Florin Cezar Ouatu

Cezar The Voice

Cezar at the Eurovision Song Contest 2013, in Malmö
Background information
Birth name Florin Cezar Ouatu
Born (1980-02-18) 18 February 1980
Ploieşti, Romania
Origin Romanian
Genres Opera, operatic pop, jazz, disco opera
Occupation(s) Singer, pianist
Instruments Vocals, piano
Years active 2004–present
Labels HaHaHa Production
Associated acts Andrea Bocelli, Angela Gheorghiu, Vangelis
Cezar presenting himself and his Eurovision song.

Florin Cezar Ouatu (Romanian pronunciation: [floˈrin ˈt͡ʃezar oˈwatu]; born 18 February 1980) is a Romanian opera countertenor, singer and pianist,[1][2] sometimes known by the stage nicknames "Cezar The Voice [Vocea]"[3] or simply "Cezar".

Son of the late flautist and former teacher at Mozarteum University of Salzburg, Florin Ouatu, he was born into a family of musicians in Ploieşti.[4] Cezar began playing piano at six years of age.[4] He graduated from the "Carmen Sylva" School of Arts in his hometown and the Milan Conservatory.[4] In Italy, Cezar graduated the bel canto classical singing section with maximum mark.[5] He has also studied Baroque music.[6] In 2001, Ouatu was accepted to the Giuseppe Verdi Music Academy in Milan, and graduated in 2004. In the 2003 International Singing Contest Francisco Viñas, he won the "Best Countertenor" prize. Cezar made his professional opera stage debut in 2007 at La Fenice, Venice.[7] He has since appeared in further opera performances in Baroque opera roles.[8]

Ouatu released his first pop-opera single "Cinema Paradiso" on Christmas Eve 2012. In May 2013, Cezar represented Romania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song "It's My Life",[9] and finished in 13th place with 65 points at the end of the contest. A week later, on 25 May 2013, he performed alongside Andrea Bocelli and Angela Gheorghiu at Bocelli's concert in Romania at the Romexpo,[5] which led to a collaboration with Vangelis.[10]

References

  1. "Ziua lucram în supermarket şi seara mă duceam la Conservator" (in Romanian). Adevărul. 4 March 2013.
  2. "DAS INTERVIEW: FLORIN CEZAR OUATU" (in German). Das Opernglas. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
  3. Mirela Dinica (2013-05-11). "Cezar Florin Ouatu, contratenorul care va reprezenta România la concursul Eurovision: 'Nu sunt gay, sunt bărbat 100%'". Libertatea. Retrieved 2015-01-23.
  4. 1 2 3 "Cine este Cezar Ouatu, câştigătorul Eurovision România 2013" (in Romanian). Adevărul. 10 March 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Angela Gheorghiu şi Cezar Ouatu vor cânta la concertul pe care Andrea Bocelli îl va susţine la Bucureşti" (in Romanian). România Liberă. 11 March 2013.
  6. "Eurovision Song Contest: Romania". BBC One. 2013. Retrieved 2015-01-23.
  7. Sinziana Boaru (2011-02-23). "Un contratenor vine în ajutorul lui Iustin Ianău". Adevărul Moldova. Retrieved 2015-01-23.
  8. Bruce Scott (2010-01-29). "'Agrippina,' Handel's Unlikely Comedy". National Public Radio - World of Opera. Retrieved 2015-01-23.
  9. "Află unde poți să-l asculți LIVE pe Cezar «The Voice» Ouatu, reprezentantul României la Eurovision!". Libertatea. 2013-05-13. Retrieved 2015-01-23.
  10. "Eurovision 2013: Vangelis îl apreciază pe Cezar Ouatu". Romania TV. 2013-05-19. Retrieved 2015-01-23.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, June 22, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.