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JOHN TESSIER, Tenor“The Canadian John Tessier hasn't sung in this country before but he proves to be that rare beast, a tenor who can make Rossini's punishing high notes sound graceful. He, too, makes English sound as musical as Italian and he's not afraid to act”Nick Kimberly, Evening Standard, September 23, 2008
“She is matched by the Almaviva of Canadian tenor John Tessier, making an auspicious UK debut: a true Rossini tenor who can act.” Andrew Clark, Financial Times, September 23, 2008
“More obviously auspicious is Canadian John Tessier's British debut as Count Almaviva - his effortlessly searing high tenor is thrillingly virile, and his words are delivered with laser-cut edges.” Edward Bhesania, The Stage, September 23, 2008
“Tenor John Tessier, who with his honeyed voice hits high Cs effortlessly, was a compelling Tebaldo-not the pervasive menace of Shakespeare's play, but a man who sincerely loves Giulietta, firmly placing him in the grasp of the tragedy that unfolds. Tessier's performance anticipated a terrific Romeo-Tebaldo duet, "Ella é morta, sciagurato," with both agonizing over the supposed death of Giulietta, each man pleading with the other to kill him.” Wayne Myers, Oneida Dispatch, August 13, 2008
“Tessier is the real surprise here, performing magnificently. He is better known as an accomplished Rossini/Mozart singer, but his elegant legato and easy reach to the money notes point to a new career. Tessier has always had a beautiful clarity of tone, but the bel canto repertoire adds burnish to the colour of his voice. The result is a voice that is darker, deeper and more powerful.” Paula Citron, The Globe and Mail, August 12, 2008
“As her handsome lover Lindoro, lyric tenor John Tessier looked the part and sang very prettily, his tone free and warm and equal from bottom to (substantial) top.” Elissa Poole, The Globe and Mail, February 1, 2008
“She was ably matched John Tessier, surely one of the most accomplished and winning tenor di grazia around. He obviously downs bel canto ornamentation for breakfast.” J.H. Stape, Review Vancouver, January, 2008
“... John Tessier’s clear, clean tenor. Tessier’s tone and articulation was almost bell-like — pure and accurate.” [John Corigliano’s Dylan Thomas Trilogy] Jonathan A. Neufeld, The Tennessean, November 30, 2007
“Showing a handsome tenor voice, John Tessier took over the role of Donna Anna's hapless fiance Ottavio.” Daniel Ginsberg, The Washington Post, November 10, 2007
“[T]enor John Tessier effortlessly floated through the soaring lines of Obadiah's signature aria, 'If with all your hearts.'” Michael Cameron, The Chicago Tribune, June 18, 2007
“The evening's hands-down best singing and best performances in the Morrison tradition came…from John Tessier in a hair-raising rendition of Donizetti's Una Furtiva Lagrima. [He] brought the house down.” Ken Winters, Toronto Globe & Mail, October 23, 2006
“John Tessier's Nemorino is particularly distinguished, his bright, open, unblemished tenor just as appealing as his boyishly wide-eyed good nature.” Peter G. Davis, New York Magazine, October 23, 2006
“John Tessier downplayed Nemorino's bumpkin qualities to welcome effect, and since (according to the supertitles) the love potion is not Bordeaux wine but Robitussin, we were spared the usual tiresome scenes of drunkenness. More importantly, Mr. Tessier offered an arresting, shapely account of 'Una furtiva lagrima'." George Loomis, The New York Sun, October 10, 2006
“Nemorino's role consists of the 175-year-old hit 'Una furtiva lagrima' and a lot of tenorial dressing. John Tessier sang it in a clear, confident voice, shot through with an appealing vein of vulnerability. More important, he inflated the character with personality until it wobbled from one dimension into three, like a Thanksgiving parade balloon. He earned his second-act aria that way, preparing the audience for the character's moment of genuine melancholy.” Justin Davidson, New York Newsday, October 9, 2006
“...Donizetti's perennial comedy 'L'Elisir d'Amore,' has an even better known tenor aria, 'Una furtiva lagrima,' which John Tessier sang with sweet tone and smooth phrasing.” George Loomis, The New York Sun, September 11, 2006
“...The lyric tenor John Tessier won the evening's biggest ovation for his ardent singing of the popular aria 'Una furtiva lagrima' from Donizetti's 'Elisir d’Amore.'” Anthony Tommasini, New York Times, September 9, 2006
“...technical resources were impressive, as were those of John Tessier as Count Almaviva. Tessier's clarion sonority and exacting technique, as well as vocal strength throughout his vast range, impressed. He even displayed a zesty comic spirit during his character's masquerade as a music teacher.” Chuck Claus, The Syracuse Post-Standard, July 10, 2006
“...Tessier is fearless, going for his beautiful money notes with zest. Musically, the two run away with the production, and they can also act up a storm.” Paul Citron, Globe and Mail, July 8, 2006
“John Tessier's supple, bright voice made one wish the generically labeled Tenor part [in Bach’s St. Matthew’s Passion] had more to do.” Roy C. Dicks, The News & Observer, April 1, 2006
“Tenor John Tessier, in the lacklustre role of Anna’s would-be paramour, gently polishes “Il mio tesoro” into a glistening jewel...” Janet Smith, Straight.com, March 9, 2006
“...while the heartfelt lyricism of John Tessier's Ottavio nearly obliterated that character's usual wimpiness.” Elissa Poole, The Globe and Mail, March 7, 2006
“Tenor John Tessier brought sparkling qualities to the roles of Ariel and Father Ecstaticus.” The Cleveland Plain Dealer, January 14, 2006
“Tenor John Tessier sang out with bright timbre, flowing line, endless breath and exemplary diction.” The Cleveland Plain Dealer, December 17, 2005
“Among the other soloists, tenor John Tessier displayed a big but refined voice in the opening 'Comfort ye' and 'Every valley' ...” The Minneapolis Star Tribune, December 8, 2005
