For the 2017/18 bass-baritone Igor Bakan debuts with Oper Köln as Dr. Grenvil in Verdi's La Traviata, and returns for his 4th season to the Malmö Opera in Sweden as Monterone in a new production of Verdi's Rigoletto directed by Kaspar Holten. He will also make his Tonkünstler Orchester debut in the 2018/19 season with Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.
During the 2016/17 season, Igor made his long awaited debut as Figaro in W.A. Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro in a return to the Malmö Opera in a new production directed by Peter Stein, and also returned to to Theater an der Wien in Peter Gynt directed by Peter Konwitchny in the role of 3. Kaufmann/Haegstadbauer.
Other notable debuts include with the Neue Oper Wien as Iwan Jakowlewitsch in Shostakovich's The Nose (2015/16) and that same season at the Malmö Opera as Renato (Un Ballo in Maschera, role debut).
In the 2014/15 season, Mr. Bakan debuted the roles of Raimbaud in Le Comte Ory in Malmö Opera (house and role debut) and Masetto (Don Giovanni) with the Bergen National Opera.
In his second year as part of the Young Ensemble of Vienna's Theater an der Wien in 2013/14 Igor was heard as Ircano in the Vinci/Händel Semiramide under Alan Curtis, Don Magnifico in Rossini's La Cenerentola, Publio in La Clemenza di Tito, and Dr. Grenvil in La Traviata on the mainstage. He also debuted the role of Pietro in a new Simon Boccanegra recording, released in September 2013 by Decca, with Thomas Hampson, Kristine Opolais, Joseph Calleja and Carlo Colombara with the Wiener Symphoniker and Massimo Zanetti.
Igor Bakan joined the new Junges Ensemble (JET) of Theater an der Wien for the 2012/13 season. As part of the Junges Ensemble he was heard as Tobia Mill in Rossini's La cambiale di matrimonio, Colline in Puccini's La Boheme, and Zoroastro in Handel's Orlando. In addition, Igor gave guest performances at the Theater an der Wien in Rossini's Le comte Ory in February 2013 alongside Cecilia Bartoli. In September 2012 he made his house debut at the Theater an der Wien in the role of Antinoo in Monteverdi's Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria.
In the 2010/11 and 2011/12 seasons Igor was an ensemble member at the Vlaamse Opera, and in his first season performed Oroe in Rossini’s Semiramide under the baton of Alberto Zedda, einäugige in Strauss’ Die Frau ohne Schatten, Vittelius in Massenet’s Herodiade, and Il Tempo/Antinoo in Monteverdi’s Il ritorno d’Ulisse in Patria. His roles the following season at the Vlaamse Operaincluded Ivan Sjoeranin in Tchaikovsky’s The Enchantress; Don Prudenzio in Rossini’s Il Viaggio a Reims; Alcade/ Chirurgo in Verdi’s La Forza del Destino, and Daniel in Donizetti’s Le duc d’Albe. In addition, Igor performed the role of Oroe in Semiramide at the Edinburgh Festival in summer 2011.
In 2009/2010 Igor was a member of the International Opera Studio of Opernhaus Zürich. His first guest engagement was in Strauss’ Elektra as An Old Servant as well as cover for the role of Orest. The production was conducted by Gustav Kuhn and was staged eight times in Italy in January and February 2010. Igor also made his Opernhaus Zürich debut as Jailer in Tosca in February alongside Thomas Hampson, under the baton of Nello Santi.
During the 2008/9 season Igor was a member of the Opera Studio of the Bayerische Staatsoper and appeared in many important productions including Verdi's Macbeth, Palestrina, La Boheme, Otello, and Lohengrin (starring Jonas Kaufmann and Anja Harteros, available on DVD). The same year Igor also appeared alongside baritone Paolo Gavanelli as Monterone in Rigoletto in a concert at the Herkulessaal der Residenz in Munich with the Munich Opera Orchestra.
In January 2009 Igor performed in a concert with the Deutschen Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern conducted by Enrico Delamboy, and was the winner of the Emmerich-Smola-Förderpreis the same year. As part of the competition, Igor was featured in a documentary film produced by SWR Television about the competition.