José Azócar

Chilean tenor José Azócar began his studies at the conservatory in La Serena in 1982. In 1987, he began in the choir of the Teatro Municipal in Santiago. In 1988, he was promoted to soloist as Faust (Mefistofele), followed by Edgardo in 1989, which was also the year of his debut in Montevideo (Cavaradossi).

For many years, he went back and forth between the continents at a rather strenuous pace: many appearances in Chile (Santiago and other cities like Viña del Mar, Temuco or Rancagua), Montevideo, various theaters in Buenos Aires, La Plata, Porto Alegre; Miami; Pretoria; Dublin, Cork, Limerick, London (Royal Albert Hall), Lisbon, Barcelona, Montepulciano, Trapani, Munich, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Kaiserslautern, Regensburg, Klagenfurt, Prague, Copenhagen. 2005 is a good example: Don José in Regensburg, Cavaradossi in Chile, Chénier, Turiddu and Canio in Trapani, Radames in Chile, Radames in Prague, Don José in Santiago de Chile – in this sequence!

This schedule notwithstanding, his career lasted long, and he was still active (mostly in concert, but also on stage) by the time of writing (2024).

Vocally, his resemblance to Francisco Araiza is uncanny – they actually seem like vocal twins (Azócar being the more dramatic of the two). Although some people may perceive it as such, this is not intended as a compliment.

Reference 1: www.taringa.net (defunct); reference 2: Azócar's Facebook page
Picture source