Nelly Miricioiu
Encyclopedia
Nelly Miricioiu is a British
opera
tic soprano
of Romania
n birth, one of the most versatile artists of recent years, singing a large repertoire ranging from bel canto
to verismo
with equal success.
, Romania
, Nelly started singing at 5 and was hailed as a child prodigy
. At 9 she started studying piano
and at 14 she won her first singing contest, "Young Talents, Great hopes". At 18 she sung in Pergolesi's La serva padrona
and joined the Conservatory of Iaşi
where she continued her studies with Tibi Popovici. In 1972 she was the youngest contestant in the Francisco Vinas Musical Competition in Barcelona
and in 1975 she won the first prize at the very first Maria Callas
Grand Prix in Athens. More 1st prizes followed at competitions in Geneva
, Paris
, Sofia
, Oostende etc.
Nelly made her operatic debut in Mozart's Magic Flute, as the Queen of the Night at Iaşi Romanian Opera, and continued to sing at Brasov Opera House between 1975-1978 in roles such as Mimi in La Boheme
, Micael, Micaela in Carmen and Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus
.
In 1981 she fled the communist regime and months later she debuted in Glasgow at the Scottish Opera as Violetta in La Traviata
. Manon Lescaut
and Tosca
followed. The following year she made her debut at the Royal Opera House
in London
as Nedda in Pagliacci
, opposite Jon Vickers
, Piero Cappuccilli
and Thomas Allen. She later appeared as Marguerite in Gounod's Faust
, Antonia in Les contes d'Hoffmann
and Valentine in Les Huguenots
. In 1983, she made her debut at La Scala
in Milan
, as Lucia di Lammermoor
, and thereafter appeared at most major opera houses of Europe: Amsterdam, Brussels, Rome, Hamburg, Geneva, Munich, Vienna, Salzburg, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, etcetera, earning considerable acclaim for her interpretation of Violetta in La traviata, amongst many other roles such as Mimi in La bohème
, Cio-Cio-San in Madama Butterfly
, Silvana in Respighi
's La Fiamma, the title role in Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur
and the title role in Zandonai's Francesca da Rimini
.
Miricioiu has also appeared in the United States
, notably in Washington, D.C.
, Philadelphia, Dallas, San Francisco, and made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera
in New York
, as Mimi (La bohème), in 1989. She also appeared in South America, notably in Santiago, and the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires
.
In 1992, she sang Amenaide in Rossini's Tancredi
to great acclaim in Salzburg
, and then began concentrating on the bel canto
repertory, singing other Rossinian heroines such as Armida
, Semiramide
, Ermione
, as well as Donizetti and Bellini
roles, such as Anna Bolena
, Roberto Devereux
, Il pirata
and Norma
.
In 1996, she was trusted with the revival of the infamous Tosca
production for Maria Callas
at Covent Garden
. The revival was a huge success and established her as one of the best Tosca's seen on stage.
She also began an association with Opera Rara
, appearing in long-forgotten works by Rossini and Donizetti but also by composers such as Pacini
and Mercadante
, both in concerts and recordings, notably Ricciardo e Zoraide
, Rosmonda d'Inghilterra
, Maria de Rudenz
, Maria, regina d'Inghilterra
, Orazi e Curiazi
and Emma d'Antiocchia.
Her repertory also includes Verdi roles in opera such as Ernani
, Luisa Miller
, I vespri siciliani, Don Carlo. She has worked with some of the most prestigious conductors and directors, and opposite leading artists of the day, such as José Carreras
, Plácido Domingo
, José Cura
, Roberto Alagna
, to name but a few.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
tic soprano
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...
of Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n birth, one of the most versatile artists of recent years, singing a large repertoire ranging from bel canto
Bel canto
Bel canto , along with a number of similar constructions , is an Italian opera term...
to verismo
Verismo
Verismo was an Italian literary movement which peaked between approximately 1875 and the early 1900s....
with equal success.
