Gino Quilico

Gino Quilico (born April 29, 1955) is a Canadian lyric baritone of Italian descent and the son of Canadian baritone Louis Quilico and Lina Pizzolongo.Contents
Early life

Gino Quilico was born in New York City in 1955 to Louis Quilico and his first wife, the concert pianist and vocal coach Lina Pizzolongo. As a teenager, Gino worked in an Ontario coal mine, became the assistant to a mechanic, and played in a rock band. His father began to give him voice lessons at age 19 and encouraged him to join the chorus of the Canadian Opera. Quilico graduated from the opera school at the University of Toronto in 1978.


Career

Quilico's operatic debut was in a 1978 television performance of The Medium. In 1980, he was discovered by Bernard Lefort and he became a member of the Paris Opera. In 1982, he performed in the UK for the first time at the 1982 Edinburgh Festival as Lescaut. He also debuted at Covent Garden in 1983 as Valentin. He created the role of Figaro in John Corigliano's opera The Ghosts of Versailles at its world premiere at the Metropolitan Opera, opposite Teresa Stratas. He also created the lead role in Marcel Landowski's Montsegur. In 1987, he and his father became the first father and son to perform together at the Metropolitan Opera. He played various other roles such as Figaro, Marcello, Dandini, and Escamillo. He has also appeared in various opera festivals, including the Salzburg, Vienna, and Munich Festivals. He also appeared in the 1985 film Orfeo as the title character and in the 1988 film La Bohème. In 1992, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. Quilico played the role of Jean Valjean in the musical Les Misérables in a 2008 production in Quebec City and is scheduled to return in 2009.