Rafael Fingerlos was born in Salzburg, Austria. In summer 2015 he took part in the Salzburg Festival’s Young Singers Project and returned to the Festival in 2016 as Pablo in the world premiere of Thomas Adès’ The Exterminating Angel. He made his début at the Semperoper Dresden in 2016 as Pagageno and with the 2016/17 season he became a member of the ensemble of the Vienna Staatsoper and remained until the end of the 2019/20 season. In 2017 he made his début at the Bregenz Festival and in 2018 at the Teatro Real in Madrid in Zimmermann’s Die Soldaten. 2018/19 he was Harlekin in Ariadne auf Naxos in Dresden in a new production conducted by Christian Thielemann. 2021/22 he made his début at Teatro alla Scala in Milan as Harlekin, 2023 he sang Danilo in “The Merry Widow” at Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires and 2024 saw his début at Garsington Opera as Conte in Mozart’s Nozze. 2026 he will have his débuts at the New National Theatre in Tokyo and at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing.

Recitals occupy a central position in Rafael Fingerlos‘ artistic activity. He has appeared at Austrian and international festivals, including the Utrecht Chamber Music Festival in the Netherlands, the Znojmo and Kutna Hora Festivals in the Czech Republic, the Schleswig Holstein Festival and Schumann Fest in Germany, the Lucerne Festival in Switzerland, Oxford Song Festival in England and has sung in Vienna at both the Musikverein and the Konzerthaus, at the Salzburg Mozarteum, in London, Milan, Rome, Den Haag, Boulezsaal Berlin, Cologne Opera, Opéra de Nice, Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb and at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires.

His repertoire of concert and church music encompasses numerous cantatas, oratorios and masses. He often sings the Brahms and Fauré r quiems and Orff's Carmina Burana. He regularly takes part in the Salzburg Mozart Week as soloist.

As of 2026 Rafael Fingerlos is Artistic Director of Gmunden Festival in Upper Austria. He curates Christmas concerts for ORF and 3sat television every year. 2026 he will star in Christmas in Vienna for the first time.

Rafael Fingerlos has so far recorded 4 solo Lied recitals to great critical acclaim. His CD with the Mozarteum Orchestra under Leopold Hager is exclusively devoted to arias by Mozart.

Photo: Theresa Wey