Biography
Born in AdjudAdjud
Adjud is a city in Vrancea County, Moldavia, Romania. It has a population of 17,585 inhabitants . It lies at a railway junction which has a classification yard and a passenger station...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, Nelly started singing at 5 and was hailed as a child prodigy
Child prodigy
A child prodigy is someone who, at an early age, masters one or more skills far beyond his or her level of maturity. One criterion for classifying prodigies is: a prodigy is a child, typically younger than 18 years old, who is performing at the level of a highly trained adult in a very demanding...
. At 9 she started studying piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
and at 14 she won her first singing contest, "Young Talents, Great hopes". At 18 she sung in Pergolesi's La serva padrona
La serva padrona
La serva padrona is an opera buffa by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi to a libretto by Gennaro Antonio Federico, after the play by Jacopo Angello Nelli. The opera is only 45 minutes long and was originally performed as an intermezzo between the acts of a larger serious opera...
and joined the Conservatory of Iaşi
George Enescu University of Arts of Iaşi
The George Enescu University of Arts is a public university in Iaşi, Romania, founded in 1860. Its focus was remodelled in 1992. Due to the reunion of the Conservatory of music and dramatic art and the National Society of Fine Arts, the institution was regrouped to focus on plastic arts, theatre...
where she continued her studies with Tibi Popovici. In 1972 she was the youngest contestant in the Francisco Vinas Musical Competition in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
and in 1975 she won the first prize at the very first Maria Callas
Maria Callas
Maria Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century. She combined an impressive bel canto technique, a wide-ranging voice and great dramatic gifts...
Grand Prix in Athens. More 1st prizes followed at competitions in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
, Oostende etc.
Nelly made her operatic debut in Mozart's Magic Flute, as the Queen of the Night at Iaşi Romanian Opera, and continued to sing at Brasov Opera House between 1975-1978 in roles such as Mimi in La Boheme
La bohème
La bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
, Micael, Micaela in Carmen and Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus
Die Fledermaus is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée.- Literary sources :...
.
In 1981 she fled the communist regime and months later she debuted in Glasgow at the Scottish Opera as Violetta in La Traviata
La traviata
La traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
. Manon Lescaut
Manon Lescaut
Manon Lescaut is a short novel by French author Abbé Prévost. Published in 1731, it is the seventh and final volume of Mémoires et aventures d'un homme de qualité . It was controversial in its time and was banned in France upon publication...
and Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
followed. The following year she made her debut at the Royal Opera House
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
as Nedda in Pagliacci
Pagliacci
Pagliacci , sometimes incorrectly rendered with a definite article as I Pagliacci, is an opera consisting of a prologue and two acts written and composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo. It recounts the tragedy of a jealous husband in a commedia dell'arte troupe...
, opposite Jon Vickers
Jon Vickers
Jonathan Stewart Vickers, CC , known professionally as Jon Vickers, is a retired Canadian heldentenor.Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, he was the sixth in a family of eight children. In 1950, he was awarded a scholarship to study opera at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto...
, Piero Cappuccilli
Piero Cappuccilli
Piero Cappuccilli was an Italian operatic baritone, particularly associated with Verdi roles, especiallyMacbeth and Simon Boccanegra; he was renowned for his extraordinary breath control and smooth legato, and is widely regarded as one of the finest Italian baritones of the second half of the 20th...
and Thomas Allen. She later appeared as Marguerite in Gounod's Faust
Faust (opera)
Faust is a drame lyrique in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carré's play Faust et Marguerite, in turn loosely based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, Part 1...
, Antonia in Les contes d'Hoffmann
Les contes d'Hoffmann
Les contes d'Hoffmann is an opéra by Jacques Offenbach. The French libretto was written by Jules Barbier, based on short stories by E. T. A...
and Valentine in Les Huguenots
Les Huguenots
Les Huguenots is a French opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer, one of the most popular and spectacular examples of the style of grand opera. The opera is in five acts and premiered in Paris in 1836. The libretto was written by Eugène Scribe and Émile Deschamps....
. In 1983, she made her debut at La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, as 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....
, and thereafter appeared at most major opera houses of Europe: Amsterdam, Brussels, Rome, Hamburg, Geneva, Munich, Vienna, Salzburg, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, etcetera, earning considerable acclaim for her interpretation of Violetta in La traviata, amongst many other roles such as Mimi in La bohème
La bohème
La bohème is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions quadro, a tableau or "image", rather than atto . by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger...
