Paul McNamara is a tenor from Ireland, artistic leader, casting consultant, educator and opera advisor working internationally in the fields of artistic leadership, performance, casting, higher education and cultural policy.
Since December 2018 he has served as Artistic Leader of the Dutch National Opera Academy (DNOA), the joint Master's programme in opera of the Conservatorium van Amsterdam and the Royal Conservatoire The Hague. Under his leadership, the Academy has strengthened its national and international profile through a distinctive programme of performance-led education, strategic artistic partnerships and consistently excellent student outcomes. Recent graduates have progressed to leading opera companies and Young Artist Programmes, including the Paris Opera, Komische Oper Berlin, Oper Zürich and the Wiener Staatsoper.
Alongside his work at the Academy, he serves as Opera Advisor to Arts Council Ireland, providing independent expert advice through the critical evaluation of artistic work, organisations and funding applications, while contributing to discussions on artistic quality, sector development and cultural policy. Since 2020 he has also served as Casting Consultant to Stichting Omroep Muziek, working closely with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra and Groot Omroepkoor on the casting of international vocal soloists for the AVROTROS Vrijdagconcert series at TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht, and the Sunday Morning Concert Series at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam.
Paul McNamara continues to pursue an active international performing career with recent engagements including appearances with Opéra national du Rhin, the Opéra Royal de Versailles, the Staatsoper Unter den Linden Berlin and the Saarländisches Staatstheater. Performance credits include Teatro La Fenice, Venice, Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera, Warsaw, the Teatro Municipal, Rio de Janeiro, La Monnaie, Brussels, the Salzburg Festival at the Beijing Music Festival, the Berlin Philharmonie, Pierre Boulez Saal, the Concertgebouw Amsterdam and Carnegie Hall, New York.
His repertoire encompasses works by Monteverdi, Cavalli, Mozart, Weber, Meyerbeer, Tchaikovsky, Janáček, Britten, Berg, Braunfels, Schreker, Strauss, Korngold, Zemlinsky, Penderecki and John Adams, alongside an extensive Wagner repertoire including Erik, Tannhäuser, Loge, Tristan, Siegfried, Mime and Parsifal. Most recently he made his role debut as Mime in Wagner's Siegfried, earning widespread critical acclaim.
MIME
with Clarry Bartha Artistic Director – DEBUT Competition – 2022.
DEBUT Competition – 2024.
An experienced mentor and educator, he is regularly invited to give masterclasses, provide career consultation for emerging professional singers and serve on the juries of international singing competitions. He works with opera studios, conservatoires and young artist programmes throughout Europe, supporting the next generation of artists as they prepare for professional careers.
In addition to returning to the American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) in Graz, 2026 will see him give masterclasses throughout The Netherlands, as well as working with the singers of the Opera Nova Project in Malta, a vocal programme which aims to provide a holistic, high level of musical education for classical voice students and the singers of the Oberösterreichischen Opernstudio in Linz.
De International Vocal Competition 's-Hertogenbosch (IVC) – 2022.
Paul McNamara will once again be chairman of the jury at DEBUT singing competition in Germany in 2026 and a jury member at theInternational Vocal Competition 's-Hertogenbosch (IVC)
An alumnus of the Royal Irish Academy of Music, he is an honours graduate of the University College Cork, the Cork School of Music and the Royal College of Music London.
His work brings together artistic leadership, international performance, casting, higher education and arts policy, reflecting experience across the artistic, educational and institutional landscape of professional opera.
TANNHÄUSER
Paul McNamara’s recent engagements have included appearances at the Berliner Staatsoper as well as his return to the Saarländisches Staatstheater Saarbücken and the Opéra Royal de Versailles as Mime in Wagners “Siegfried”.
In the season 2025/26 he made his debut at the Opéra national du Rhin in Korngold’s “Das Wunder der Heliane”.
HERODES
