RAFAEL MORAS
Hailed for his ability to communicate “…romance and heartbreak with his soaring tenor tones,” by Broadway World and “..heroic bravado…”, “…acting chops…”, and “…irresistible mix of Italianate and Latin passion…” by Musical America Worldwide, Opera News, and Classical Voice North America respectively, tenor Rafael Moras is a rising star of the opera and classical music world whose voice, stage presence, and ability to speak off-the-cuff with an audience continues to connect in opera houses and intimate concert settings around the world.
A graduate of LA Opera’s Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program and The Santa Fe Opera’s Apprentice Program for Singers, tenor Rafael Moras recently made his Seattle Opera debut as Tariq in the critically-acclaimed world premiere A Thousand Splendid Suns, and made his Minnesota Opera debut as Don José in Carmen, the directorial debut of acclaimed mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, in Spring of 2022. He is currently preparing to make his Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra debut as a soloist in their annual Holiday Pops and will return to Arizona Opera as the titular Zorro for their inaugural New Works Festival.
Rafael’s 2022-2023 included debuts with Annapolis Opera as Rodolfo in La bohème, continued performances around the globe with Grammy Award-winning jazz trumpeter Chris Botti, returns to the Houston Grand Opera stage for a reprise of Father Matías in El Milagro del Recuerdo and as Zweite Jude in Salome, a recital with Bethany Self in support of the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition’s Houston District, and a return to the Houston Symphony as the featured soloist in Fiesta Sinfónica.
Rafael has performed as a featured opera singer soloist across four different continents with Grammy Award-winning jazz trumpeter Chris Botti as part of the Chris Botti In Concert global tour, and as a featured soloist with the Houston Symphony, LA Philharmonic, Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, San Antonio Symphony, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Amarillo Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Austin Opera, Opera Idaho, and Aspen Music Festival. Prior highlights include debuts with Houston Grand Opera and Arizona Opera as Father Matías in the world premiere of El Milagro del Recuerdo, Utah Opera and Holy City Arts & Lyric Opera as Alfredo in La traviata, and Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera as the Duke in Rigoletto. In 2016, Rafael was heard as Rodolfo in La bohème at the Aspen Music Festival. Of his performance, Opera News said “[Rafael Moras] escaped all of the tempting tenorial clichés to create a fully fleshed-out characterization. His singing remained warm and ingratiating, from low note to high, from first scene to last.” He is a 2017 and 2018 recipient of The Santa Fe Opera's Richard Tucker Fund Award, a 2014 Metropolitan Opera Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition Grand Finalist, 2014 Operalia Quarter Finalist, and a 2013 and 2014 Eleanor McCollum Vocal Competition Finalist.
Headshot by Chris Gillett Photography