ZORYANA KUSHPLER
chairwoman of the jury, worldwide famous opera singer (mezzo-soprano), honorary president of the Galician Music Society
Ukraine – Austria
Studied at the Mykola Lysenko Lviv National Music Academy (Prof. I. Kushpler) and later at the Musikhochschule Hamburg (Prof J. Beckmann). Winner of international competitions, including the first prize at the ARD Competition in Munich.
Since 2007 has been an Ensemble Member at the Wiener Staatsoper, where she sang amongst others the roles of Ulrica (“Un ballo in maschera”), Fenena (“Nabucco”), Olga (“Eugen Onegin”), Polina (“Queen of Spade”), Marcellina (“Le nozze di Figaro”), Magdalena (“Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg”), Waltraute (“Götterdämmerung”), Preziosilla (“La forza del destino”), Adelaide (“Arabella”) and many others. In the same year, the singer also became a guest soloist at the Vienna Volksoper, where she regularly performs parts of Carmen, Prinz Orlofsky (“Die Fledermaus”), Magdalena (“Rigoletto”), Giulietta (“Les contes d´Hoffmann”) and others.
Also as a recitalist, being accompanied by her twin sister Olena, she has sung in many important Recital-series such as at Rheingau Musik Festival, Festival Mecklenburg Vorpommern, Musikhalle-Laeizhalle Hamburg, Konzerthaus Berlin, Wiener Musikvereinn and other places.
In 2012, she gave her US debut with the Cleveland Orchestra under Franz Welser-Möst with the solo part in G. Mahler’s 3rd Symphony. In 2014, she made her debut in Carnegie Hall with 9th Symphony of Beethoven with Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under the Franz Welser-Möst, performed Fenena’s part in “Nabucco” next to the outstanding tenor Placido Domingo at the Vienna National Opera, made her debut in “Elektra” under the lead of Semion Bychkov in Royal Albert Hall. In the same year she made her debut in Carnegie Hall with 9th Symphony of Beethoven with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under the lead of Franz Welser-Möst, and also performed Margarita’s part in E. Wolf-Ferrari’s opera “Die vier Grobiane” at the Prinzregententheater (Munich, Germany).
Her creative activity is very closely connected with Ukraine. Singer has repeatedly performed the role of Carmen at the National Opera of Ukraine in Kyiv and at the Odessa Opera and Ballet Theater. In 2017 and 2018 she took part in the LvivMozArt festival. In 2017, she performed at the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the National Opera of Ukraine in G. Mahler’s 2nd Symphony, and in 2018 – in the project “I will return to Ukraine” on Sofiyska Square in Kyiv.
In 2016, she became the “Person of the Year” in the field of culture and art in Ukraine.
Since 2019 she has been the honorary president of the Galician Music Society.
PAUL GAUGLER
opera singer (tenor), award-winner of both Vincenzo Bellini and Armel Opera competitions
France
Studied at the Strasbourg Conservatory, his native town, and graduated at the Paris National Superior Conservatory for Music and Dance. Afterwards he joined the Academies of Ambronay and Royaumont. Winner of Vincenzo Bellini and Armel Opera competitions, he made his debut as Duca di Mantova from Rigoletto (Pilsen Opera, Szeged National Theater).
Among the most successfully created artistic images are the following: heroic title role Dante by Benjamin Godard (Saint-Étienne Opera house), Pollione from “Norma” (Chisinau National Opera), Faust from “La Damnation de Faust” (Glyndebourne Festival cover; Compiègne Imperial Theater), Bacchus from “Ariadne auf Naxos” (Royaumont), Boris from “Kat’a Kabanova” (European tour, awarded Best Lyrical Production by the Professional Critics Union), Don José from “Carmen” (Saint-Paul-de-Vence Festival, Cluny Festival, Yaoundé Congress Palace, Lviv National Opera), Janik – hero of Janacek’s “Diary of the One who Disappeared” (Arcal tour, Île-de-France Festival), Tamino from “Die Zauberflöte” (Cannes Palace of Festivals); Octavio in “L’Europe galante” (Ambronay Festival, Vichy, Besançon, San Sebastián opera houses) and many others.
In concert, he performed Verdi’s “Requiem” and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony (Saint-Étienne Opera house); Stravinsky’s Threni (Bastille opera amphitheater); as well as recitals and galas (Lviv National Philharmonic, Shanghai Symphony Hall, Bastia opera house, Institute of France, Bordeaux national opera house, etc.).
