Tassos Apostolou comes from Athens, where he trained as a singer with Frangiscos Voutsinos. With the aid of a scholarship from the Onassis Foundation he continued his studies with Maria Luisa Cioni and R. Negri in Milan, where he won the Luigia Stramesi International Song Competition. He is a graduate of the Veakis Dramatic Art School and was taught acting by Luca Ronconi at the Piccolo Theatre, Milan. Engagements as a soloist have taken him to the Greek National Opera in Athens, Thessaloniki Opera, the United Nations in New York City, Boston, the Lincoln Center, New York, the opening ceremony for the new library in Alexandria, the Athens State Orchestra, the Greek Television Symphony Orchestra, the Qatar Symphony Orchestra, the Thessaloniki State Orchestra and the State Orchestra of Cyprus. He has also sung in the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, in Delphi, in the Megaron Concert Hall in Athens, in Milan and Beijing (China), and has appeared in films by Theo Angelopoulos and others.

Der schweizerisch-griechische Bariton Kimon Barakos wurde in Basel geboren. Nach dem Schulabschluss studierte er zunächst Rechtswissenschaft, Germanistik und Musiktheorie, bevor er 2015 in die Gesangsklasse von Prof. Marcel Boone an der Hochschule für Musik Basel eintrat. Bereits 2017 schloss er seinen Bachelor mit Bravour ab und setzt seither seine Studien bei Prof. Boone und bei Prof. Rosa Dominguez an der Schola Cantorum Basiliensis fort. Darüber hinaus erhielt Kimon Barakos wichtige Impulse in Meisterkursen mit Margreet Honig, Valerie Guillorit, Paul Triepels und Evelyn Tubb. Sein Fokus liegt neben Alter Musik vor allem auf dem Kunstliedrepertoire.

The Russian mezzo soprano first trained in the vocal programme at the State Conservatoire in Stavropol and then at the Gnessin Institute in Moscow. From 2015 to 2017 she was a member of the Bolshoi Theatre Moscow Youth Opera Program, where she completed her training with Prof. Dmitry Vdovin and others. Vasilisa Berzhanskaya has won prizes at the Muslim Magomaev International Vocalists Contest, the tv channel Cultura’s Grand Opera Competition, the Russian National Music Competition and the Elena Obraztsova International Chamber Music Competition. Her most recent engagements include. Rosina («Il barbiere di Siviglia»), Principessa Melibea («Il viaggio a Reims»), Lola («Cavalleria rusticana») and Sonjetka («Lady Macbeth von Mzensk») at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Despina («Cosi fan tutte») at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and appearances at the Singapore International Festival of Music, Carnegie Hall New York and the Salzburg Festival. In 2017/2018 Vasilisa Berzhanskaya will sing the part of Rosina («Il barbiere di Siviglia») at the Mikhailovsky Theatre St. Petersburg. She is an ensemble member at the Deutsche Oper Berlin.

Mezzo soprano Anastasia Bickel was born in Tasmania and trained with Dr. Margaret Schindler and at the Queensland Conservatorium. The young singer is already a sought-after soloist in Australia, having performed over twenty oratorios including Handel’s «Messiah » and Bach’s «Matthew Passion». In 2013 she made her operatic debut as the Sorceress («Dido and Aeneas») at the Mornington Peninsula Music Festival. Since then her roles have included Hänsel («Hänsel und Gretel») and Florence Pike («Albert Herring») for the Brisbane Festival. Anastasia Bickel is a scholarship holder at the Lisa Gasteen National Opera School, where her stage performances include Olga («Eugene Onegin») and Flosshilde («Götterdämmerung»). Anastasia Bickel is a member of the opera studio OperAvenir at Theater Basel for the 2017/2018 season, singing the roles of Annina («La traviata»), Second Maid («Elektra») and Anneli in «Der Goldkäfer».

