Born into a family of Colombian filmmakers, Hyalmar Mitrotti Ventura took Cinema and Theatre degrees at the University of Montreal and at the Sorbonne in Paris. Also passionate about Music and Singing, he joined the Schola Cantorum of Paris and the Conservatoire Francis Poulenc (16th) in Fusako Kondo’s class.
In 2004, thanks to the financial support of the Sidney Perry Foundation he is admitted at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama of London where he studied vocal technique with Laura Sarti and Susan Waters, interpretation with repetiteur Robin Bowman and the mezzo Susan McCulloch, Italian repertoire with ROH Covent Garden’s vocal coach Emanuele Moris.
As a member of the Maîtrise Notre-Dame de Paris, he performed a wide range of vocal music with conductors such as John Nelson, Michel Laplénie and Dominique Visse while studying baroque repertoire with Yves Castagnet (organist at Notre-Dame Cathedral). He also took part in Margret Hönig’s and Paul Esswood’s master-classes while improving his vocal technique with the Bass Lionel Sarrazin.
Winner of the competitons Léopold Bellan (1st Prize) and UFAM (2nd Prize) in 2002, he started in opera with the roles of Perruchetto (Haydn’s La Fedeltà Premiata) and Guglielmo (Mozart’s Così fan tutte), which took him on tour in France and in England. In 2006, he performed Calchas in Offenbach’s La Belle Hélène and Uberto in Pergolesi’s La Serva Padrona at the Théâtre du Tambour Royal in Paris in a staging by Jean Romain Vesperini. He also took part in the opera Ercole Amante by Cavalli with conductor Gabriel Garrido at the Académie d’Ambronay, which he performed in major French opera houses.
From 2006 onwards, he studied with Robert Dean, Susan Waters, Emma Kirkby, Peter Robinson, Christian Curnyn and Graham Johnson at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. During the summer 2007, he was invited to perform at the Hawaii Performing Arts Festival in the United States to do the Bass solo in the Allegro, Il Pensieroso ed Il Moderato by Händel as well as various scenes of famous operas. He was also invited to participate at the Académie Francis Poulenc in Tours where he studied French Art Song with François Leroux, Jeff Cohen and Noël Lee. In 2008, while still continuing his music studies, he sang with Grange Park Opera the roles of José Castro (Puccini’s Fanciulla del West) and Pistola (Verdi’s Falstaff) and sang as a soloist with Welsh baritone Bryn Terfel and pianist Ian Burnside. In 2009, he sang the role of Nourabad (Les Pêcheurs de Perles by Bizet) in Valladolid and Ali (L’Italiana in Algeri by Rossini) in Paris. After a training course with David Gowland (Music Director of the ROH Jette Parker Young Artist Program) and Martin Lloyd Evans (stage director), he was offered the role of Gaudenzio (Il Signor Bruschino by Rossini) with British Youth Opera, a prestigious English company which promotes young artists.
In 2010, he sang again the role of Ali in L’Italiana in Algeri with the Compagnie In-Sense at the Théâtre Mouffetard in Paris. He understudied the Cockney in My Fair Lady by Loewe/ Lerner in Robert Carsen’s production at the Théâtre du Châtelet.
Also a recitalist, Hyalmar Mitrotti Ventura regularly performs oratorios (Samson by Händel with the Regency Sinfonia; Ein Deutsches Requiem by Brahms at the Chartres Cathedral) and recitals in France, England, Uruguay, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Colombia, etc. with varied programs that mix classical and melodic repertoire from the Fifties which suit his bass baritone voice.
He recently sang Doctor Grenvil in La Traviata by Verdi in a co-production between the Centre Lyrique d’Auvergne and Opéra Nomade and the Patron in Catan’s Il Postino at the Théâtre du Châtelet alognside Placido Domingo, Figaro in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro in a staging by Giorgio Strehler’s historic assistant, Humbert Camerlo.
In 2012, he was Guglielmo (Cosi fan tutte, Mozart) with Opéra Bastide, staged by Jean François Gardeil, Brissac (Les mousquetaires au couvent, Varney) at Dijon, Aman and Mardoqueo (Ester, Ponce de León) in Paris, Doctor Grenvil (La Traviata, Verdi) at the Théâtral Impérial de Compiègne and on tour in France, Moralès and Dancaïre (Carmen, Bizet) with the Orchestre de l´Opéra de Bordeaux.
Recently invited by the baritone Jean Philippe Lafont to take part in one of his master classes, he performed in a recital at the Maintenon Castle. Following another master class with tenor Michel Senechal, he was offered the role of the Sacristan in Puccini’s Tosca alongside Jean Francis Monvoisin and Philippe Ermelier, directed by Jean François Vinciguerra. In May, he studied the role of Don Alfonso with Teresa Berganza during her Masterclass on Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte, which was performed in a concert versión at the famous Villa Viardot in France. He is currently the Sacristan in Puccini´s Tosca, which will take him on tour all over France, and Oroveso in Norma.