Maria Grazia Schiavo
Encyclopedia
Maria Grazia Schiavo is an Italian classical soprano
who is particularly known for her performances of music from the baroque period. She has performed with major opera house
s in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, and has appeared in concerts throughout Europe.
, Schiavo was trained in her native city at the Conservatorio San Pietro a Majella. After graduating, she won several music competitions; including the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
competition and the International Singing Competition of Clermont-Ferrand. She quickly established herself as an artist in the baroque repertoire and has appeared in concerts of baroque music
with the Accademia Bizantina, Al Ayre Español
, Auser Musici
, Concerto Italiano
, Europa Galante
, La Risonanza, Les Talents Lyriques, and the Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca. Notable conductor
s under whom she has performed include: Rinaldo Alessandrini
, Eduardo Lopez Banzo
, Fabio Biondi
, William Christie, Ottavio Dantone
, Antonio Florio, Riccardo Muti
, Christophe Rousset
, and Jordi Savall
.
Schiavo made her professional opera debut in the title role of Roberto De Simone's La gatta Cenerentola. In 2007 she portrayed the role of Poppea in Domenico Scarlatti
's Ottavia restituita al trono with the Opera de San Sebastián and Idaspe in Antonio Vivaldi
's Bajazet
at La Fenice
. In March 2008 she repeated the role of Idaspe at the Salle Pleyel
in Paris and at the Teatro Real
in Madrid. She was also heard at the Teatro Real that year as Euridice/Proserpina/La Música in Claudio Monteverdi
's L'Orfeo. In February 2008 she performed the role of Faustina in the first modern performance of Leonardo Leo
's Alidoro with the Cappella della Pietà de' Turchini
in Reggio Emilia. In July 2008 she sang the roles of Sabina in Giovanni Battista Pergolesi
's Adriano in Siria and Scarlatti's Poppea at the Festival de Beaune
.
In the 2008-2009 season, Schiavo performed the roles of Almirena in George Frideric Handel
's Rinaldo
(Festival de Beaune), Dalinda in Handel's Ariodante
(Vienna State Opera
), Dircea in Niccolò Jommelli
's Demofoonte (Ravenna Festival
and Salzburg Festival
), and Seleuce in Handel's Tolomeo
(Teatro Arriaga
, Bilbao). In the 2009-2010 season, she sang the roles of Almirena (Théâtre des Champs-Élysées
), Amital in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
's Betulia liberata
(Salzburg Festival), Berenice in Vivaldi's Farnace
(Vienna State Opera), Euridice in Johann Joseph Fux's Orfeo ed Euridice (Le Concert des Nations
, Graz), Rosmira in Leonardo Vinci
's Partenope (Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria and Teatro de la Maestranza
), and Venere in Antonio Cesti
's Le disgrazie d'Amore (Teatro Verdi, Pisa). In 2011 she is scheduled to perform the roles of Anaï in Gioachino Rossini's Moïse et Pharaon
at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
, Berenice at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris and the title heroine in Gaetano Donizetti
's Lucia di Lammermoor
at the Teatro Regio di Torino.
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
who is particularly known for her performances of music from the baroque period. She has performed with major opera house
Opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for opera performances that consists of a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and set building...
s in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, and has appeared in concerts throughout Europe.
Life and career
Born in NaplesNaples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, Schiavo was trained in her native city at the Conservatorio San Pietro a Majella. After graduating, she won several music competitions; including the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
The Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia is one of the oldest musical institutions in the world, based in Italy.It is based at the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome, and was founded by the papal bull, Ratione congruit, issued by Sixtus V in 1585, which invoked two saints prominent in Western...
competition and the International Singing Competition of Clermont-Ferrand. She quickly established herself as an artist in the baroque repertoire and has appeared in concerts of baroque music
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
with the Accademia Bizantina, Al Ayre Español
Al Ayre Español
Al Ayre Español is a vocal and instrumental ensemble specialized on early music founded in 1988 by Eduardo López Banzo .The name of the ensemble was inspired by the title for a guitar Fugue of the Calanda composer, Gaspar Sanz...
, Auser Musici
Auser Musici
Auser Musici is a period instrument ensemble centered in Pisa that specializes in early music repertory from the Tuscan region of Italy.-History, Mission, and Activities:...
, Concerto Italiano
Concerto Italiano
Concerto Italiano is an Italian early music ensemble well-known for their interpretations of Monteverdi and Vivaldi, among others.The historically informed performance ensemble was formed by the harpsichordist Rinaldo Alessandrini, and made its Rome debut with Francesco Cavalli's La Calisto in 1984...
, Europa Galante
Europa Galante
Europa Galante is an Italian period instrument Baroque orchestra founded by violinist Fabio Biondi in 1990 and directed by him since that time....
, La Risonanza, Les Talents Lyriques, and the Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca. Notable conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
s under whom she has performed include: Rinaldo Alessandrini
Rinaldo Alessandrini
Rinaldo Alessandrini is a virtuoso on Baroque keyboards, including harpsichord, fortepiano, and organ. He is founder and conductor of the Italian early music ensemble Concerto Italiano, performing music of Monteverdi, Vivaldi, Couperin, J. S. Bach, and others...
