Thomas Hampson performs the role of Richard Nixon in scenes from Adams’s Nixon in China at the Aspen Music Festival and Tanglewood on July 5 and July 17, respectively. He recently performed the role in Boston and New York with Andris Nelsons, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and the Tanglewood Festival Chorus.

Hampson shares the stage with acclaimed soprano Renée Fleming as Pat Nixon, reprising their acclaimed partnership from the Opéra Bastille. OperaWire hailed their Paris run as part of the opera’s “most stellar cast ever,” while their 2026 performances together drew further critical acclaim. Opera Today praised their dynamic, noting, “Most impressive is [Fleming’s] evident affection for Thomas Hampson’s suave Nixon, the chemistry truly believable… Hampson is in his element, urbane and polished vocally, making light of his big ‘News’ aria with no sense of strain when confronting the upper reaches of this high baritone part.”

Robert Spano conducts at the Aspen Music Festival and Andris Nelsons leads the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood, where the July 17 program also includes  Carlos Simon’s Meditations on Grace and Barber’s Violin Concerto.

Listen to Thomas Hampson and Renée Fleming discuss Nixon in China.