BIOGRAPHY

The beloved soprano has for over twenty five years been a beacon of style, authentic Verdi sound and idiomatic phrasing; the genuine article lirico-spinto soprano del agilità. Millo has been thrilling audiences as the leading soprano of the Italian Wing at the historic Metropolitan Opera. Her voice, ruby rich and velvet has been compared with some of the greatest voices who have ever lived, like legendary sopranos, Renata Tebaldi, Zinka Milanov, Rosa Ponselle and Claudia Muzio and Maria Caniglia. Aprile Millo made a Cinderella like debut at the Metropolitan Opera on Dec. 3, 1984 and literally caused a sensation. The papers next day heralded the birth of a “New Verdi Star!” and 27 years later Millo is still winning praise from objective critics and frenzied ovations from an adoring public. They hear in her that rare mix of power and lyricism that is the Voce Verdiane.She has sung over 180 performances of 15 different roles at her artistic home- the Metropolitan Opera. Outside New York, Mme. Millo has triumphed in the theaters of Frankfurt, Barcelona, Parma, Rome, Bologna, Torino, the Arena of Verona, The Baths of Caracalla, San Francisco Opera and the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Munich, Berlin, Vienna, Zurich, Paris, Orange, Moscow, Seville, Bilbao, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paolo, Santiago, Colon – Buenos Aires and of course, La Scala, Milan. Millo made it  imperative to search out the very greatest and learn from them, counting among her mentors the divine Renata Tebaldi, Zinka Milanov, Elizabeth Schwartzkopf, Magda Olivero, Licia Albanese and Maestro’s Von Karajan, Levine, Patane’ and it would be Maestro Muti who gave her Scala debut at age 24.She went on to collaborate with these great conductors as Herbert von Karajan and Riccardo Muti at La Scala, her great friend and mentor, James Levine, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Argeo Quadri, Bruno Bartoletti, Nello Santi, and made a highly aclaimed recording debut for EMI with Italian great, Giuseppe Patane’; she has sung in productions by the greatest stage directors, including “Liu” in TURANDOT, collaborating with legendary stage and film director, Franco Zeffirelli, Luca Ronconi, Piero Faggioni, Nicholas Joel,  and Richard Carsen. She was also chosen by Maestro Zeffirelli to be the voice of Elizabeth Taylor for the film, “Young Toscanini”. Recording with James Levine a critically acclaimed Verdi series for Sony Classical, which includes AIDA, IL TROVATORE, LUISA MILLER and DON CARLO on disc and with DG a highly acclaimed DVD/Video of “Un Ballo in Maschera” with Levine, the Metropolitan Opera and legendary tenor and great friend, Luciano Pavarotti. For her performance of AIDA also fro DG,  her production was awarded an EMMY and released in DVD with the Metropolitan Opera, James Levine and famed tenor and great colleague, Placido Domingo. The winner of numerous awards, Millo won by unanimous consent the Primo Premio-First Prize at the Voci Verdiane Concorso in Busetto, Italy, the Montserrat Caballe-Bernabe’Merti Special Verdi Prize Francisco Vinas, The Voce D’Oro, The Richard Tucker Foundation Award, and the Maria Callas Foundation Award, to name a few. Millo is a rare throwback to another age of singing. A voice of quality and extension able to sing Bel Canto and Verdian styles and the demanding rigors of the Puccini and Verismo school, Millo remains committed to the “authentic” message and tradition and is a champion research and performances of the many unknown operas she has brought to light. She continues to win audiences over to the world of opera and keep the “faith” with all the long time fans. In 2014 she returned to her beloved Italy where she won ovations and critical acclaim for her role debut in the role of Giorgetta for the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa with Donato Renzetti on the podium. Signora Simonetta Puccini graciously was in attendance. Recitals in New York, and Toronto closed 2014 in triumph. Since 2010, Mme. Millo  is keenly aware of the importance of passing on the traditions of this art form and has been sharing her unparalleled understanding of voice and technique with aspiring singers in Canada, the United States, and Europe.  In 2012, she accepted an invitation to form the Millo-Vetere Summer Intensive Program with Dr. Mary-Lou Vetere. The program was held for three consecutive years in the Niagara Region (Canada) and in 2015 after many International requests,  Mme. Millo and Dr. Vetere have accepted to bring this program to Urbania forming an international base as “Operavision Academy: L’Academia Millo-Vetere (Istituto Internazionale d’Opera Lirica).” To celebrate in Italy the life of Renata Tebaldi, the Genius of Giuseppe Verdi and Giacomo Puccini for the Milano Expo 2015, Millo in association with the fabulous young soprano with a PhD, Dr. Mary-Lou Vetere and the Centro Studi Italiani in Urbania, Italy inaugurated a summer intensive in opera, called Operavision Academy with wild success. They return this year by special invitation to Busseto, Italy. Maestro Bonynge returns this Summer for the inaugural year in Busseto with a series of Master Classes. On July 12th, in Carrara, for the breathtaking Marble Festival, Millo gave a concert with many Italian stars and young artists for the Amici della Lirica of Carrara at the Il Duomo in Carrara, Italy. The Operavision Academy Opens in Urbania, 2015  and during its first week saw a Master Class by a great friend and legendary champion of Bel Canto, Richard Bonynge.  July 24 and 25 in Busseto, Italy at the Tebaldi Museum in a concert with young singers from the Operavision Academy, paying homage to the great Italian soprano Renata Tebaldi. On August 1st. she joined forces with the fabulous Dottoresa Simonetta Puccini for a concert at the Castello di Malaspina di Massa and presented a check in support of the Villa Puccini in Torre del Lago. Finishing this inaugural session  a concert at the Casa Verdi in Milano with a concert and a check in support of Verdi and his great legacy to his singers but also his love and support for them.   Very exciting indeed. She closed out last summer with a special concert in her honor at the historic Villa Puccini at the invitation of Simonetta Puccini herself, a concert in honor of Miss Millo where she sang selections of La Fanciulla and Manon Lescaut with the piano the great composer had composed the majority of his operas. Mme. Millo brought with her two bright promises for the future in soprano, Mary-Lou Vetere and tenor, Joel Ricci.  A great honor.   Mme. Millo welcomes aspiring singers from every country to come and join her in her in the historic city of Busseto, Verdi’s city….where she hopes to inspire a new generation of artists to embrace the best of the past, traditions and style intact, and encourage the most individual and full of personality presentations possible, with voice and text always front and center and complete respect for the composers sublime requests.  

A Christmas Medley disc "Christmas Trhough the Ages!" on CD baby, Amazon and ITunes is to be followed by her first studio recording  scheduled for release in 2016, and a filmed concert for eventual DVD release. Two recitals in Toronto on Nov 15 and Nov.17, 2015 in the Trinity-St.Paul Centre Sanctuary in Toronto, and selections from two verismo rarities, "Zaza" and Refice's "Cecilia" for the 20th Anniversary Gala for Teatro Grattacielo Nov.18th, and performances of Tosca in  December finds Mme. Millo back in Genoa, for Tosca opposite Gregory Kunde, and Carlos Alvarez as Scarpia to close out 2014.