premiere of Nicola Campogrande's Opera
Italiana in the role of Soldini.
More recently, he took part in productions of Stiffelio in Dijon,
Tosca in Jesi, Madama Butterfly in Essen, Il Giudice
Livatino by Musumeci at the Teatro Bellini in Catania, Le Villi
at the Teatro Regio in Turin, La Traviata at the Opéra de Massy, Rigoletto
at the Welsh National Opera, a gala in Moscow for the Tchaikovsky
Foundation, Lucia di Lammermoor at the National Opera of Tirana,
Perosi's Il Giudizio Universale at the Teatro Lirico di Cagliari
and Rossini's Stabat Mater for the Sacrum Festival in Rome.
May 2025