Juan Diego Flórez Launches His New Record Label

The first album on the new label will be in the Spanish zarzuela genre, which Flórez sang at the beginning of his career

The Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Flórez has announced the launch of his own record label, Flórez Records. Previously, he has released discs on Sony Classical and Decca Classics, the latter he has worked with since 2001.

The first album to be released on Flórez Records will be dedicated to the Spanish genre of zarzuela, which incorporates both operatic and popular songs. Flórez spent much of the early part of his career singing music from this genre.

The album will see Flórez collaborate with the Sinfonía por el Perú Youth Orchestra and Choir, which is part of Flórez's own  Sinfonía por el Perú social project. The ensembles will be conducted by Guillermo García Calvo, who has recently concluded a four-year tenure as Music Director of Madrid’s Teatro de la Zarzuela.

Following the release of the album, Flórez will undertake a major European tour, to locations including Teatro Real, Madrid (19 September), Palau de la Música Catalana, Barcelona (21 September), Vienna Konzerthaus (24 September), Victoria Hall, Geneva (27 September), and the Philharmonie de Paris (30 September).

Previously, Flórez has released six solo recital CDs. These have won a number of awards, including the Cannes Classical Award and the Echo Klassik Award.

"These romances full of passion and emotion represent an almost unique opportunity for Spanish and Latin American tenors to sing in their mother tongue," Flórez said of the zarzuela genre.