Die aus Italien stammende Sopranistin studiere am Institut «A. Peri» in Reggio Emilia Trompete und Gesang und erwarb in beiden Fachrichtungen ein Diplom. Anschliessend bildete sie sich bei Monica Piccinini im Barockgesang weiter. Im Jahre 2012 absolvierte sie ein Master-Studium an der Schola Cantorum Basiliensis bei Gerd Türk mit Auszeichnung. 2010 gewann sie den dritten Preis des Concorso Internazionale di Canto Barocco «Francesco Provenzale» in Neapel, und 2013 mit dem Ensemble «Cafebaum» den erster Preis der «Göttinger Reihe» der Händel-Festspiele. Alice Borciani sang sowohl als Solistin als auch in Vokalensembles in zahlreichen Theatern und Musikfestivals in Italien und anderen europäischen Ländern (Salzburger Festspiele, Ravello Festival, Fringe Utrecht Oudemuziek Festival, Leipziger Bachfest, Theater Basel, Teatro comunale di Modena, Schlosstheater Potsdam, Arena di Verona, Festival «La Folia» Rougemont). Sie arbeitete mit bedeutenden Dirigenten wie u. a. Jordi Savall, Ottavio Dantone, Andrea Marcon, Thomas Hengelbrock und trat mir verschiedenen Ensembles auf, u. a. La Cetra Barock­orchester Basel, der Cappella Reial de Catalunya, dem Balthasar Neumann Chor, der Accademia Bizantina, der Cappella Mediterranea sowie der Zürcher Singakademie.

Der amerikanische Tenor Zach Borichevsky hat seit seinem mit Auszeichnung abgeschlossenen Studium an der Academy of Vocal Arts, Philadelphia, mit zahlreichen Rollendebüts auf der Opernbühne für Aufsehen gesorgt. Seither gilt er als eines der vielversprechendsten Talente seines Fachs. Beispiele für diese Debüts sind u.a. Edmondo («Manon Lescaut») an der Metropolitan Opera New York, Rodolfo («La bohème») an der English National Opera und der Finnish National Opera sowie Alfredo («La traviata») beim Glyndebourne Festival. Weiterhin debütierte Zach Borichevsky als Lensky («Eugen Onegin») an der Airzona Opera, Edgardo («Lucia di Lammermoor») an der Opera Carolina und der Toledo Opera, Romeo («Roméo et Juliette») am Teatro Municipal Santiago de Chile, Matteo («Arabella») und Anatol («Vanessa») beim Santa Fe Festival, Eisenstein («Die Fledermaus») an der Cincinnati Opera, Tamino («Die Zauberflöte») an der Boston Lyric Opera und Jonathan Dale in Kevin Puts Oper «Silent Night» an der Opera Philadelphia. In der Saison 2017/2018 debütierte Zach Borichevsky ausser am Theater Basel auch an der Dallas Opera als Alfredo («La traviata»). Zudem ist der mehrfach ausgezeichnete Tenor ein gefragter Konzertsänger und wird in dieser Spielzeit erstmals mit dem National Symphony Orchestra, Washington bei einer Aufführung von John Adams Oper/Oratorium «The Gospel According to the Other Mary» unter der Leitung von Gianandrea Noseda und mit dem St. Louis Symphony Orchestra unter der Leitung von Hannu Lintu musizieren. 

Katarina Bradić was born in Prokuplje, Serbia, and trained as a singer at Novi Sad Music Academy and the Vienna Conservatoire. She first rose to international fame during the 2009/2010 season as a member of the ensemble at der Vlaamse Opera, where her roles included Olga in «Eugene Onegin», Suzuki in «Madame Butterfly» and Medea in Cavalli’s «Giasone». In the summer of 2010 she made her debut as Carmen – now one of her most important roles and one she has performed in Tallinn, Erfurt, at the Komische Oper Berlin and in Oslo. Katarina Bradić is also sought after the world over for the baroque repertoire and has been heard in the title role of Francesco Pistocchi’s «Il Narciso» in Cologne, as Amastre in Handel’s «Xerxes» at the Komische Oper Berlin, the Bergen Festival, the Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Düsseldorf and at Graz Opera. In the summer of 2015 she made her debut as Bradamante in «Alcina» at the Festival in Aix-en-Provence.

In the 2106/2017 season at Theater Basel Katarina Bradić appears as Bradamante in Handel’s «Alcina».

Irish soprano Sarah Brady graduated in Vocal Studies from the Royal Academy of Music in Dublin. She has already performed with the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra and the RTÉ National Concert Orchestra in Ireland. As part of a singing project with the Juilliard School New York the soprano has also made appearances in both London and New York. She has also sung in New York and Estonia on a cultural exchange programme for the Ireland US Council. On the operatic stage her roles have so far included; Pamina («The Magic Flute»), Sicle («L’Ormindo»), Novice («Sour Angelica») as well as the title role in the world premiere of «Vampirella». In 2017 Sarah Brady was a finalist in the Mozart Singing Competition and she is a winner of the prestigious RDS Music Bursary. She has performed a range of oratorios from Bach to Britten. Sarah Brady is a member of the opera studio OperAvenir at Theater Basel for the 2017/2018 season, singing the roles of Celia («Lucio Silla») and Lilith («Der Goldkäfer»).