, Eduardo Lopez Banzo
Eduardo López Banzo
Eduardo López Banzo is a Spanish harpsichordist and conductor of baroque music.Banzo was born in Zaragoza Spain. He studied harpsichord with Gustav Leonhardt in Amsterdam....
, Fabio Biondi
Fabio Biondi
Fabio Biondi is an Italian violinist and conductor.Born in Palermo, Sicily, Biondi began his international career at the age of 12 playing a concerto with the RAI Symphony Orchestra. When he was 16, he performed Bach's violin concertos at the Musikverein in Vienna...
, William Christie, Ottavio Dantone
Ottavio Dantone
Ottavio Dantone is an Italian conductor and keyboardist particularly noted for his performances of Baroque music. He has been the Music Director of the Accademia Bizantina in Ravenna since 1996.-Career:...
, Antonio Florio, Riccardo Muti
Riccardo Muti
Riccardo Muti, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI is an Italian conductor and music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.-Childhood and education:...
, Christophe Rousset
Christophe Rousset
Christophe Rousset is a French harpsichordist and conductor, specializing in the performance of baroque music on period instruments.-Biography:...
, and Jordi Savall
Jordi Savall
Jordi Savall i Bernadet is a Catalan viol player, conductor and composer. He has been one of the major figures in the field of Western early music since the 1970s, largely responsible for bringing the viol back to life on the stage...
.
Schiavo made her professional opera debut in the title role of Roberto De Simone's La gatta Cenerentola. In 2007 she portrayed the role of Poppea in Domenico Scarlatti
Domenico Scarlatti
Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti was an Italian composer who spent much of his life in the service of the Portuguese and Spanish royal families. He is classified as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the development of the Classical style...
's Ottavia restituita al trono with the Opera de San Sebastián and Idaspe in Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi , nicknamed because of his red hair, was an Italian Baroque composer, priest, and virtuoso violinist, born in Venice. Vivaldi is recognized as one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime was widespread over Europe...
's Bajazet
Bajazet (opera)
Bajazet is an Italian opera composed by Antonio Vivaldi in 1735. Its libretto was written by Agostino Piovene. It was premiered in Verona, during the Carnival season of that year. This opera is presented in 3 acts, with a three-movement sinfonia as an introduction...
at La Fenice
La Fenice
Teatro La Fenice is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of the most famous theatres in Europe, the site of many famous operatic premieres. Its name reflects its role in permitting an opera company to "rise from the ashes" despite losing the use of two theatres...
. In March 2008 she repeated the role of Idaspe at the Salle Pleyel
Salle Pleyel
The Salle Pleyel is a concert hall in Paris, France. The resident ensembles are the Orchestre de Paris and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France.-History and Design:...
in Paris and at the Teatro Real
Teatro Real
The Teatro Real or simply El Real , is a major opera house located in Madrid, Spain.-History:...
in Madrid. She was also heard at the Teatro Real that year as Euridice/Proserpina/La Música in Claudio Monteverdi
Claudio Monteverdi
Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, gambist, and singer.Monteverdi's work, often regarded as revolutionary, marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two individual styles of composition – the...
's L'Orfeo. In February 2008 she performed the role of Faustina in the first modern performance of Leonardo Leo
Leonardo Leo
Leonardo Leo , more correctly Lionardo Oronzo Salvatore de Leo, was an Italian Baroque composer.-Biography:...
's Alidoro with the Cappella della Pietà de' Turchini
Cappella della Pietà de' Turchini
The Cappella della Pietà de' Turchini is an early music ensemble based in Naples and dedicated to the recovery of Neapolitan musical heritage, primarily from the baroque era....
in Reggio Emilia. In July 2008 she sang the roles of Sabina in Giovanni Battista Pergolesi
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi was an Italian composer, violinist and organist.-Biography:Born at Iesi, Pergolesi studied music there under a local musician, Francesco Santini, before going to Naples in 1725, where he studied under Gaetano Greco and Francesco Feo among others...
's Adriano in Siria and Scarlatti's Poppea at the Festival de Beaune
Festival de Beaune
The Festival de Beaune: Festival international d’opéra baroque is a month-long annual summer festival of baroque opera in Beaune, France. It is notable for revivals of many baroque operas and performances of Mozart on original instruments....
.
In the 2008-2009 season, Schiavo performed the roles of Almirena in George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...
's Rinaldo
Rinaldo (opera)
Rinaldo is an opera by George Frideric Handel composed in 1711. It is the first Italian language opera written specifically for the London stage. The libretto was prepared by Giacomo Rossi from a scenario provided by Aaron Hill. The work was first performed at the Queen's Theatre in London's...
(Festival de Beaune), Dalinda in Handel's Ariodante
Ariodante
Ariodante is an opera seria in three acts by Handel. The anonymous Italian libretto was based on a work by Antonio Salvi, which in turn was adapted from Canti 5 and 6 of Ludovico Ariosto's Orlando Furioso...
