English National Opera stalwart with a vast repertoire who performed in Jonathan Miller's Mikado more than 150 times
Richard Angas, who has died aged 71, was a leading operatic bass whose long and busy career exemplified his remarkable skills as a singing actor. Able to learn difficult scores quickly, he built up a vast repertoire, consisting largely of character roles, but also including numerous major assignments. For many seasons he was a mainstay of English National Opera, though he also made regular appearances with other companies in the UK and abroad.
He made his debut with the English Opera Group as the Abbot in Britten's Curlew River in 1969, with the New Opera Company as the Archbishop in Szymanowski's King Roger in 1975, with Welsh National Opera in 1976 and at the New York Met when ENO toured there in 1984. His creations included roles in Iain Hamilton's The Catiline Conspiracy (1974), Harrison Birtwistle's The Mask of Orpheus (1986), York Höller's The Master and Margarita (1989, as Pilate), and the first full staging of Mieczysław Weinberg's The Passenger at the Bregenz festival in 2010.
He first appeared at the Royal Opera House in 1975, as the First Apprentice in Wozzeck, returning the following year for the premiere of Hans Werner Henze's We Come to the River and later, in 2000, for Bohuslav Martinu's The Greek Passion. But it was at ENO, where he debuted as Ramfis in Aida in 1980, that he became a regular fixture, his prodigious career with the company including such successes as Basilio in The Barber of Seville, Bartolo in The Marriage of Figaro, Pimen in Boris Godunov, Pluto in Monteverdi's Orfeo, Jupiter in Orpheus in the Underworld, and – a long-term highlight – the title role in Jonathan Miller's celebrated production of The Mikado, a part he played more than 150 times between 1986 and 2012.
Such an ongoing success should not, though, disguise Angas's huge range as a performer, which made him a memorable artist whatever the role or style. At 6ft 7in tall, he possessed a commanding presence that stamped his personality on any scene in which he appeared; but it was as much through his vocal presence, founded on a large-scale bass, sometimes described as gravelly, but always vital, combined with immaculate diction and focused acting skills, that made him an distinctive asset to any production. A popular colleague, he was sought after by many directors and developed strong artistic relationships with several, especially David Pountney.
Angas was born in Esher, Surrey, where his father worked as a chartered accountant. A strong family interest in amateur music-making began to involve him during his childhood; he became a chorister at the Royal School of Church Music and subsequently joined a local choral group. He originally intended to follow in his father's professional footsteps, but when the calibre of his voice was pointed out he started to consider taking singing more seriously. He went on to study at the Royal Academy of Music with Olive Groves and George Baker from 1960 until 1964, and in 1965 won both the Kathleen Ferrier memorial scholarship and the Richard Tauber memorial prize. He continued his training in Vienna, with Ilse Rapf and Erik Werba.
Earlier this year he had already sung a notable Schigolch in Pountney's Lulu for Welsh National Opera, as well as the Old Brahmin in the first fully staged UK performances of Jonathan Harvey's Wagner Dream for the same company; in July he created the role of the Doge of Venice in the premiere of André Tchaikowsky's The Merchant of Venice at the Bregenz festival. It was during a rehearsal for Opera North's forthcoming revival of Peter Grimes, in which he was returning to his regular role of Swallow, that he suddenly collapsed and later died in hospital. He appears on DVD in Pountney's Zurich production of the opera, while he recorded some of his other ENO roles – in The Mikado, Orpheus in the Underworld and Sondheim's Pacific Overtures – as well as works by Vaughan Williams and Harvey.
He is survived by his wife, Rosanne, whom he married in 1967, their son, Dominic, and grandson, Casper.
• Richard George Angas, bass singer, born 18 April 1942; died 20 August 2013