After training as a singer, the tenor Karl-Heinz Brandt was initially engaged by Stadttheater Aachen and the Musiktheater im Revier Gelsenkirchen before becoming a company member at Theater Basel in 1998. Guest performances have taken him to the state theatres in Karlsruhe, Wiesbaden, Darmstadt, Nuremburg and Hanover as well as to the Semperoper Dresden, Komische Oper Berlin and the Opéra de la Bastille in Paris. Karl-Heinz Brandt has worked with directors including Herbert Wernicke, Christoph Nel, Peter Konwitschny, Philipp Stölzl and Calixto Bieito. In Christoph Marthaler’s hit production «Meine faire Dame» he has performed at the Théâtre National de L’Odéon and both the Avignon and Edinburgh Festivals. He is a sought-after concert and oratorio singer who has sung at the Alte Oper Frankfurt with the baroque orchestra «La Stagione Frankfurt» under Michael Schneider, at the Tonhalle in both Zurich and Düsseldorf, at the Philharmonie in both Cologne and Berlin, at the Palais de la Musique in Strasbourg with the Stuttgart Chamber Choir and Baroque Orchestra under Frieder Bernius, in Bamberg both with the Bamberger Symphoniker under Hans Zender and in Mozart’s «Requiem» as a memorial concert for the conductor Sinopoli who died in 2001. At Theater Basel Karl-Heinz Brandt has appeared in productions including: «Don Carlos», «L'Orfeo», «Sekretärinnen», «Lulu», «From the House of the Dead», «Carmina Burana», «Wozzeck» and «Katja Kabanova». He was seen most recently in the world premiere «Anschlag» by Michael Wertmüller (director: Georges Delnon), a co-production with the Lucerne Festival, which was also invited to the MaerzMusik Festival in Berlin.

Hailey Clark trained at the universities of Maryland and Michigan. She was a member of the young artist programme at Santa Fe Opera and Florida Grand Opera and was also a regional finalist in the Metropolitan Opera Council Auditions.
Since 2012 she has given numerous role debuts in America including Leila («Les pecheurs de perles») at Fort Worth Opera, Donna Elvira («Don Giovanni») and Freia («Das Rheingold») at North Carolina Opera. For Florida Grand Opera she has sung Micaëla («Carmen») and Fiordiligi («Cosi fan tutte»). She first came to Europe in 2016, making her debut at the Salzburg Landestheater in the role of Alma Beers in Charles Wuorinen’s «Brokeback Mountain». For this performance she was awarded the Austrian Music Theatre Prize in the category «Best Female Leading Role». Last season she made her debut at Staatstheater Stuttgart as Fiordiligi and at Central City Opera in the same role as well as returning to the Salzburg Landestheater as Musetta («La Boheme»). This season she has become an ensemble member at Theater Basel.

The Bolivian bass began training as a singer with Katia Escalera in Bolivia and Charles Roe in Arizona, USA. Since 2012 he has been a student of Marcel Boone at the Hochschule für Musik in Basel. José Coca Loza has completed masterclasses with Silvana Bazzoni Bartoli as part of the Menuhin Festival. He was the winner of the Quest For The Best competition for young singers in Tucson, Arizona in 2011 and won third prize in the Oper Schloss Hallwyl competition in Switzerland in 2014. 

He has already made numerous opera appearances in the USA and Bolivia, with parts including Laeka («Incallajta» by Atiliano Auza Leon), Mr Kofner (Menotti’s «Consul»), Betto (Puccini’s «Gianni Schicchi») and Balthazar (Menotti’s «Amahl and the Night Visitors»). José Coca Loza made his operatic debut in Switzerland in 2013 as Sparafucile in «Rigoletto» in Haldenstein and at the Tonhalle, Zurich. Subsequent roles have included Fauteuil in Ravel’s «L’enfant et les sortilèges» and in Boieldieu’s «La dame blanche». In 2015 he performed with the festival orchestra in the closing concert of the Menuhin Festival in Gstaad and also sang at the Tiroler Festspiele’s Christmas Gala conducted by  Gustav Kuhn.