“Tessier just seems to get better and better. His light lyric tenor is crystal clear, and he goes for his high notes aggressively, taking them full throttle and managing to inject manly drama into a vocal type that is usually relegated to beautiful, but insipid singing.” The Globe and Mail, August 8, 2005
“Still young, and just starting a recording career, Tessier is clearly on his way to joining the elite of Canada's tenors. A lyric tenor of the purest type, Tessier has a radiant top register and an expressive way with an aria. He is also a highly successful singer of art songs, a repertoire he could well cultivate even more.” Calgary Herald, May 2005
“John Tessier sings Fernando with an emphatic, ringing presence.” Vancouver Sun, 2005
“Tenor John Tessier is a strong and sure performer with a knack for intimate delivery, even at full lungpower.” The Vancouver Courier, 2005
“John Tessier...has gone on to grace stages around the opera world, for good reason. His "Un'aura amorosa" was greeted with cries of 'bravo'-his voice is lyric, sweet, delicious to listen to.” The Boards, 2005
“A tenor in the light, French tradition, Tessier has just the right voice for this exceptionally high-lying part (Gerald in Delibes' Lakmé)...Vocally sensitive and eloquent in the role, Tessier is a young tenor to watch, his appearance in recital later this year an already sold-out event.” Calgary Herald, October 23, 2004
“The performances are marvelous...Tenor John Tessier brings a hearty, masculine sound to his portrayal of Imeneo.” TimesUnion.com, 2004
“The talented Tessier has always had the perfect light, bright, crystalline tenor for early music, and has built a well-deserved career performing the mostly bland roles that are the curse of this vocal fact. In Imeneo he is a singer transformed...and Tessier is sexy as the swaggering and insensitive eponymous hero...Tessier practically steals the show.” The Globe and Mail, August 2, 2004
“The performance was musically flawless. Imeneo, normally a baritone, was sung here by tenor John Tessier. His higher options in the da capo sections of his arias made his resolve clear, and he handled his coloratura well and with authority.” Classics Today.com, July 31, 2004
“After making an amusing but aptly en travesty entrance in a skirt, tenor John Tessier sang Imeneo’s vigorous recitative and aria (”Paventar non degg’io’) with brilliant phrasing.” The Ithaca Journal, July 21, 2004
“Tenor John Tessier sang with easy projection, innate dignity and a sure command of coloratura” The Washington Post, December 22, 2003
“The role of Orlando’s comic sidekick, Pasquale, is a feast, and John Tessier attacked it with a fork in each hand. From his opening “yes and no” aria, through a patter-song travelogue (shades of Leporello), to the tour-de-force “Hear my singing!” Tessier demonstrated appealing comic sense and quicksilver vocalism. His big Act III scene, as a French music teacher cracking francophone jokes in mistranslations and spoofing various musical techniques, was masterful.” Opera News, December 2002 “But let‘s not overlook the tenor: John Tessier...very nearly stopped the show with his nine high Cs in ‘Ah! Mes amis’. He has a unique ability to sing his vocal cords-snapping stuff with a mellifluousness, and the laid-back effortlessness of ordinary speech.” Georgia Straight, November 28, 2002
“Of course, all she‘s thinking of, aside from her army buddies, is Tonio, the Bavarian nobody who saved her from falling off an Alp. He’s played by tenor John Tessier, and what a find he is. He’s as charming as Futral’s Marie and they make a terrific pair. His tour de force aria, Pur mon ame, with its infamous sequence of nine high Cs was tireless, accurate and full of fun, like a guy at a fair. His head voice was beautifully poised and he sounded French, claret-like in his tone.” Sun Classical Music Critic, November 27, 2002
“Speaking of anatomy, the youth and beauty of the leads is one of the show’s strongest assets. Futral and lyric tenor John Tesier (pure tone, tidy technique and impressive power are perfectly matched. Good to look at and easy to listen to, they are a better reason to stay seated than Donizetti’s tedious score.” Vancouver Courier, November 27, 2002
“Tessier sang rings around everyone with his beautiful, effortless, lyric voice and wonderful diction. He also showed a hysterically funny side as the inept squire.” Globe and Mail, August 5, 2002
“A lighter-voiced tenor, John Tessier, in his City Opera debut of Acis’ friend, Damon, lent his music a special buoyancy, not least in the aria, ‘Would you gain the tender creature?’” Opera News, July 2001
“ ...Canadian John Tessier as shepherd Damon, making a very auspicious company debut. The press called his performance ‘proud’(Newsday), ‘winning’ (NY Times), and ‘elegantly sung’ (New York). Parterre Box said Tessier, ‘offered the most consistently stylish singing, well-controlled and sweet.’ Indeed, he sang with remarkable ardor and beauty, producing a breathtakingly steady, clean line.” La Scena Musicale, March 27, 2001
“John Tessier’s Almaviva was stylishly sung and...first rate.” Winnipeg Free Press, April 20, 2001
“ His (John Tessier’s) aria was beautifully phrased and also accompanied by some fine ornamentation. His pronunciation of the text was the clearest of all the principals.” Ithaca Journal, August 1, 2000
“As Damon, Canadian tenor John Tessier earned high marks for tasteful baroque vocal style, spinning out long lines of gracefully produced sound.” Times Union, July 31, 2000
“Particular kudos go to sweet-voiced John Tessier as Don Ottavio, who ably completed the exceedingly difficult, Il mio tesoro intanto (Speak to me, my lady), a tightly spaced aria that usually leaves tenors gasping for breath midway through.” North County Times, October, 1999
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