Tenor Corneliu Murgu passed away at age 72 after a successful career as a singer and as General Manager of the Timisoara National Opera in Romania.

Murgu began his musical studies in Timisoara, his hometown, before traveling to Italy to study in Florence where he obtained the diploma of “Maestro Di Canto.”  He then had classical training with Marcello Del Monaco in Treviso, where he was taught the unique technique of lowering the larynx.

His debut in the US took place at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and he subsequently sang in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Palm Beach, and Denver.

From there, he would go on to perform on the most important stages in Europe. Berlin, München, Frankfurt, Köln, Stuttgart, Zürich, Avignon, Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Montpellier, Lisbon, Las Palmas, Bilbao, Barcelona, ​​Melbourne, Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg, Tokyo, New York and Odessa.

Notable performances in Italy include his Radamès in “Aida” at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, followed by a much-admired “Otello” in Verona.

He was then appointed General Manager of the Timisoara Opera, which would later be known as the National Opera.

Throughout his career, he was showered with awards and honors including one from President of Austria in 2002, with the highest cultural distinction “Leteris Et Artibus.”

Here he is in an excerpt from “Andrea Chénier.”