Born in Georgia, George Oniani graduated from the State Conservatory in Tbilisi with honors and continued his education at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich. Until 2003 he was also at the Accademia di perfezionamento per cantanti lirici at La Scala in Milan, where he worked with Leila Gencer, Luciana Serra and Luigi Alva.

In the 23/24 season he will sing the Duke of Mantua in RIGOLETTO and B.F.Pinkerton in MADAMA BUTTERFLY.

George Oniani won first prize at the Riccardo Zandonai Competition in Riva del Garda, in 2004 the Grand Prix at the Traian Grozǎvescu International Competition in Romania and in 2005/2006 first prize at the Baku International Competition in Azerbaijan.

The tenor got his first engagement at the Tiflis State Theater, where he appeared as Alfredo in LA TRAVIATA, Herzog in RIGOLETTO and Cavaradossi in TOSCA. He later returned to this house for Verdi’s Messa da Requiem and the roles of Don José (CARMEN), Radamès (AIDA), Riccardo (UN BALLO IN MASCHERA), Manrico (IL TROVATORE), Samson (SAMSON ET DALILA) as well as the Title role in Verdi’s DON CARLOS.

At La Scala he appeared as Riccardo in OBERTO, CONTE DI SAN BONIFACIO (conductor: Nicola Luisotti, director: Pier’ Alli), in Busseto and Ravenna as Arrigo in VESPRI SICILIANI (conductor: Stefano Ranzani; director: Pier Luigi Pizzi) and in Genoa as Oberto.

Further guest engagements have taken him to numerous Italian and German cities as well as to Hungary, Mexico, Belgium, Rio de Janeiro, Vilnius, Riga, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Pretoria and Kazan (Russia) and to the Vienna Volksoper. George Oniani also performed at the Darhalla Festival in Sweden, at the Festival in Bellinzona and at the Gars am Kamp Festival. In addition, George Oniani regularly sings concerts, e.g. in Israel, Moscow, Munich and Stuttgart.

The tenor has been engaged at Theater Bonn since the 2008/09 season, where he has interpreted the important roles of his fach. In the 2019/20 season he could be seen in DER ROSENKAVALIER, CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA/PAGLIACCI or MADAMA BUTTERFLY.

In the 2021/22 season George Oniani will be seen as Ernani in ERNANI at Theater Bonn.