It was with Verdi that the leading tenor of our time, Jonas Kaufmann, made his international breakthrough in 2006 when he sang Alfredo Germont in La Traviata at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. And for Kaufmann, the Verdi bicentenary in 2013 will be dominated by performances of works by the great Italian opera composer, including his debut album for Sony Classical, The Verdi Album. Recorded with Pier Giorgio Morandi conducting the Orchestra dell'Opera di Parma, this new album features twelve of Verdi s greatest tenor hits, eleven of which are recorded for the first time by Kaufmann. His choice of arias demonstrates the remarkable breadth of Kaufmann's musical versatility and expression.