(Vienna State Opera
Vienna State Opera
The Vienna State Opera is an opera house – and opera company – with a history dating back to the mid-19th century. It is located in the centre of Vienna, Austria. It was originally called the Vienna Court Opera . In 1920, with the replacement of the Habsburg Monarchy by the First Austrian...
), Dircea in Niccolò Jommelli
Niccolò Jommelli
Niccolò Jommelli was an Italian composer. He was born in Aversa and died in Naples. Along with other composers mainly in the Holy Roman Empire and France, he made important changes to opera and reduced the importance of star singers.-Early life:Jommelli was born to Francesco Antonio Jommelli and...
's Demofoonte (Ravenna Festival
Ravenna Festival
The Ravenna Festival is a summer festival of opera and classical music held in the city of Ravenna, Italy and the surrounding area each July and August....
and Salzburg Festival
Salzburg Festival
The Salzburg Festival is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer within the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart...
), and Seleuce in Handel's Tolomeo
Tolomeo
Tolomeo, re d'Egitto is an opera in three acts by George Frideric Handel to an Italian text by Nicola Francesco Haym, adapted from Carlo Sigismondo Capece's Tolomeo et Alessandro.-Performance history:...
(Teatro Arriaga
Teatro Arriaga
The Teatro Arriaga is an opera house in Bilbao, Spain. It was built in Neo-baroque style by architect Joaquín Rucoba in 1890, the same architect that built the city hall...
, Bilbao). In the 2009-2010 season, she sang the roles of Almirena (Théâtre des Champs-Élysées
Théâtre des Champs-Élysées
The Théâtre des Champs-Élysées is a theatre at 15 avenue Montaigne. Despite its name, the theatre is not on the Champs-Élysées but nearby in another part of the 8th arrondissement of Paris....
), Amital in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
's Betulia liberata
Betulia Liberata
Betulia liberata is the title of a libretto by Metastasio which was originally commissioned by Emperor Charles VI and set by Georg Reutter the younger in 1734, and which was subsequently set by as many as 30 composers including Jommelli , Ignaz Holzbauer , Kozeluch , Schuster , Salieri and most...
(Salzburg Festival), Berenice in Vivaldi's Farnace
Farnace
Farnace , is the title of several 18th-century operas set to various librettos. The earliest version was written by Lorenzo Morari with music by Antonio Caldara, first performed at the Teatro Sant'Angelo in Venice in 1703...
(Vienna State Opera), Euridice in Johann Joseph Fux's Orfeo ed Euridice (Le Concert des Nations
Le Concert des Nations
Le Concert des Nations is an orchestra with period instruments, able to perform the orchestral and symphonic repertoire from the Baroque to Romanticism: 1600 - 1850. The orchestra was created in 1989, the youngest of the groups conducted by the Catalan maestro and viola da gamba virtuoso Jordi Savall...
, Graz), Rosmira in Leonardo Vinci
Leonardo Vinci
Leonardo Vinci was an Italian composer, best known for his operas.He was born at Strongoli and educated at Naples under Gaetano Greco in the Conservatorio dei Poveri di Gesù Cristo. He first became known for his opere buffe in Neapolitan dialect in 1719; he also composed many opere serie...
's Partenope (Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria and Teatro de la Maestranza
Teatro de la Maestranza
The Teatro de la Maestranza is an opera house located in Seville, Spain.The theatre was conceived to be one of the main cultural venues of the Seville Expo '92 , and the first performance took place in 1991, shortly before the inauguration of the International Expo. The theatre was re-refurnished...
), and Venere in Antonio Cesti
Antonio Cesti
Antonio Cesti , known today primarily as an Italian composer of the Baroque era, he was also a singer , and organist. He was "the most celebrated Italian musician of his generation".- Biography :...
's Le disgrazie d'Amore (Teatro Verdi, Pisa). In 2011 she is scheduled to perform the roles of Anaï in Gioachino Rossini's Moïse et Pharaon
Mosè in Egitto
Mosè in Egitto is a three-act opera written by Gioachino Rossini to a libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola, which was based on a play by Francesco Ringhieri, L'Osiride, of 1760....
at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
Teatro dell'Opera di Roma
The Teatro dell'Opera di Roma is an opera house in Rome, Italy. Originally opened in November 1880 as the 2,212 seat Costanzi Theatre, it has undergone several changes of name as well modifications and improvements...
, Berenice at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris and the title heroine in Gaetano Donizetti
Gaetano Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti was an Italian composer from Bergamo, Lombardy. His best-known works are the operas L'elisir d'amore , Lucia di Lammermoor , and Don Pasquale , all in Italian, and the French operas La favorite and La fille du régiment...
's Lucia di Lammermoor
Lucia di Lammermoor
Lucia di Lammermoor is a dramma tragico in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's historical novel The Bride of Lammermoor....
at the Teatro Regio di Torino.