Highlights of the 2025/26 season include a house debut at Dallas Opera as Don José in Bizet's Carmen, as well as returns to the Wiener Staatsoper as Pinkerton Madama Butterfly and to the Bayerische Staatsoper as Rodolfo La bohème. On the concert platform, Pirgu sings Beethoven's Symphony no. 9 with Gustavo Gimeno and Toronto Symphony Orchestra and appears as the title role in concert performances of Berlioz's La Damnation de Faust for Opernhaus Zürich.
Recent concert engagements include Beethoven's Missa Solemnis with Gianandrea Noseda & the Washington National Symphony Orchestra, Beethoven's Symphony no. 9 for the Masters of Classical Music Festival in Bucharest, a concert performance of Carmen with the Copenhagen Philharmonic conducted by Christoph Gedschold, as well as Verdi's Requiem with both the Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia led by Daniel Harding, and with the Bergen Philharmonic under the baton of Jader Bignamini.
Last season, Pirgu made his role debut as Chevalier des Grieux in Barry Kosky’s new production of Puccini's Manon Lescaut with the Opernhaus Zürich, which he reprised for the Bayerische Staatsoper later in the season. Furthermore, he returned to the Opernhaus Zürich as the title role in Offenbach's Les Contes d’Hoffmann, and to the Wiener Staatsoper as the title role in Gounod's Roméo et Juliette, Rodolfo La bohème and as Macduff in Verdi's Macbeth.
Pirgu recently made his role debut as Mario Cavaradossi in Puccini's Tosca at the Roma Caracalla Festival, and his Edinburgh International Festival debut as Don José Carmen. Other recent operatic highlights include the title role in Verdi's Ernani at the Bregenzer Festspiele, Pinkerton Madama Butterfly for Teatro di San Carlo, Rodolfo La bohème for Wiener Staatsoper, Il Duca di Mantova Rigoletto & Rodolfo La bohème with Royal Ballet & Opera, Covent Garden, Don José Carmen for Opernhaus Zürich, Lensky Eugene Onegin for Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, as well as title roles Idomeneo for the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, and Les Contes d'Hoffmann & Faust for Opernhaus Zürich. On the concert stage, highlights include Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 at Staatsoper Unter den Linden with Daniel Barenboim, Bruckner's Te Deum at Osterfestspiele Salzburg with Christian Thielemann and Puccini's Messa di Gloria at Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia with Sir Antonio Pappano.
In 2009 Pirgu was awarded the Franco Corelli Prize of the Teatro delle Muse of Ancona for his performance in La traviata, and in 2013 he was awarded the prestigious “Pavarotti d’Oro”. The DVD/Blu-Ray recording of Król Roger from the Royal Opera House Covent Garden with Saimir as Shepherd received a nomination in the Best Opera Recording category at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards 2016. Pirgu has released multiple solo albums with Opus Arte, including “Il Mio Canto” in 2016, and most recently his eponymously titled album “Saimir” in 2024.
Pirgu has been an ambassador for Down Syndrome Albania, a foundation dedicated to helping children with Down Syndrome, since 2013.
2025/26 season / 531 words. Not to be altered without permission.