Michael Arivony is a young baritone from Madagascar and starting from season 2022/23 a member of the Vienna State Opera. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, graduating with honors with a Bachelor’s degree, and with a Master’s degree from the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar. During his studies he received a number of scholarships. These included scholarships such as the John Talbot Collender Prize (a full scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music), the Deutschlandstipedium, and the Charlotte Krupp Scholarship.
Originating from Madagascar, he discovered a passion for classical music late in his youth. And he devoted the first years of his studies in Europe to deepening his passion for the song and recital repertoire. And this did not go unrewarded: in 2020, he and his duo partner Teodora Oprisor won first prize at the International Student Song Duo Competition in Groningen, Netherlands. In 2019, they won the third prize of the International Song Competition Das Lied in Heidberg, Germany. And in 2017, they won the second prize at the Susana Scoerenyi Duo Competition. In addition, Michael has been nominated for the SWR Young Opera Stars 2019 and is a participant of the New Voices 2018 Create your Career program. In 2021 he represented his country in Cardiff at the famous competition “Singer of the World”, he was finalist. In 2021 he also won the 3rd prize at the Helmut Deutsch competition.
He has performed at the Krzyzowa Music Festival in Poland, the Orsay-Royaumont Academy, and the Victoria de Los Angeles Festival. He was also a participant in the Young Singer’s Program at the 2020 Salzburg Festival, which did not take place due to the Covid 19 pandemic.
He was member of the International Opera Studio Staatsoper Vienna for seasons 2022/21/22, he already sang roles like Dancairo/”Carmen”, Paris/”Romeo et Juliette”, Marullo/”Rigoletto”, Figaro/Bartolo/”Barbiere di Siviglia” (children’s version), amongst others.
Roles scheduled at Staatsoper Vienna in season 2022/23 – Belcore/”Cenerentola”, Malatesta/”Don Pasquale”, Harlekin/”Ariadne auf Naxos”, Lescaut/”Manon Lescaut”, Roucher/”Andrea Chenier”.
In addition to singing, Michael Rakotoarivony also conducts and was principal conductor of St. Bartholomew’s Chamber Orchestra in London for two seasons, guest conductor of the Chineke! Orchestra in 2019 and assistant conductor of the Chineke! Youth Orchestra in 2018. And in 2017, he founded the Michael Rakotoarivony Association to support and promote music education in his native Madagascar.