Mikhail Timoshenko
Franco-Russian baritone
Praised by Der Tagesspiegel for the “rare beauty of tone, at once powerful and balsamic,” Franco-Russian baritone Mikhail Timoshenko has built a distinctive career across opera, concert and Lied.
Born in the Urals, he studied in Germany and developed an essential part of his artistic identity in France. From 2015 to 2017, he was a member of the Académie de l’Opéra national de Paris, where he made his debut on the company’s stage and appeared in Jean-Stéphane Bron’s award-winning documentary L’Opéra. He holds degrees from the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar and the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler in Berlin.
Among his notable roles are Don Giovanni at the Opéra national du Capitole de Toulouse, Malatesta (Don Pasquale) at Opéra Nice Côte d’Azur, Marcello (La Bohème) at The Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Ottokar (Der Freischütz) at the Konzerthaus Berlin, Albert (Werther) at the Opéra de Lausanne, Chtchelkalov (Boris Godunov) at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Belcore (L’Elisir d’amore) at the Opéra national de Lorraine, and Papageno (Die Zauberflöte) at the Opéra national de Paris and the Opéra national de Montpellier. He also sang in the world premiere of Alexandre Desplat’s chamber opera En Silence.
Equally in demand as a soloist with orchestra, Timoshenko has collaborated with conductors including Teodor Currentzis, Philippe Herreweghe, Manfred Honeck, Markus Poschner, Emmanuelle Haïm and Martin Haselböck. His appearances have taken him to the Musikverein Vienna, Salzburger Festspiele, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Berliner Philharmonie, Konzerthaus Berlin, Kölner Philharmonie, Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, Tonhalle Zürich, L’Auditori Barcelona, Auditorio Nacional de Música Madrid and the Bergen International Festival.
An established recitalist, Timoshenko has a long-standing artistic partnership with pianist Elitsa Desseva. Together they have been recognised with first prizes at the Wigmore Hall / Independent Opera Song Competition, the International Hugo Wolf Competition in Stuttgart and the Franz Schubert und die Musik der Moderne Competition in Graz. Their recital appearances have taken them to Wigmore Hall, Konzerthaus Berlin, Brucknerhaus Linz, Musée d’Orsay, Schubertíada Vilabertran and Heidelberger Frühling.
His discography includes Mozart: Complete Masses for Naxos, Im wachen Traume for ECM, Une nouvelle fête baroque!for Erato and Aimer à loisir for B Records. In 2024, together with Elitsa Desseva, he released an album for Hänssler Classic featuring world-premiere recordings of songs by Eduard and Irene Erdmann. Alongside established repertoire, Timoshenko has a particular interest in bringing overlooked music back to audiences and in working with composers of his own time. He has premiered works by Isabel Mundry, Sehyung Kim and Jüri Reinvere. His performances have been broadcast by BBC Radio 3, SWR, WDR, ARTE and Medici.tv.
A prizewinner of the International Singing Competition Bordeaux Médoc and the Siemens Opera Contest, Timoshenko has also received the AROP and Cercle Carpeaux Prizes of the Opéra national de Paris, as well as the Maria Callas Grand Prix in Greece.
Philanthropy plays an important role in his life: since 2009, Timoshenko has given charity concerts in support of people with disabilities, notably in collaboration with the non-profit organisation Mayak.