The tenor Juan José de León trained as a singer in Texas and won awards in several international competitions. From  2011 to 2013 he was a member of the Resident Artist Program at Pittsburgh Opera, during which time he appeared on stage as Gastone in «La traviata» (Verdi), Borsa in «Rigoletto» (Verdi), Spoletta in «Tosca» (Puccini) and Nadir in «Les pecheurs de perles » (Bizet). He made his debut at the New York Met during the 2013/2014 season in the American premiere of Nico Muhly’s opera «Two Boys». This was followed by guest roles as Fenton in «Falstaff» (Verdi) at Santa Barbera Opera and Count Almaviva in «Il barbiere di Siviglia» (Rossini) in Rome. Juan José de León recently made role debuts as the Italian Tenor in «Capriccio» (Strauss) at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and both Beppe in «Pagliacci» (Leoncavallo) and Lord Arturo in «Lucia di Lammermoor» (Donizetti) at La Scala, Milan. He has also sung Don Ramiro in «La Cenerentola» in Stuttgart, Paris, Limoges and Montreal.

Before training as a singer, Tasmanian-born Bryony Dwyer served for several years with the Royal Australian Navy, appearing during this time as a singer with the Navy Band at military memorial events in many Australian states and in Europe. While studying singing at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music the soprano sung roles including the Governess in Britten’s «The Turn of the Screw» and played the Vixen in Janáček’s «The Cunning Little Vixen» for the Sydney Chamber Opera. Bryony Dwyer also gave regular concerts with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra. At home in Tasmania, she has worked with the Tasmanian Chamber Orchestra, singing Belinda in Purcell’s «Dido and Aeneas». On completing her training, the soprano went straight to the Vienna State Opera, first with a scholarship for winning Opera Foundation Australia's «Vienna State Opera Award 2012» and then from the 2013/2014 season as a member of the company. Here Bryony Dwyer could be seen in roles including Giannetta in «L'elisir d'amore», Barbarina in «Le nozze di Figaro», Papagena in «Die Zauberflöte» and Jouvenot in «Adriana Lecouvreur». Bryony Dwyer made her debut at Cologne Opera in 2015 as Ännchen in «Der Freischütz». The soprano became a member of the opera studio OperAvenir at Theater Basel in the 2015/2016 season.

Young Israeli soprano Hila Fahima is an ensemble member at Wiener Staatsoper, where she has appeared as Gilda/«Rigoletto», Princesse Eudoxie/«La Juive», Oscar/ «Un Ballo in Maschera», Pousette/«Manon», Frasquita/«Carmen», Clorinda/«La Cenerentola», Waldvogel/«Siegfried», Sophie/«Werther», Servilia/«La clemenza di Tito», Fiakermilli/«Arabella», Najade and Zerbinetta/ «Ariadne auf Naxos», Nanetta/«Falstaff» and Sidonie in Gluck’s «Armide», conducted by Marc Minkowski.

Recent highlights include a house debut at the Théâtre du Capitole de Toulouse as Blondchen/«Die Entführung aus dem Serail», La Pastourelle/«L'Enfant et les Sortilèges» at Glyndebourne Festival, Poulenc’s Gloria at the Prague Spring Festival, her debut at Oper Graz as Die Königin der Nacht/«Die Zauberflöte», a role she has also performed at the Waldbühne in Berlin, the Deutsche Oper Berli and the Aalto Theater Essen, «Ein junger Hirt» in a concert performance of «Tannhäuser» at the BBC Proms with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, concerts with the NDR Radiophilharmonie in their «Podium der Jungen» series, Amore in «Orfeo et Euridice», Oscar/«Un Ballo in Maschera and Gilda/«Rigoletto», all at The New Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv.

The 2017/18 season includes the Faure Requiem with the French Radio Philharmonic Orchestra under Mikko Franck, Handels «Arodiante» on a tour with Les Arts Florissants and a return to Deutsche Opera Berlin as Gilda/«Rigoletto».
 