, Cio-Cio-San in Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
, Silvana in Respighi
Ottorino Respighi
Ottorino Respighi was an Italian composer, musicologist and conductor. He is best known for his orchestral "Roman trilogy": Fountains of Rome ; Pines of Rome ; and Roman Festivals...
's La Fiamma, the title role in Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur
Adriana Lecouvreur
Adriana Lecouvreur is an opera in four acts by Francesco Cilea to an Italian libretto by Arturo Colautti, based on the play by Eugène Scribe and Ernest Legouvé...
and the title role in Zandonai's Francesca da Rimini
Francesca da Rimini (Zandonai)
Francesca da Rimini is an opera in four acts, composed by Riccardo Zandonai, with libretto by Tito Ricordi, , after a play by Gabriele D'Annunzio. It was premiered at the Teatro Regio in Turin on February 19, 1914, and is still staged occasionally.This opera is Zandonai's best-known work...
.
Miricioiu has also appeared in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, notably in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Philadelphia, Dallas, San Francisco, and made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, as Mimi (La bohème), in 1989. She also appeared in South America, notably in Santiago, and the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
.
In 1992, she sang Amenaide in Rossini's Tancredi
Tancredi
Tancredi is a melodramma eroico in two acts by composer Gioachino Rossini and librettist Gaetano Rossi, based on Voltaire's play Tancrède...
to great acclaim in Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, and then began concentrating on the bel canto
Bel canto
Bel canto , along with a number of similar constructions , is an Italian opera term...
repertory, singing other Rossinian heroines such as Armida
Armida (Rossini)
Armida is an opera in three acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Schmidt, based on scenes from Gerusalemme liberata by Torquato Tasso.-Performance history:...
, Semiramide
Semiramide
Semiramide is an opera in two acts by Gioachino Rossini.The libretto by Gaetano Rossi is based on Voltaire's tragedy Semiramis, which in turn was based on the legend of Semiramis of Babylon...
, Ermione
Ermione
Ermione is a tragic opera in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola, based on the play Andromaque by Jean Racine.- Performance history :...
, as well as Donizetti and Bellini
Vincenzo Bellini
Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini was an Italian opera composer. His greatest works are I Capuleti ed i Montecchi , La sonnambula , Norma , Beatrice di Tenda , and I puritani...
roles, such as Anna Bolena
Anna Bolena
Anna Bolena is a tragedia lirica, or opera, in two acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto after Ippolito Pindemonte's Enrico VIII ossia Anna Bolena and Alessandro Pepoli's Anna Bolena, both telling of the life of Anne Boleyn...
, Roberto Devereux
Roberto Devereux
Roberto Devereux is a tragedia lirica, or tragic opera, by Gaetano Donizetti...
, Il pirata
Il pirata
Il pirata is an opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani from a French translation of the tragic play Bertram, or The Castle of St Aldobrando by Charles Maturin...
and Norma
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
.
In 1996, she was trusted with the revival of the infamous Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
production for Maria Callas
Maria Callas
Maria Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century. She combined an impressive bel canto technique, a wide-ranging voice and great dramatic gifts...
at Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
. The revival was a huge success and established her as one of the best Tosca's seen on stage.
She also began an association with Opera Rara
Opera Rara
Opera Rara is a British record label, founded in the early 1970s by Americans Patric Schmid and Don White to promote concerts of rare and/or forgotten operas by Giacomo Meyerbeer and Donizetti and such other "bel canto" composers as Giovanni Pacini, Saverio Mercadante, and Federico Ricci.The...
, appearing in long-forgotten works by Rossini and Donizetti but also by composers such as Pacini
Giovanni Pacini
Giovanni Pacini was an Italian composer, best known for his operas. Pacini was born in Catania, Sicily, the son of the buffo Luigi Pacini, who was to appear in the premieres of many of Giovanni's operas...
and Mercadante
Saverio Mercadante
Giuseppe Saverio Raffaele Mercadante was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. While Mercadante may not have retained the international celebrity of Gaetano Donizetti or Gioachino Rossini beyond his own lifetime, he composed as impressive a number of works as either; and his development of...
