Russian soprano Svetlana Kasyan trained at the Moscow State Conservatory and was a member of the Young Artists Programme at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow from 2009-2011. She is the winner of the 2019 Premio Internazionale “Penisola Sorrentina” Arturo Esposito and the 2011 International Vocal Competition in Ningbo City, China.
In the 2023-2024 season Svetlana will perform the title role of Tosca for Northern Ireland Opera. Future performances include the title role in Rachmaninoff’s Francesca da Rimini and Abigaille in a new production of Nabucco in Germany.
Recent highlights include Nefta Asrael (Oper Bonn), Mimì La bohème, Cio-Cio-San Madama Butterfly and Leonora Il trovatore (Novaya Opera, Moscow); Cio-Cio-San Madama Butterfly (Teatro Comunale, Bologna); Berio’s Folk Songs in concert at Zaryadye Hall, Moscow; and gala concerts for Novaya Opera.
Other operatic engagements include the title role Tosca (Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Teatro La Fenice, Polish National Opera, Bolshoi Theatre, Theater St Gallen and Vilnius City Opera); title role Aida (Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi, Trieste and Arena di Verona); Giorgetta Il tabarro and title role Suor Angelica (Teatro Comunale, Ferrara); Cio-Cio-San Madama Butterfly (Teatro la Fenice); title role Manon Lescaut and Elisabetta Don Carlo (Teatro Regio, Torino); Odabella Attila (Teatro Luciano Pavarotti, Modena); Kuma The Enchantress, Fata Morgana The Love for Three Oranges and Kupava The Snow Maiden (Bolshoi Theatre); Lisa The Queen of Spades (Krasnoyarsk State Opera); and Amelia Un ballo in maschera (Dorset Opera). She has also performed at Latvian National Opera, Yekaterinburg Opera, Teatro Petruzzelli, Beri, and for the International Opera Festival of Miskolc, Hungary.
In concert she has performed with such ensembles as the Berliner Symphoniker, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, and Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, and at venues including Ningbo Concert Hall, China, Tchaikovsky Concert Hall, Moscow, and Sion Festival, Switzerland. Her concert repertoire includes Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Strauss’s Vier letzte Lieder, Wagner’s Wesendonck Lieder, and Verdi’s Requiem.
Svetlana has worked with conductors including Kent Nagano, Gianandrea Noseda, Daniel Oren, Omer Meir Wellber and Dmitri Jurowski. She has studied and participated in masterclasses with artists including Joan Rodgers, Diane Zola, Anna Bonitatibus, Svetlana Nesterenko, George Darden, Caroline Dumaux, Dmitri Vdovin and Laura Claycomb.
Svetlana’s album ‘Fratelli Tutti’, a collection of 14 songs sung in 14 languages, was dedicated to Pope Francis who bestowed on her the star of the Lady of the Grand Cross of the Pontifical Order of Saint Sylvester.
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Tosca (title role)
Northern Ireland Opera, September 2023
The first thing to say about Northern Ireland Opera’s exciting new production of Tosca is that its heroine is played by a genuine star. Russian soprano Svetlana Kasyan reinvents the famous despairing aria Vissi d’arte, vissi d’amore . . .
Jane Hardy, The Irish News
Svetlana Kasyan brings a darkly powerful soprano voice to the title role and shows herself capable of a wide range of expression, from deftly elegant turns in the opening scenes to spine-tingling intensity in the second-act aria Vissi d'arte.
Michael Lee, GoldenPlec
In the title role, Svetlana Kasyan filled the auditorium with her authoritative stage presence; a glance alone was able to convey Tosca’s character.
Leighton Jones, Bachtrack
Svetlana Kasyan brings her powerful soprano voice to the role of Tosca . . . projecting with particular power . . . This is operatic theatre and not a concert performance, and Kasyan is not afraid to add a tonal roughness that the character’s emotional state deserves. Her Act II aria Vissi d’arte is gritty and potent.
Alan Meban, Alan in Belfast
For NI Opera it is the Russian soprano Svetlana Kasyan, living up to the diva label. Her range from top to bottom is tremendous . . .
David Byers, The Irish Times
In the title role, Svetlana Kasyan fields a large and thrilling soprano
George Hall, The Stage
Aida (title role)
Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi di Trieste, December 2019
Svetlana Kaysan outlined a confident Aida, with a wide-ranging vocalism and excellent musicality
Matteo Firmi, Ieri Oggi Domani Opera, 6 December 2019
Svetlana Kasyan stands out, a Russian soprano who presents the character of Aida very well, demonstrating voice and excellent interpretative skills
Rai News, 2 December 2019
Tosca (title role)
Savonlinna Festival, July 2018
Svetlana Kasyan is a picturesque, steely Tosca with both love and despair in her voice. Throughout the work, Kasyan grows into a compassionate Tosca whose song has the power of a lioness
Riitta-Leena Lempinen-Vesa, Itä-Savo, 1 August 2018
Svetlana Kasyan's Opera Repertoire
| Franchetti | Nefta, Asrael |
|---|---|
| Puccini | Title Role, Tosca Title Role, Manon Lescaut Cio-Cio San, Madama Butterfly Title Role, Suor Angelica Giorgetta, Il tabarro |
| Tchaikovsky | Lisa, The Queen of Spades |
| Verdi | Title Role, Aida Leonora, Il trovatore Elisabetta, Don Carlo Amelia, Un ballo in maschera |
Svetlana Kasyan's Concert Repertoire
| Beethoven | Symphony no. 9 |
|---|---|
| Berio | Folk Songs |
| Strauss, Richard | Four Last Songs |
| Verdi | Requiem |
| Wagner | Wesendonck Lieder |
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