NEWS
Royal Danish Opera Debut: Amonasro in Aida (March/April 2023)
Musa makes his house debut with the Royal Danish Opera in the 2022-2023 season, returning to the role of Amonasro in Verdi’s Aida, which he last sang at his house debut with English National Opera at the London Coliseum in 2017.
Fred Plotkin on Fridays: Musa Ngqungwana (October 22, 2021)
Fred Plotkin, pleasure activist and passionate opera expert, speaks each Friday with fascinating people in the music world. He is the author of Opera 101 and Classical Music 101 and leads opera symposia for New York Times Journeys. In this episode, Fred speaks with bass-baritone Musa Ngqungwana.
Sunday Times Books Live feature on Musa (April 10, 2018)
"...A classmate once told me I was a dreamer when I said that one day I would travel the world,” he wrote in his new memoir, Odyssey of an African Opera Singer.
This expands on Musa Ngqungwana's first self-published memoir with revealing insights about his life, including how hard he found the absence of his father while growing up.
Ngqungwana’s vulnerability and vision shine through in this account of his inspiring life. He is meticulous, even pedantic, about paying tribute to the many people who helped him at every stage of his life. His honesty gives a glimpse of his life offstage, of the man behind the costumes and the face paint.
Opera Singer Finds New Voice in Writing Books (February 27, 2018)
"I think music has always been that saving grace," says South African-born opera singer Musa Ngqungwana, during a one-on-one chat at a tiny guesthouse in Parkhurst, Johannesburg.
"It was my go-to place whenever I was feeling despondent and things were not quite working out..."
Musa's Memoir Published by Penguin Random House, Returns to South Africa for Launch (February 13, 2018)
Released this month, Ngqungwana’s memoir, Odyssey of an African Opera Singer, chronicles his journey growing up in the Port Elizabeth township with a dream, despite poverty and an absent father, to sing on the world’s greatest opera stages.
Ngqungwana squeezed the Port Elizabeth visit into his plans of promoting the book in Johannesburg and holding an official launch in Cape Town.
Below are some of the press features associated with Musa's return home to South Africa in celebration of the publication of his memoir by Penguin Random House South Africa.
OperaWire Feature on Musa's Career and What's Ahead (June 28, 2017)
Read OperaWire's feature on Musa, which delves into his childhood in South Africa, how he got his operatic start, and the particular challenges of current roles such as Porgy in Porgy and Bess and Queequeg in Jake Heggie's Moby-Dick.
Local Opera Singer Welcomed Back (November 30, 2016)
His life has been a whirlwind since he traded the streets of Zwide for the American stage in 2013, but being back in the Bay has given Musa Ngqungwana (32) a chance to breathe. Ngqungwana, who has performed to great acclaim as an opera singer in America, received a hero’s welcome when he arrived in Port Elizabeth last Wednesday.
Dallas Observer Feature: Musa Ngqungwana on Performing in the Operas Eugene Onegin and Moby-Dick Simultaneously (November 1, 2016)
Musa Ngqungwana basks in the warm embrace of Dallas’ southern hospitality and 80-degree fall days. He is visiting from the East Coast, Philadelphia and New York, where the days are already getting cool, and here he can wear his shorts and golf shirts in October. He says he is enjoying "the ambiance of the great state of Texas" as he prepares to perform in the first two productions of the Dallas Opera's season...
Blasting News Feature: Musa Ngqungwana to debut at Glimmerglass Festival (July 12, 2016)
"Oh, he’s the worst. He’s the arch-villain of opera..." Musa discusses his upcoming role and house debut at the Glimmerglass Festival in Cooperstown, New York.
SCHMOPERA: Spotlight on Ngqungwana (June 12, 2016)
Musa is featured on SCHMOPERA in an interview with Jenna Douglas:
"We're kicking off this summer's Spotlight Series with South African bass-baritone Musa Ngqungwana. This summer he makes his Glimmerglass Festival debut in Rossini's The Thieving Magpie (La gazza ladra), before debuting at The Dallas Opera in both Eugene Onegin and Moby-Dick this fall..."
Musa Ngqungwana: A different musical journey (June 6, 2016)
This month Musa is featured in Black Diamonds Magazine. He discusses the effects of his impoverished childhood in Zwide, masculinity, the importance of education, and his memoir: "Who better to record my stories than me?...I know about a life of poverty and growing up in the townships, and being raised by a single mother, absent a caring father. For my readers to see that, I as a person who come from a similar place such as they have, and to know that it’s possible to break those chains, is an important message I hope people reading my book will understand..."
The Legacy Project: #610 Musa Ngqungwana | South African Opera Singer (February 10, 2016)
I Am Driven By: "My love of art, culture, nature and the understanding that God has given me a gift to entertain and to share art with others. I have always loved performing on stage, and conversing with people about young artistic talent. These are the fundamental things that drive me..."
Musa Ngqungwana: Face to Face with Success feature on 702 (January 26, 2016)
Musa Ngqungwana in conversation with Charlotte Kilbane of 702.co.za.
Overcoming Apartheid to take The World Stage interview on WPBF (January 22, 2016)
Author and opera singer Musa Ngqungwana is featured on WPTV in connection with his upcoming debut with Palm Beach Opera. Musa will appear as Zuniga in Bizet's Carmen on January 22, 23 & 24, 2016 at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Musa to Debut with Palm Beach Opera, Featured on WPTV (January 15, 2016)
Author and opera singer Musa Ngqungwana is featured on WPTV in connection with his upcoming debut with Palm Beach Opera. Musa will appear as Zuniga in Bizet's Carmen on January 22, 23 & 24, 2016 at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach, Florida.
LA Opera Feature: Talking Life, Opera, and Moby-Dick with Musa Ngqungwana (October 28, 2015)
This past Saturday, bass-baritone Musa Ngqungwana made his LA Opera debut as Queequeg in Moby-Dick. With his sincere portrayal of this pivotal character, the South African born Ngqungwana adds another role to his list of operatic achievements that include being a Grand Finals Winner in the 2013 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, as well as playing Colline in La bohème (Washington National Opera) and Zuniga in Carmen (Norwegian National Opera).
Musa Interviewed by BR-Klassik in Germany (August 28, 2015)
Musa shares his journey from Zwide Township to the world stage's in an interview with BR-Klassik. "There was this girl I liked. But I did not know how I should talk to her. She sang in a choir, so I went there to sing. In her I failed, but I stayed in the choir."