, both in concerts and recordings, notably Ricciardo e Zoraide
Ricciardo e Zoraide
Ricciardo e Zoraide is an opera in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Francesco Berio de Salsa...
, Rosmonda d'Inghilterra
Rosmonda d'Inghilterra
Rosmonda d'Inghilterra is a melodramma or opera in two acts by Gaetano Donizetti. The Italian libretto was written by Felice Romani originally for Coccia's Rosmunda...
, Maria de Rudenz
Maria de Rudenz
Maria de Rudenz is a dramma tragico, or tragic opera, in three parts by Gaetano Donizetti. The Italian libretto was written by Salvadore Cammarano, based on "a piece of Gothic horror", La nonne sanglante by Anicet-Bourgeois, Cuvelier and Maillan, and The monk by Matthew Gregory Lewis...
, Maria, regina d'Inghilterra
Maria, regina d'Inghilterra
Maria, regina d'Inghilterra is an Italian opera in three acts, composed by Giovanni Pacini from a libretto by Leopoldo Tarantini, which was based on the play Marie Tudor by Victor Hugo...
, Orazi e Curiazi
Orazi e Curiazi
Orazi e Curiazi is an opera by the Italian composer Saverio Mercadante. It takes the form of a tragedia lirica in three acts. The libretto, by Salvadore Cammarano is based on the Roman legend of the fight between the Horatii and the Curiatii...
and Emma d'Antiocchia.
Her repertory also includes Verdi roles in opera such as Ernani
Ernani
Ernani is an operatic dramma lirico in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play Hernani by Victor Hugo. The first production took place at La Fenice Theatre, Venice on 9 March 1844...
, Luisa Miller
Luisa Miller
Luisa Miller is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play Kabale und Liebe by Friedrich von Schiller. The first performance was given at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples on December 8, 1849...
, I vespri siciliani, Don Carlo. She has worked with some of the most prestigious conductors and directors, and opposite leading artists of the day, such as José Carreras
José Carreras
Josep Maria Carreras i Coll , better known as José Carreras , is a Spanish Catalan tenor particularly known for his performances in the operas of Verdi and Puccini...
, Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
, José Cura
José Cura
José Cura is a prominent operatic tenor known for his intense and original interpretations of his characters, notably Verdi’s Otello and Saint-Saëns’ Samson, as well as for his unconventional and innovative concert performances. He is also able to perform high baritone roles with the extended...
, Roberto Alagna
Roberto Alagna
Roberto Alagna is a French-Italian tenor. He was born in Clichy-sous-Bois, Seine-Saint-Denis, France.-Early years:Alagna was born outside of the city of Paris in 1963 to a family of Sicilian immigrants . As a teenager, the young Alagna began busking and singing pop in Parisian cabarets for tips...
, to name but a few.
Discography
- Puccini "Tosca" Naxos
- Donizetti "Rosmonda D'Inghilterra" Opera Rara
- Donizetti "Roberto Devereux" Opera Rara
- Donizetti "Maria de Rudenz" Opera Rara
- Rossini: "Ricciardo e Zoraide" Opera Rara
- Mercadante "Orazi e Curiazi" Opera Rara
- Mercadante "Emma d'Antiochia" Opera Rara
- Pacini "Maria Regina D'Inghilterra" Opera Rara
- Respighi "La Fiamma" Agora
- Mascagni "Cavalleria Rusticana" Chandos
- "Rossini Gala" Opera Rara
- "Mercadante Rediscovered" Opera Rara
- "Donizetti: Szenen und Ouvertüren" Opera Rara
- "La Potenza d' amore" Opera Rara
- "Mercadante - Les Soirées Italiennes" Opera Rara
- "Rossini: Three Tenors" Opera Rara
- "Nelly Miricioiu" Etcetera
- "Nelly Miricioiu - Bel Canto Portrait" Opera Rara
- "Prinsengracht Concert" Van
- "Live at the Concertgebouw" Challenge
- "Recital at Wigmore Hall" Etcetera
- "Nelly Miricioiu Live in Amsterdam" Vanguard
Sources
- Grove Music Online, Elizabeth Forbes, June 2008.