The tenor Dmitry Golovnin did not discover singing until the age of 27. He had previously studied the trumpet in his home city of St. Petersburg and been engaged as a trumpeter by  the Symphony Orchestra of St. Petersburg’s Glink Chapel and the brass section of the Mariinsky Theatre. After studying as a vocalist with S. K. Burejew he moved on to William Workman at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hamburg. Dmitry Golovnin also received further musical inspiration from Franz Grundheber, Elena Obraztsova and Badri Maysuradze. After his first roles at the opera houses of Hamburg and Lübeck, the tenor made his debut in Seville and Lübeck in 2003/2004 in the role of Don José in «Carmen». Dmitry Golovnin has been a company member of the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St. Petersburg since 2007, where he sings roles including Alfredo in «La Traviata», Tsarevich in «Boris Godunov», the Prince in «Rusalka», Cavaradossi in «Tosca», Vaudémont in «Iolanta», Gustavo in «Un ballo in Maschera», Turiddu in «Cavalleria Rusticana» and Pinkerton in «Madame Butterfly». Dmitry Golovnin was nominated for the coveted Golden Mask Award in the category «Best Opera Singer» for Erik in «The Flying Dutchman».
Guest engagements have taken him to stages such as the Komische Oper Berlin, the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg and the Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona. He has also been seen as Prince Myshkin in the world premiere of «The Idiot» at Nationaltheater Mannheim, the Painter in Olga Neuwirth’s «American Lulu» at the Theater an der Wien, Andrei Khovansky in «Khovanshchina» at the Vlaamse Opera in Antwerp and as Dante in «Francesca da Rimini» at the Opera La Monnaie in Brussels.

Geboren in der litauischen Hauptstadt Vilnius, studierte Asmik Grigorian in Litauen und Nizza. Sie war im Ensemble der Nationaloper Riga, sang an der Litauischen Nationaloper und gastierte vielfach am Mariinskii-Theater, am Bolschoi-Theater und an der Komischen Oper Berlin, u. a. in den Titelpartien von «Rusalka» und «Manon Lescaut». Für die Partie der Tatjana in «Eugen Onegin», die sie in Moskau und an der Komischen Oper Berlin übernahm, erhielt sie 2016 den London Opera Award als Beste Nachwuchssängerin. In Rom und Stockholm sang sie Cio-Cio-San in «Madama Butterfly», in Köln, Amsterdam und bei den Salzburger Festspielen Marie in «Wozzeck», in St. Petersburg Senta in «Der fliegende Holländer» und Desdemona in «Otello». Als Judith in «Herzog Blaubarts Burg» war sie u.a. an der Vlaamse Opera und in Wiesbaden zu erleben.

Canadian tenor Nathan Haller trained as a singer at the Juilliard School in New York with Edith Wiens and is the winner of the Novick Career Advancement Grant. His repertoire includes Tamino («Die Zauberflöte») and Albazar («Il Turco in Italia»); and he has been heard recently in both roles in Italy.
In recent years Nathan Haller has worked with several distinguished conductors from the field of ancient music: William Christie («La Resurrezione» by Handel and «Actéon» by Charpentier), Gary Thor Widow («St. Matthew Passion»), Richard Egarr («Hail to St. Cecilia» by Purcell) and Helmuth Rilling («Mass in B-minor»). He has sung in numerous concerts with the Münchner Rundfunkorchester conducted by Michael Hofstetter. Other concert engagements have included the New York Festival of Song at Carnegie Hall, the Alice Tully Hall and the Peter Jay Sharp Theater. Nathan Haller has taken part in the International Meistersinger Academy, where he gave concerts with the Münchner Rundfunkorchester under Paul Hostetter and others.  In the summer of 2014 he sang with Juri Gilbo and the Russian Chamber Philharmonic of St. Petersburg at the Schaffhauser Opera Gala and toured as a solist with Masaaki Suzuki performing Bach cantatas in Boston, New York, Leipzig and London.

Vom Houston Chronicle für ihren «warmen geschmeidigen Sopran» und von der New York Times für ihre «strahlende» und «herrlich resonante Stimme» gelobt, tritt der Sopran Nicole Heaston an Opernhäusern weltweit auf, darunter Metropolitan Opera N.Y., Houston Grand Opera, San Francisco Opera, Dallas Opera, Washington National Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Semperoper Dresden, Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Düsseldorf und bei Festivals wie Glyndebourne Festival, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence und Wiener Festwochen.

Heaston’s Engagements in der Saison 2016/17 waren u.a. Adina in L’elisir d’amore an der Houston Grand Opera, Haydn’s Schöpfung mit dem Houston Symphony Orchestra, La contessa Almaviva an der Boston Lyric Opera. Sie hat eine lange Arbeitsbeziehung mit der Houston Grand Opera, wo sie u.a. Gilda, Susanna und Pamina gesungen hat. Seit ihrem Debüt an der Metropolitan Opera hat sie regelmässig dort gastiert, u.a. als Ilia, Pamina und Echo in Ariadne auf Naxos.

