Australia’s leading tenor is at the forefront of a new generation of singers. Acclaimed throughout the world for his beautiful lyric voice, strong stage presence and remarkable agility he is in demand internationally on both concert and operatic stages.

Steve Davislim began his professional career as an ensemble member of the Zurich Opera, where his numerous roles included Almaviva/BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA, Camille/MERRY WIDOW, Tamino/MAGIC FLUTE, The Painter/LULU under Franz Welser-Möst, Don Ottavio/DON GIOVANNI and Ferrando/COSÌ FAN TUTTE with Nikolaus Harnoncourt and The Prince in Heinz Holliger’s SCHNEEWITTCHEN (Snowwhite).

He also appeared at the State Opera Berlin and in Dresden (Almaviva, Tamino, Don Ottavio, Tom Rakewell/THE RAKE’S PROGRESS), State Opera Vienna (Tamino), Hamburg Opera (Lensky/ONEGIN, Tom Rakewell, Almaviva), Royal Opera House Covent Garden (Fenton/FALSTAFF), The Australian Opera in Sydney (Don Ottavio, Lensky, David/MEISTERSINGER), at the Châtelet Paris, Endimione/L’ARBORE DI DIANA at the Liceu Barcelona and at the Montpellier Festival. In Caen and London in the title role in Weber’s Oberon (with subsequent CD recording), Lyric Opera Chicago and the MET (at both Pedrillo/ENTFÜHRUNG), the Salzburg Festival (Pong/TURANDOT) and at the Deutsche Oper Berlin (Zemlinsky’s TRAUMGÖRGE).

A turning point in his career was his interpretation of IDOMENEO at the opening of La Scala di Milano in December 2005 under Daniel Harding. He was subsequently invited back to La Scala in 2007 to sing the protagonist’s role in the world premiere of TENEKE by Fabio Vacchi under Roberto Abbado and for Tamino/MAGIC FLUTE in 2011.

2009, he sang his first Max/FREISCHÜTZ at the Baden-Baden Festival, Michel in Martinu’s rarely performed JULIETTA in Geneva and Tito/CLEMENZA as well as Flamand/CAPRICCIO under Thielemann in Dresden. He then sang the Steersman/FLYING DUTCHMAN in a concert version recorded on CD (Pentatone) in Berlin, a role he was subsequently invited for, at the Orange Festival in 2013. In the same year, he gave his debut as Erik in the same opera in Oslo. 2014, he also sang Pylade in a new production of Gluck’s IPHIGÉNIE EN TAURIDE in Geneva.

Recent appearances include Baron Kronthal/WILDSCHÜTZ (Lortzing) as well as Tamino in Dresden, Tom Rakewell in Helsinki, Britten’s WAR REQUIEM in Philadelphia under Charles Dutoit and Ferrando in Geneva, Tamino/MAGIC FLUTE in the William Kentridge production in Tokyo.

Steve Davislim is also regularly invited to the concert stages all over the world, recently and upcoming for works such as Schnittke’s FAUST CANTATA at the Musikverein Vienna and Gasteig Munich, DIE WINTERREISE with Teodor Currentsis in Perm and Moscow in the Hanz Zender orchestration, Liederabende in Vienna, Adelaide Festival, etc., Beethoven’s SYMPHONY NO. 9 (with LSO/Haitink, in Vienna, Hamburg, Baden-Baden/Rattle, at the Styriarte Graz and the Salzburg Festival, both under Orozco-Estrada, in Paris, Montpellier, Berlin Philharmonic, all the radio orchestras of Germany, France, Italy and Spain and also at the BBC Proms, Lucerne Festival, Leipzig, Chicago, Cleveland, New York Phil. and Sydney Opera House, Bruckner’s TE DEUM under Riccardo Muti in Chicago, DAS LIED VON DER ERDE in Bordeaux Paris and Cologne, performances of MESSIAH in Vienna, Munich, Melbourne and New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Beethoven’s MISSA SOLEMNIS at the Rheingau Music Festival under Orozco-Estrada, Mendelssohn’s ELIAS with the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Beethoven’s SYMPHONY NO. 9 in Sydney, London, Paris and Rome, etc.

He has worked with such esteemed conductors as Claudio Abbado, Riccardo Chailly, Sir Colin Davis, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Adam Fischer, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Valery Gergiev, Michael Gielen, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Bernard Haitink, Thomas Hengelbrock, Philippe Herreweghe, René Jacobs, Armin and Philippe Jordan, Lorin Maazel, Marc Minkowski, Andris Nelsons, Myung Wung Chung, Sir Roger Norrington, William Christie, Antonio Pappano, Michel Plasson, Sir Georg Solti, Jeffrey Tate, Christian Thielemann, Marcello Viotti, Franz Welser-Möst, and David Zinman.

His recordings: Szymanovsky’s SYMPHONY No. 3/Pierre Boulez (Deutsche Grammophon), Brahms’ RINALDO/ Michel Plasson (EMI), Holliger’s SCHNEEWITTCHEN (ECM), Beethoven’s CHRISTUS AM ÖLBERGE, Mozart’s REQUIEM (Opus 111), Tippett’s A CHILD OF OUR TIME/ Colin Davis (LSO Live), Rossini’s PETITE MESSE SOLENNELLE, Martin’s VIN HERBÉ, Haydn’s SCHÖPFUNG (Harmonia Mundi) and Martinu’s JULIETTA/ Charles Mackerras (Supraphon). On Melba: Richard Strauss’ Songs with orchestra/ Simone Young, Saint-Saëns’ Hélène and Nuit Persane, Britten’s Folksongs, Schubert’s WINTERREISE. Handel’s MESSIAH with Bavarian Radio Chorus and B’Rock. Some recordings on DG: Händel’s LOTARIO and RODELINDA/ Alan Curtis, Bach Cantatas/ Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Mozart’s REQUIEM/ Christian Thielemann etc.

Current and future engagements include Liederabende in the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg with Malcolm Martineau, Australia and Asia,  Beethoven's "Missa Solemnis" CD recording and tour with René Jacobs, Mendelssohn's "Elijah" with Thomas Hengelbrock in Zurich, the "Walpurgisnacht" with Andrés Orozco-Estrada with the Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig, Britten's "War Requiem" in the Beethoven Festival Warsaw, Dvorak's Stabat Mater with Christoph Eschenbach in Berlin, and "Das Klagende Lied" by Mahler with the Sydney Symphony with Simone Young.

(January 2019)