For his first US performances of the new season, Thomas Hampson returns to a Wagner role that he is closely associated with: Amfortas, the wounded ruler of the Grail kingdom in Parsifal.  Hampson joins Christoph Eschenbach and the National Symphony Orchestra for a concert version of the opera’s transcendent final act at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. (Oct 10–12).  Soon after, he performs the role in its entirety at Lyric Opera of Chicago, which is staging Wagner’s final masterpiece in a new production directed by John Caird and conducted by Sir Andrew Davis (Nov 9 – 29).  Last season at Lyric, Hampson  sang the title role in Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra to great acclaim.  He recently sang the role at London’s Royal Opera House and at the Vienna State Opera, and can be heard singing it on a new recording from the Decca label.