Ihre Engagements 2015/16 waren u.a. Alice Ford in Falstaff an der Royal Danish Opera in Kopenhagen, La contessa Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro an Den Norske Opera und der Utah Opera. 2014/15 sang Heaston die Pamina in Die Zauberflöte an der Houston Grand Opera, die Titelrolle Alcina an der Royal Danish Opera, Arminda in La Finta Giardiniera beim Glyndebourne Festival, und 2011/12 und die Titelrole in L’incoronazione di Poppea an der Semperoper Dresden.

Nicole Heaston ist in Chicago geboren und lebt in Houston.
 

The Cologne-born mezzo-soprano took masterclasses with Brigitte Fassbaender, Christa Ludwig and Aribert Reimann while still a student at the University of the Arts in Berlin. Her first full-time engagement came at the Semperoper in Dresden, where she sang under the direction of conductors including Antonio Pappano, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Riccardo Chailly and Michael Boder. Guest engagements followed in parts from the German and Italian repertoires at the great European opera houses such as Amsterdam, Munich, Berlin, Vienna, Brussels,
Barcelona, Toulouse, Glyndebourne and Paris. Ursula Hesse von den Steinen began her career as a Wagnerian singer with a sensational debut as Fricka in «Das Rheingold» in Karlsruhe. Since then she has appeared on stage as Venus («Tannhäuser») in Mannheim, Adriano («Rienzi») in Riga and Ortrud («Lohengrin») in Berne. Most recently the mezzo-soprano has thrilled audiences as Herodias («Salome») in Klagenfurt, the Foreign Princess («Rusalka») at the Komische Oper Berlin, Margret («Wozzeck») at De Nationale Opera in Amsterdam and Matilde («Lotario») at the International Händel Festival Göttingen 2017.

Eve-Maud Hubeaux was born in Geneva in 1988. She studied singing at Lausanne Conservatoire and was trained as an opera singer at the «Atelier Scénique». She was subsequently engaged by Lausanne Opera and by the opera studio at the Opéra national du Rhin. Since then the multi-award-winning mezzo soprano has performed at numerous opera houses at home and abroad. She made her debut at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels as the High Priestess in 2015 in the world premiere of Pascal Dusapin’s «Penthesilea», sang Waltraute («Die Walküre») at Frankfurt Opera, Carmen in Klagenfurt and Mary («Der Fliegende Holländer») at Opéra de Lyon. The young mezzo soprano has also made guest performances at the Festival in Aix-en-Provence and the Opéra national de Paris.

In the 2016/2017 season at Theater Basel, Eve-Maud Hubeaux appears as Brigitta in Korngold’s «Die tote Stadt».

Pavlo Hunka wurde in England geboren, als Sohn eines ukrainischen Vaters und einer englischen Mutter. Sein Operndebüt gab er 1990 am Theater Basel und war hier als Ensemblemitglied bis 1994 u.a. als Scarpia («Tosca»), Leporello («Don Giovanni»), Figaro («Le nozze di Figaro»), Bartolo («Il barbiere di Seviglia») und Rigoletto zu erleben. Anschliessend gastierte er u.a. an den Opernhäusern in Paris, Wien, München, Florenz, Amsterdam, Madrid, Moskau, London, Rom, Berlin, Toronto – unter Dirigenten wie Claudio Abbado, Jeffrey Tate, Semion Bychkov, Zubin Mehta, Peter Schneider, Simon Rattle, Daniel Barenboim, Esa-Pekka Salonen und Kirilll Petrenko. Zu den Höhepunkten seiner Karriere gehören Pizarro («Fidelio») in München und an der Wiener Staatsoper, die Titelpartie in «Wozzeck» in Florenz, Doktor («Wozzeck») an der Staatsoper Berlin, Schigolch («Lulu») in Brüssel und München, Macbeth in Berlin, Falstaff in Toronto, Tomski («Pique Dame») in Madrid, Klingsor («Parsifal») und Hunding («Der Ring des Nibelungen») am Bolshoi-Theater in Moskau, Alberich («Der Ring des Nibelungen») in Lyon, Boris («Lady Macbeth von Mzensk») in London. Zu seinen kommenden Engagements gehören Alberich («Ring des Nibelungen» in Odense und Leipzig sowie Siskov («Aus einem Totenhaus») in Brüssel. Pavlo Hunka ist Künstlerischer Direktor des Ukrainian Art Song Project, das sich die Aufnahme einer Anthologie von über 1000 klassischen ukrainischen Kunst-Liedern von 26 ukrainischen Komponisten zum Ziel gesetzt hat. Mit «Der Spieler» ist er erstmals nach 23 Jahren wieder am Theater Basel zu erleben.

