Nelly Miricioiu

Nelly Miricioiu (born 31 March 1952) is a British operatic soprano of Romanian birth, one of the most versatile artists of recent years, singing a large repertoire ranging from bel canto to verismo with equal success.

Biography

Born in Adjud, 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.

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.

External links

• Official Site

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Name	Miricioiu, Nelly
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Date of birth	31 March 1952
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