Stephen Gaertner made a surprise Metropolitan Opera debut on October 5, 2007 as a mid-performance replacement as Enrico in the new production of Lucia di Lammermoor; he had previously made his Met in the Parks debut in 2006 as Marullo in Rigoletto. He also appeared at the Met in 2008 as Moralès in Carmen and as Melot in Tristan und Isolde, the latter under the baton of James Levine and transmitted live in high-definition to movie theaters around the world. He returns to the Met this season again as Melot in Tristan und Isolde, this time under the baton of Daniel Barenboim in his Met debut.

In 2009/2010 Stephen Gaernter returns to the Metropolitan Opera in New York as Shishkov in Janaceks’s From the House of the Dead (cover) and Paolo Albiani in Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra, also as cover. In 2011 the artist will sing the role of Enrico (Lucia) at the MET.

Gaertner has made several appearances at Carnegie Hall with Eve Queler’s Opera Orchestra of New York, beginning in 2004 as Sonora in La Fanciulla del West, followed by highly successful appearances as Abayaldos in Donizetti’s Dom Sébastien in 2006 and as Frank in Puccini’s Edgar in 2008, as well as having participated in the 2008 Gala Concert celebrating Maestro Queler’s 100th performance with OONY at Carnegie Hall. He also enjoyed a notable success with Teatro Grattacielo at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall in 2005 as Cascart in Leoncavallo’s Zazà under the baton of the late Alfredo Silipigni. Other recent career highlights included appearances as Riccardo in I Puritani with Palm Beach Opera, Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor with Portland Opera, Talbot in Maria Stuarda with Baltimore Opera, Escamillo in Carmen with Connecticut Opera, Marcello in La Bohème with Ópera de Puerto Rico, and Sharpless in Madama Butterfly with Knoxville Opera and Anchorage Opera. He has also explored more contemporary repertory by covering the role of the Chief Minister in the Metropolitan Opera’s world premiere of Tan Dun’s The First Emperor and by appearing on the Washington, D.C. concert stage as the baritone soloist in Britten’s War Requiem.