Eine besondere Spezialität des in Italien geboren Baritons Ivan Inverardi sind die dramatischen Baritonpartien in den Opern Verdis und Puccinis. Eine seiner Paraderollen ist Baron Scarpia («Tosca»), den er bereits an der Deutschen Oper Berlin, am Theater St. Gallen, am Teatro Carlo Felice Genoa, am Teatro Bellini Catania und am Seoul Arts Center verkörperte. Weitere Höhepunkte seiner Gesangskarriere sind u.a. Michele («Il Tabarro») an der Opera North, Rigoletto z.B. in der Arena di Verona, am Teatro Massimo Palermo, am Teatro Regio Turin, an der Opera di Firenze, der Deutschen Oper Berlin und am Staatstheater Wiesbaden. In der Arena di Verona war der Bariton auch in der Titelpartie von Verdis «Nabucco» zu erleben. An der Washington Opera und beim Caracalla Festival Rom sang er Amonasro («Aida»). Die Partie des Renato («Un ballo in maschera») führte den Bariton nach Montpellier, an das Teatro Regio Turin und wieder an die Deutsche Oper Berlin, wo er ausserdem Jago («Otello») sang – eine Partie in der er auch in Barcelona und Graz zu erleben war. Am Theater Basel singt Ivan Inverardi in der Saison 2017/2018 Giorgio Germont in Verdis «La traviata». 

The baritone Domen Križaj was born in Kranj (Slovenia) and trained as a singer at the University of Ljubljana’s Music Academy while also studying medicine. He took part in numerous masterclasses, sang in choirs and other ensembles and is already able to look back upon numerous appearances as a soloist. He won First Prize with the highest marks and the prize for Most Promising Singer at the Slovian Youth Music Competition 2008, Third Prize in 2010 and First Prize once again in 2013. In 2012 he won First Prize in the younger division of the «Ferruccio Tagliavini» International Competition for Opera Singers in Deutschlandsberg. That same year he was also awarded First Prize at the International Petar Konjović Competition in Belgrade. He took part in the Salzburg Festival Young Singers Project in 2013. Domen Križaj is a member of the opera studio OperAvenir at Theater Basel for the 2017/2018 season.

In April 2017 Michael Kupfer-Radecky made his successful debut at La Scala, Milan with Hans Sachs («Die Meistersinger»). The year before he had taken over the same part at short notice for the Opéra de Paris/Bastille. The baritone from Ravensburg made his role debut as Hans Sachs at the Tiroler Festspiele in Erl. In November 2016 he made his first appearance as Wotan in «Die Walküre» at the Budapest State Opera after singing Wotan in «Das Rheingold» on various occasions including under Valery Gergiev at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. He enjoyed sensational success as Jochanaan in a new production of «Salome» under Alexander Soddy in Klagenfurt which he repeated in November 2016 at the Royal Opera Stockholm and in January 2017 at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, where he could also be heard as Faninal in «Der Rosenkavalier». Michael Kupfer-Radecky made a guest appearance in the same role in April 2017 at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and in the following June in Beijing. At the 2017 Dresden Festival he sang Pizarro in a semi-staged performance of «Leonore» under Ivor Bolton.

Finnish soprano Pauliina Linnosaari was awarded a distinction in her Master’s degree in Music and Vocal Studies by the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki in 2007 and continued her studies at the Metropolia University of Applied Science (Finland) and the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University (USA). She was awarded scholarships by the Matti Salminen Foundation in 2009 and the Finnish Wagner Society in 2010. That same year the soprano was also a member of the opera studio at the Deutsches Nationaltheater Weimar.

She has won numerous prizes and competitions, including 1st Prize at the Kangasniemi Singing Competition in 2008, 3rd Prize at the International Klaudia Taev Singing Competition in 2009 and in 2016 she was the winner of the Encouragement Award in the Wagner Division of the International Gerda Lissner Singing Competition. Pauliina Linnosaari has been a regular guest at the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki since 2008 where she has appeared as Senta («Der fliegende Holländer »), Aksinya («Lady Macbeth von Mtsensk»), 4the Maid («Elektra») and Praskovja Osipovna («The Nose»).The soprano has been an ensemble member of the Saarländisches Staatstheater in Saarbrücken since the 2017/2018 season where she can be seen in roles including Mathilde («Guillaume Tell»), Salome («Salome»), the Marschallin («Der Rosenkavalier») and Mimì («La bohème»).