Regularly participates in humanitarian musical projects (Council of Europe; CALMS-Les Voix solidaires; UNESCO, etc.).
BEATA KLATKA
head of the Opera Academy of the Polish National Opera,
director of the International Stanisław Moniuszko Vocal Competition
Poland
Started musical education at the children’s choir of the Polish National Opera in Warsaw, conducted by opera singer, choirmaster, outstanding teacher, who trained a generation of musical youth, Władysław Skoraczewski. She finished her studies at Performing Arts Faculty of the Fryderyk Chopin Academy of Music, class of flute of the professor Elzbieta Gajewska, and continued her postgraduate studies, specializing in public relations, at the Warsaw School of Economics.
She worked as a flutist in the orchestra of the Polish Radio (1991-1993); in the orchestra of the Polish National Opera in Warsaw (1993-1995); in 1991-2012 she taught flute at the Musical Schools of Warsaw (at the Fryderyk Chopin Academy of Music and State Music School No. 1).
In 2007, she began her collaboration with the Polish National Opera, starting from the impresario department. Since 2010, has been coordinating “AKADEMIA OPEROWA” (Opera Academy), an educational program for young artists. In 2012, she was appointed as a director of the International Stanisław Moniuszko Vocal Competition.
OLEKSANDR PUSHNIAK
opera singer (bass baritone), soloist of the Deutsche Nationaltheater und Staatskapelle Weimar
Ukraine – Germany
Graduated from the National Music Academy of Ukraine in Kyiv. Intern at the Washington National Opera (USA), participant in the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program under the direction of Placido Domingo during 2007-2010.
Since 2011, he has been performing as a member of the Staatstheater Braunschweig (Germany).
In 2012, singer won First Prize and Audience Favorite at the Wagnerstimmen International Singing Competition for Wagner Voices in Germany, and in 2013 was invited to sing the role of Donner in R. Wagner’s “Das Rheingold” as his debut at the Bayreuth Festival.
In autumn 2016 made his successful debut as the Flying Dutchman in Singapore. Guest engagements took him in 2017/18 as Amanasro (“Aida”) to the Deutsche Oper am Rhein Duisburg and the Oper Halle, as well as Filippo II (“Don Carlo”) at the Immling Festival.
Engaged at Deutsche Nationaltheater und Staatskapelle Weimar since December 2018, he has performed here as Leporello (“Don Giovanni”), Scarpia (“Tosca”) and Mercer in the world premiere of the opera “The Circle” by Ludger Vollmer based on the novel by Dave Eggers “Audience in front”.
Among his creative achievements are participation in festivals conducted by Lorin Maazel (Virginia, USA), Bayreuth Festival (2013, Germany), performances at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein Duisburg (Germany), Kennedy Center (USA), National Opera of Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine), Concertgebouw halls (Amsterdam, the Netherlands), theaters in Braunschweig, Magdeburg, Halle, Kiel, Regensburg, Meiningen (Germany), performances in Singapore, performances with the Hong Kong Philharmonic. As well as the world premiere of the audio recording of F. Liszt’s opera “Sardanapalo” under the direction of Ukrainian conductor Kirill Karabits for the recording studio of the Audite Label and the recording of Donner’s part from R. Wagner’s opera “Das Rheingold” for the Naxos Label.
A prominent page in the singer’s creative work was the role of the Dragon (Drache) in the opera “Lancelot” by P. Dessau under the direction of the outstanding German opera director Peter Konvichny, as well as scholarships of the Richard Wagner Union (Braunschweig, Germany), Rudolf Breuer scholarship (Weimar, Germany), Oscar and Vera Ritter Scholarship (Hamburg, Germany), Amichi del Belcanto Award (Vienna, Austria), Composer Luis Spor Medal Award (Seesen, Germany).
SLAVOMIR JAKUBEK
dramaturge, director of the “ASART” agency
Slovakia
Graduated from the Faculty of Music of the High Music School in Bratislava, the Department of Theory and Musical Critics. Since 1984 he has been working at the Editorial Board of the symphony, chamber and opera music on Slovak Radio, specializing in opera. He has proved to be an excellent author of multiple programs, moderator, playwright, editor and organizer. Later he worked as a senior editor responsible for collaborating with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in the field of classical music. As a playwright, he participated in numerous radio recordings and CD releases of leading Slovakian opera singers. For two years, he was the editor-in-chief of the most famous Slovak music magazine “Hudobný život” (Musical Life).
