Guest
Altenburg Arts presents Vocal Extravaganza • An Evening with Julia Lezhneva Sunday 2 June 2024, 5pm Victoria Concert Hall, Singapore The international media described Russian soprano Julia Lezhneva as among “few young singers being widely celebrated so early in their careers” (The Independent) and as possessing a voice of “pure tone” (Die Welt) and “flawless technique” (The Guardian), while Norman Lebrecht declared Lezhneva as “heading for the stratosphere.” Her mentor Dame Kiri Te Kanawa said, “From time to time a really outstanding talent appears and I believe that Julia Lezhneva is just that. The brilliance of her voice and technique are extremely impressive.” The trajectory for the meteoric rise of this “indecently talented” musician was set. Now in her early 30s, Lezhneva will make her Singapore debut in a solo recital programme of two contrasting halves. She opens with the Baroque masters, a Lezhneva specialty where the music’s intricacy and passion, while also holding rich potential for vocal fireworks, are a perfect match for Lezhneva’s voice and talent. She contrasts this with a second half comprising Schumann’s lieder, before rounding off the concert with love-drenched canzonettas by Rossini. Partnering Lezhneva on the piano is compatriot Pavel Nersessian, an outstanding, experienced musician in his own right who started touring at the age of eight. After graduating with the highest score from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory in 1987, he won first place in the GPA Dublin International Piano Competition in 1991 and has been active ever since.
