In recent years, Ukrainian bass Vitalij Kovalev has established himself as one of the leading singers in the international opera world. His broad repertoire includes more than 40 central roles in his field. Current engagements include Timur (Turandot) at the Bavarian State Opera, the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the Royal Opera House in London, Ivan Khovansky (Khovanshchina) at the Salzburg Easter Festival and Hunding (Die Walküre) at the Bayreuth Festival. 

Most recently, he sang Banco (Macbeth) at the Zurich Opera House, Alvise Badoero (La Gioconda), Zaccaria (Nabucco) at the Arena di Verona and the Greek National Opera, Silva (Ernani) at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, the title role in The Flying Dutchman at the Hamburg State Opera and Timur at La Scala in Milan. Regular appearances have also taken him to the Semperoper, the Liceu in Barcelona, the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía in Valencia, Geneva, the LA Opera, the Sydney Opera, the Dutch National Opera, the Deutsche Oper Berlin and Monte-Carlo.