Since 2005, was a playwright, later the main playwright and vice director, and in 2015-2018 – the director of the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava.
Currently, heads up ASART Artistic Agency.
SOFIA SOLOVIY
opera singer (soprano), soloist of the Myroslav Skoryk Lviv National Philharmonic
Ukraine
One of the most interesting lyric and dramatic sopranos of her generation. She is a winner of 15 international vocal competitions in Italy, Austria, Poland, Germany and Canada.
Acclaimed as the Female Singer of the Year at music critic Adelina Yefimenko’s rating of musical events and personalities of 2020.
Sofia’s professional career has mainly been evolving on the stages of Europe, although she has toured extensively in Asia, South and North America, as well as in Japan, Oman and the UAE.
She studied singing at the Lysenko Lviv Academy of Music (Prof. V.Chaika and Prof. I.Kushpler). After that, continued her vocal education in Italy: at the Academy of Opera “Accademia d’Arte Lirica” in Ozimo, at the “Accademia Rossiniana” in Pesaro, at the Academy “Chigiana” in Siena, at the Music Institute “Istituto Superiore di Studi Musicali Vecchi Tonelli” in Modena, as well as at masterclasses in Germany, Italy, Poland and Austria with such famous singers and opera conductors such as Raina Kabaivanska, William Matteuzzi, Alberto Zedda, Gustav Kuhn, Gianluigi Gelmetti, Claudio Desderi.
Her wide operatic and chamber music repertoire includes pieces of different styles and epochs: from baroque to works of contemporary composers of the XX-XXI centuries. During her career she has performed in about 40 operas on the stages of many theaters around the world: Teatro Real in Madrid, Wiener Staatsoper, Grand Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Opéra municipal de Marseille, Theater San Carlo in Naples, Teatro dell’Opera in Rome, Teatro Donizetti in Bergamo, Teatro Grande in Brescia, Opéra Royal de Wallonie in Liège (Belgium), Royal Opera House Muscat in Muscat (Oman) and others.
Participated in numerous opera festivals, such as d’Aix-en-Provence (France), “Festival della Valle d’Itria” in Martina Franca (Italy), Sferisterio in Macerata (Italy), Belcanto Opera Festival “Rossini in Wildbad” in Bad Wildbad (Germany), “Wielkanocny Festiwal Ludwiga van Beethovena” in Warsaw and “Muzyka w Starym Krakowie” in Kraków (Poland), as well as in festivals in Ukraine: “Tulchyn Operafest” in Tulchyn, and “Virtuosos”, “Contrasts” and LvivMozArt in Lviv (Ukraine).
Singer actively performs in Ukraine. Since 2020 she has been a soloist of the Myroslav Skoryk Lviv National Philharmonic, and in 2021 she became a teacher at the Mykola Lysenko Lviv National Music Academy and Lviv Krushelnytska State Music Lyceum.
ADRIAN KELLY
conductor, head of the International Opera Studio of the Zurich Opera House, artistic director of the Buxton Festival
England
Following his studies at the University of Cambridge, English conductor became a member of the Young Artists Programme at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and was then a coach at the Hamburg State Opera.
His engagements included appearances at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires and a tour of the USA conducting the Baroque pasticcio The Infernal Comedy with actor John Malkovich. In the summer of 2014 he conducted a new production of “Le nozze di Figaro” at Central City Opera in Colorado.
From 2010-2017 he was first conductor and from 2017 to 2019 music director at the Salzburg State Theater. He regularly worked with the Mozarteum Orchestra, Salzburg. He has conducted numerous productions in Salzburg, such as Krenek’s “Jonny spielt auf”, Verdi’s “Rigoletto” and Massenet’s “Werther”. Recent highlights in Salzburg include Massenet’s “Manon”, “Hänsel und Gretel” in the Felsenreitschule and “La bohème” at the Haus für Mozart. In February 2016 he took over the musical direction of the critically acclaimed Austrian premiere of Charles Wuorinen’s “Brokeback Mountain” as well as a cycle of Mozart Da Ponte operas with director Jacopo Spirei.
From 2015 to 2020 he was a musical director of the Young Singers Project at the Salzburg Festival.
Has been head of the International Opera Studio at Zurich Opera House since the 2020/21 season.
He is also Artistic Director of the Buxton Festival in England, where he will conduct a new production of Rossini’s “La donna del lago” in July 2022.