Audio samples
Bozar (Brussels) - 30.08.2008
Orchestre de Lille | Evelino Pidò

I Vespri Siciliani | Arrigo!

Don Carlo | Tu che la vanita

La Traviata | Parigi o cara

Representation: General Management

The British/Romanian-born soprano NELLY MIRICIOIU is one of the most versatile artists of our day. Her repertoire extends from the title roles in Donizetti’s Lucia Di Lammermoor,  Maria Stuarda, Anna Bolena, Lucrezia Borgia , to Puccini’s Tosca and Violetta in  Verdi’s La Traviata. In 1982 she made her Covent Garden debut as Nedda in I Pagliacci opposite John Vickers, Piero Cappuccili and Thomas Allen. In 1983 she made a triumphant La Scala debut as Lucia di Lammermoor and since that time has been heard in all  major opera houses of the world. She has worked with some of the most prestigious conductors and directors (in leading roles that include Tosca with Jose Carreras, Jose Cura, Neil Schicoff), Mimi (with Placido Domingo) and also Violetta in La Traviata (with Franco Bonisolli, Roberto Alagna, Renato Bruson, Alfredo Kraus) and opposite many other leading artists of the day. It was in Verdi’s La Traviata that she became renowned for her interpretation of the role of Violetta Vallery. In 1986 she began a famous series of Vara Matinee Concerts at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and over the next ten years continued to extend her repertoire to include the great belcanto heroines. In these roles she could advance her own unique artistry in the way for which she has today become so highly acclaimed. Her Armenaide (Tancredi) at the 1992 Salzburg festival was greatly admired and she continues to sing other Rossinian roles such as Armida, Semiramide and Ermione to similar acclaim. In 1997 she debued the roles of Elizabeth in Verdi's Don Carlos and the title in Luisa Miller and also for the first time the role of Silvana in Respighi’s La Fiamma (Rome Opera’s critically acclaimed opening to the 1998 season, produced by Hugo de Ana and conducted by Gianluigi Gelmetti) for which she was highly praised. Other highlights included three debuts, as Cio Cio San in Puccini's Madam Butterfly for Hamburg State Opera, Giordano's Fedora for Teatro Colon Buenos Aires, the title role in Rossini's Semiramide for the Opera de Geneve (also in a concert version at London's QEH) and as Musetta/Mimi in La Boheme (L.Cavallo/Puccini) in a concert performance at the Concertgebouw. In 1999 she was to  return there for Bellini's Norma which was repeated in Eindhoven and later debued the same role onstage at the Teatro dell' Opera Di Roma and in Athens. She also performed Tosca for Cologne Opera, Bayerische Staatsoper-Munich, the Puccini Festival in Valencia, and the Netherlands Opera. The 1999/2000 season she further extended her reportoire with the roles  of Elvira in Verdi's Ernani in a Vara Matinee concert at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw (December 1999), Adriana in Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur at La Scala (Jan 2000), and Isabella in Meyerbeer's Robert Le Diable for Deutsche Staatsoper (Mar 2000). In April 2000 she again returned to the role of Norma for the Greek National Opera followed by a semi-staged version of the same opera at the ROH Covent Garden (May 2000).

The 2000/2001 season included further performances of  Tosca at Orange (July 2000),  La Monnaie (Sept 2000), the ROH Covent Garden (Feb 2001) and Geneve Opera (June 2001), Meyerbeer's Robert Le Diable for the Deutsche Staatsoper (Mar 2001), and  Norma at the Teatro Dell' Opera Di Roma (Oct 2001). She also added  new roles to her wide reportoire with her debut as Francesca in  Zandonai's Francesca da Rimini at the VARA Matinee concert in Amsterdam (Nov 2000) and as Imogen in Bellini's Il Pirata in Washington (April 2001) repeated at the QEH London (May 2001).

In the 2001/2002 season she returned to the roles of Norma in two concert versions at the Schleswig-Holstein Festival (Aug 2001) and as Tosca at the Opera Bastille, Paris (Jan 2002). In September 2001 she returned to the role of  Elena in Verdi's I Vespri Siciliani at the Vienna Staatsoper (in Italian) which she again sang (but in French) at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw (June 2002). She returned to the title roles in Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur for the Bolshoi (Feb 2002) and also at the Teatro Dell'Opera Di Roma (April 2002).  This was followed by the role of Anna Bolena in a concert version at the QEH London (May 2002) and her daughter Elizabeth 1 in a recorded  (by Opera Rara) concert version of  Donizetti's Roberto Devereux at the ROH Covent Garden (July 2002). Another Donizetti role followed when she sang the title role in Lucrezia Borgia for the Opera de Marseille (Oct 2002).

In January 2003 she further extended her repertoire at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw to include the title role in Mascagni's Iris at the VARA Matinee series and in April made another debut in the role of Helene in Verdi's Jerusalem in a concert version for Frankfurt Opera  She also sang a gala performance of Tosca for Frankfurt Opera (May 2003) and then later with the Norwegian Opera (June 2003). In Lisbon (May 2003) she performed a Mozart opera onstage for the first time in the role of Fiodilighi in Cosi Fan Tutte. She returned to the Amsterdam Concertgebouw in a concert versions singing the role of Imogen in Bellini’s Il Pirata for VARA (Sept 2003) followed by the premier of Mercadante's Emma D'Antiochia at the Royal Festival Hall (22nd Oct 2003). In November 2003 she again performed the role of Tosca for the Barcelona Liceau after which she returned to the Teatro Del d'Roma (Jan 2004) for the world premier of Respighi's Maria Vittoria in the title role.  In July 2004 she was at the ROH Covent Garden with Tosca and in Nov/Dec at the Metropolitan Opera NY singing the role of Elena in Verdi's I Vespri Siciliani. In January 2005 she again returned to the Amsterdam Concertgebouw for a performance of Verdi's Jerusalem (and will be returning there in 2006 to sing the title role in Celea’s Adriana Lecouvreur) and in November 2005 she sang the title roles in Rossini’s Semiramide at the Liceu Barcelona and a New Years Eve performance of Lehar’s Merry Widow for Opera Toulon . In March 2006 she debuted the role of  Odabella in Verdi’s Attila with the Chelsea Opera Group and again returns to the Amsterdam Concertgebouw in October to sing the title role in Celea’s Adriana Lecouvreur. Future plans for 2007 include new debut roles as Beatrice in Donizetti’s Beatrice de Tenda and Abigail in Verdi’s Nabucco.

Her recordings include Puccini's Tosca, Mercadante's Orazi e Curiazi, Donizetti's Rosamunda d' Inghilterra (with Renee Fleming & Bruce Ford) and Maria De Rudenz (Maria), Rossini's Ricciardo e Zoraide, Pacini's Maria d' Inghilterra (Maria)- nominated for best bel canto recording of 1998, Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana (Santuzza) and a live recording in Rome of Respighi's La Fiamma (Silvana) and Nelly Miricioiu Live at the Concertgebouw. Latest  releases including "Nelly Miricioiu -A Rossini Gala" and  "Nelly Miricioiu - Bel Canto Portrait" which were both  nominated as records of the year in 2000 and 2001.  Roberto Devereux (Elizabetta) recorded at the ROH Covent Garden in July 2002 (by Opera Rara) was released in July 2003 (see reviews) followed by a new recording of Mercadante's Emma D'Antiochia released in May 2005 (see reviews  at  www.opera-singer/repertoire.com)