tenor
Born in Brazil, he developed his love for singing by listening to recordings of Luciano Pavarotti. As a teenager he was accepted into the Carlos Gomes Conservatory in Belem. He sang his first major role at age 21 appearing as Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi) at the Teatro da Paz in Belem. In 2008, he made his European debut appearing as Rodolfo (La Boheme) in Graham Vick's production. In Bologna he appeared at the Teatro Comunale as Ruggero (La Rondine) in performances conducted by José Cura. In the 2009/2010 season, he was a member of the Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artists Development program. In 2011, he made a surprise debut with the Metropolitan Opera, appearing on less than 24 hours notice in the companies opening Summer Concert in Central Park, singing five arias. He has been equally well received at major houses throughout the world, including Covent Garden, the Grand Théâtre de Geneve, and the Deutsche Oper in Berlin. In the 2010/2011 season he appeared as Romeo in Rio de Janeiro opposite Sumi Jo. He appeared that year as Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi at the Teatro Giuseppe Verdi in Trieste and held a duo concert with soprano Nathalie Manfrino in Dublin. In 2011, he made his debut with the Glyndebourne Touring Opera as Rodolfo in David McVicar's production of La Boheme. A member of the ensemble of the Stuttgart Opera since the spring of 2012, his roles there have included Rodolfo (La Boheme), Tamino (Die Zauberflöte), Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni), Ismaele (Nabucco), Fenton (Falstaff) and Alfred (Die Fledermaus). In 2013 he made his debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden as Ruggero (La Rondine). He also sang his first Alfredo (La Traviata), conducted by Fabio Luisi, for his debut at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa. He has made several other significant debuts, appearing as the Italian Singer (Der Rosenkavalier) under Christian Thieleman at the Semper Oper in Dresden, and also at the Grand Théâtre de Geneve. Recently, Ayan returned to the Royal Opera in London as Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni) and made his debut at the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari as Alfredo. In 2014 he made his debut at the Oper Köln as Nemorino (L'Elisir d'Amore). He has also partnered Angela Gheorghiu in concerts in Prague, Hamburg and Versailles. In the 2014/15 season he sang his first performances of the Duke (Rigoletto) in Stuttgart. He also played Ruggero (La Rondine) at the Deutsche Oper in Berlin and sang Alfredo (La Traviata) in a new production in Baden Baden.
