Jon Christos

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Jon Christos

Image:JonAlun1.jpg‎
Born 23 March 1976 (1976-03-23) (age 32)
Origin Salford, England
Genre(s) Classical, Crossover (music).
Years active 2004-present
Label(s) Roots Music Group
Website Jon Christos.com

Jon Christos (born 23 March 1976, Salford, England) is an English singer, pianist, arranger and conductor. A classically trained tenor, he is best noted for his recordings of operatic-style and crossover (music).

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life

At the age of four, Jon first saw a violin being played on television and declared, "I want to do that." Thus began his study of the violin, quickly followed by piano, leading to enrollment at the renowned Chetham's School of Music in Manchester as a major scholarship recipient, where he was a Cathedral Chorister and studied violin, piano and vocal training, and finally to The Royal Northern College of Music, where he earned his fellowship in vocal tuition.

[edit] Career

Gifted with perfect pitch and a staggering two-and-a-half-octave range , Jon has taken leading operatic roles at home and abroad in operas such as Puccini's La Boheme, Mozart's The Magic Flute, Janacek's Jenufa, Britten's Albert Herring, Puccini's Tosca, The Barber of Seville at the prestigious Aix-en-Provence music festival in the south of France www.jonchristos.com. He has also sung in over sixty performances of Handel's Messiah for over fifty Choral Societies throughout the UK, as well as every major Oratorio including Mozart's Requiem at London's Festival Hall, Bach's St. John Passion at Manchester's Bridgewater Hall, and Verdi's Requiem at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall.

After just a few years touring the world in opera productions, playing to highly informed but comparatively small audiences, Jon began to yearn for something bigger and better, a change in direction that would require and allow him to use all of his musical skills and bring him to the attention of a far larger and broader audience. Taking a chance, Jon approached Perry Hughes, a successful manager and executive producer of some of the country's leading classical stars, and insisted that he be allowed to audition. After hearing Jon's impromptu performance of Nessun Dorma, Hughes signed him immediately and Jon began work choosing his repertoire and preparing himself for a new audience.

Jon's debut solo CD, Northern Light was released in October 2005 on the Roots Music Grouplabel and reached the top 10 in the UK classical chart. The album showcases his skills as a pianist and arranger, as well as his sensitive vocal interpretations of mostly original opera-inspired songs. For the recordings on Northern Light Jon conducted The City of Manchester Sinfonia, an orchestra he created and filled with his college contemporaries.

Another string to Jon's bow is that of radio presenter, with 'Sacred Thoughts' on Premier Christian Radioand his own show on BBC Radio Lancashire.

[edit] Appearances

2005: Jon's Northern LightCD release was accompanied by the showing of a Granada TV documentary in the 'Chasing The Dream' series, giving a superb insight not only into Jon Christos the man, but also into the recording process. Clips from his highly acclaimed concert performance with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra conducted by Erich Kunzel were featured during the documentary.

Since then, he has performed on the BBC Radio 2 Friday Night is Music Night show, and on an ITV Christmas Eve concert from Norwich Cathedral.

2006: Jon performed on the ITV chat show "Lunchtime with Des & Mel," on a special ITV Act of Worship for Peace, on three consecutive episodes of the BBC1 Songs of Praise show, and again performed for ITV in an Easter Service.

He performed at a number of high-profile sporting events including a halftime concert at The City of Manchester Stadium, the Powergen Rugby Cup Final at Twickenham, and the Heineken Cup Final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on 20 May, to an audience of 75,000. Jon also performed with world-renowned conductor and composer Carl Davis as the headline artist for the 'Sports Symphony' tour in Pamplona,Spain and Scotland.

A highly respected voice coach, Jon was heavily involved with the BBC 1 'Just The Two of Us' project. Jon has been a judge on the BBC Radio 2 Young Chorister of the Year competition and has received an invitation to be the vocal coach for England Ashes hero Andrew 'Freddy' Flintoff. He is the vocal coach to Richard Fleeshman(star of hit ITV series Coronation Street), winner of ITV's 'Soapstar Superstar' competition, and works with all artists signed to the Roots Music Group.

2007:

2008:

[edit] Discography

Tracks by Jon have appeared on 8 compilation albums, including the chart hits 'The Number One Classical Album 2006 and 2008, 'The Opera Album 2006', and 'A Classic Christmas' alongside tracks by world famous singers such as Luciano Pavarotti,Andrea Bocelli,and Juan Diego Flórez. Work is currently in progress on Jon's second album, which is expected to be released later in the year.

ALBUMS:

  • Northern Light - released 3 October, 2005
  • The Opera Album 2006 - released 24 April, 2006 (features Caruso)
  • A Treasury of Hymns - released 8 May, 2006 (features Jerusalem)
  • Manchester City: The Album - released 28 November, 2005 (features Blue Moon and City Till I Die/Funiculi Funicula)
  • The Number One Classical Album 2006 - released 14 November, 2005 (features Jubilate Domum)
  • A Classic Christmas - released 4 December, 2006 (features Jubilate Domum)
  • Songs for Sunday - released 26 June 2007 (features Jerusalem)
  • The Number One Classical Album 2008 - released 26 November, 2007 (features Non ti scordar di me)

VIDEOS:

  • All Or Nothing and Jubilate Domum, which featured on Classic FM TV, now known as Omusic TV.

[edit] Influences

Jon counts among his influences the great tenors Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras, Enrico Caruso, and Mario Lanza, as well as baritone Josh Groban.

[edit] Charity Works

Jon and his manager Perry Hughes are tremendous workers for charities and along with other celebrities including Chris DeBurgh have been appointed as Ambassadors for the Intergovernmental Institution for the use of Micro-algae Spirulina Against Malnutrition, IIMSAM, in support of the United Nations MDGs. IIMSAM works to promote the use of micro-algae Spirulina (Spirulina Platensis) to counter malnutrition and its severe negative impacts especially in the Developing and Least Developed Countries (LDC). Other charities Jon has supported include The Red Cross, The Kirsty Howard's Appeal, The Prince’s Trust, Help The Aged, Variety, the Children's Charity Christie Hospital and Alder Hey Children's Hospital.

[edit] Other

He made history as the first Classical male artist to perform at the new Wembley Stadium on 28 April 2007.

An enthusiastic football fan, he is an avid supporter of Manchester City Football Club. Jon's fans are known as 'Christosians', many post on his Jon Christos Street Team.

He has been highly honoured to sit for a portrait by the world renowned Harold Riley (artist). Mr Riley has painted portraits of a long list of celebrities and dignitaries, including American President Gerald Ford, Pope John Paul II, Nelson Mandela, the Duke of Edinburgh and the golfer Jack Nicklaus.