Gidon Saks was born in Israel and brought up in South Africa, where he began his musical studies at Cape Town University. He subsequently trained at the Royal Northern College of Music with John Cameron and then at the Opera School at the University of Toronto with Patricia Kern.

He was a member of the Ensemble of the Canadian Opera Company where his roles included Rochefort Anna Bolena with Dame Joan Sutherland, Daland Der Fliegende Hollander, Wurm Luisa Miller , Bluebeard, and Boris Godunov. He received a full scholarship to the Zurich Opera Studio, and was then engaged in Gelsenkirchen and Bielefeld, where he perfected his German, and added many roles from Entartete operas to his repertoire - onstage and in recording.

Since then opera engagements have included Franck`s Les Beatitudes with Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (Berliner Festwochen under Vladimir Ashkenazy), Claggart in Billy Budd (Scottish Opera, Geneva, Antwerp, Royal Opera House and at the Bastille) Leporello Don Giovanni, Achillas Giulio Cesare, Sarastro The Magic Flute (Scottish Opera), Colline La Boheme and Kecal The Bartered Bride (New Israeli Opera), Don Pizarro Fidelio, Count Almaviva Le Nozze di Figaro, Daland and Kochubei Mazeppa (Welsh National Opera), Sparafucile Rigoletto, Ashby La Fanciulla del West and Cadmus/Somnus Semele (De Vlaamse opera) Don Giovanni (Reisopera), Filippo Don Carlo (Geneva and Palermo), Wurm, (Spoleto USA Festival and San Francisco Opera), Kaspar Die Freischütz (Staatsoper, Berlin), Don Pizarro Fidelio, (Staatsoper, Berlin, Finnish Opera, Helsinki, Piazza della Signoria) Shostakovitch`s Execuition of Styenka Razin, (Florence under Bychkov and the Piazza della Signoria under David Robertson) Konig Heinrich Lohengrin, Fafner and Hagen Der Ring des Nibelungen (Seattle), Seneca L'incoronazione di Poppea (La Monnaie), title role in Boito`s Mefistofele (De Nederlandse Opera), Mefisto in Spohr's Faust (Vienna and Cologne), Mephistopheles Gounod's Faust (Cape Town Opera), Pilgrims Progress (Royal Opera House, Covent Garden) which was also recorded under Richard Hickox, Boris Godunov, Kaspar Der Freischutz, Nick Shadow The Rake's Progress and Hagen Götterdammerung (English National Opera). 

Gidon has created several roles including George Moscone, Stewart Wallace`s Harvey Milk (Houston Grand Opera, New York City Opera and San Francisco Opera) which was also recorded for Teldec under Donald Runnicles, Hamilcar in Fenelon`s Salammbo (Bastille), and the Messenger in Goehr`s Arianna (Royal Opera House, Covent Garden).

Recordings include Abbot Curlew River (Philips) with Sir Neville Marriner, the Gravedigger in Weill`s Silbersee (BMG), which also marked his Prom debut, the title role in Handel`s Hercules under Minkowski, (Deutsche Grammophon) and Saul with Rene Jacobs, which won a Gramophone Award.
 
Recent performances have included, Hunding Die Walküre in Washington DC, Scarpia, Bregenz Festival, Bluebeard at the Concertgebouw under Peter Eotvos, in Nantes and for the opening of a new theatre in Angers. Future plans include Daland in Washington DC, 4 Villains Les Contes d`Hoffmann, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, a return to DC to sing Fasolt, Hunding and Hagen in their new production of Der Ring des Nibelungen .

Gidon Saks is also active as a director/designer and is visiting Professor of Voice at the Conservtoire of Ghent in Belgium.  He also frequently gives masterclasses internationally.

For updated resume please go to: http://www.intermusica.co.uk/saks