Die in Russland geborene Sopranistin Kristina Mkhitaryan erhielt ihre Ausbildung am Galina Vishnevskaya Theatre Studio und am Gnessin-Konservatorium in Moskau. Von 2012 bis 2015 war die junge Sopranistin Mitglied des Young Artists Opera Program am Bolschoi-Theater, wo sie weiterhin regelmässig als Gastsolistin auf der Bühne steht. Kristina Mkhitaryan hat bereits zahlreiche Preise für ihr Können erhalten, darunter 2013 den ersten Preis der Queen Sonja International Competition in Oslo. Im selben Jahr erzielte sie den dritten Preis beim Wettbewerb «Neue Stimmen» ebenso bei der Viotti Competition 2014. Beim Operalia Gesangswettbewerb 2017 erhielt sie den dritten Preis. In der vergangenen Saison war Kristina Mkhitaryan u.a. als Giulietta («Capuleti et Montecchi») in Bergen, als Micaëla («Carmen») und Violetta («La traviata») an der Norwegischen Nationaloper in Oslo und beim Glyndebourne Festival sowie in Genf als Isifile/Sole («Il Giasone») zu erleben. Zukünftige Engagements führen die Sopranistin u.a. an De Nationale Opera Amsterdam (Eritea in «Eliogabalo»), die Bayerische Staatsoper (Violetta in «La traviata») und die Dallas Opera.

The bass baritone Andrew Murphy comes from Dublin, where he also trained as a singer. Andrew Murphy has been a company member at Theater Basel since 2001 and was most recently heard in «Così fan tutte» as Don Alfonso (directed by Calixto Bieito).
From 1986 to 1989 he was a member of the Opera Studio at the Bavarian State Opera. During this time he continued his training with Hans Hotter and Sena Jurinac. He was subsequently with the Vienna Chamber Opera from 1989 to 1992 and taught by Austrian baritone Walter Berry. Andrew Murphy returned to Germany in 1992, staying with the Stadttheater Ulm until 1995. He was subsequently engaged as a company member at Staatstheater Saarbrücken from 1995 to 2001, before finally moving to Theater Basel, whose company he has belonged to ever since. His extensive operatic and concert repertoire includes:  Buonfede («Il mondo della luna»), Figaro and Doctor Bartolo («Le nozze di Figaro»), Leporello («Don Giovanni»), Don Magnifico («La Cenerentola»), Doctor Bartolo («Il barbiere di Siviglia»), Mustafa («L’Italiana in Algeri»), Dulcamara («L’elisir d’amore»), Don Pasquale («Don Pasquale»), Schaunard («La Bohème»), Sixtus Beckmesser («Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg»), Golaud («Pelléas et Mélisande»), Méphistophéles («La damnation de Faust»), Don Alfonso («Così fan tutte») and many more.

Finnish-born tenor Jussi Myllys started his international career in 2005, singing Don Ottavio in Turku and at the Komische Oper Berlin.

From 2006-2009 Myllys was a member of the ensemble of Oper Frankfurt performing in productions such as «Die Zauberflöte», «Billy Budd», «Fidelio», «La Finta Giardiniera» and «Don Giovanni». Guest engagements included «Don Giovanni» in Berlin, «Die Zauberflöte» in Dresden, «Der Fliegende Holländer» in Savonlinna, «Salome» in Geneva and «Falstaff» in Helsinki.

In 2009 he joined the ensemble of the Deutsche Oper am Rhein performing the main roles of the Mozart repertoire and broadening his repertoire towards Verdi and Strauss. In March 2010 he gave his debut at the Bayerische Staatsoper Munich in Peter Eötvös‘ «Tragedy of the Devil», returning in the following seasons as Jacquino/«Fidelio» and Tammu in the world premiere of Widmann‘s «Babylon». As a guest he performed at the Opéra Bastille, Frankfurt Opera, Savonlinna Opera Festival, Komische Oper Berlin.

Recent highlights include «Der fliegende Holländer»/Steuermann in Munich, «Zauberflöte» at Teatro Liceu Barcelona, «Eugene Onegin»/Lenski in Helsinki as well as a concertante performance of «Babylon»/Tammu at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam.

At this year’s festival in Savonlinna, Myllys will be performing as Belmonte/«Die Entführung aus dem Serail» as well as in the world premiere of Sallinen’s «Castle in the Water».  

Projects in the season 2017/18 include the title role in Lucio Silla at Theater Basel as well as other important roles of his «fach» such as Rinuccio/«Gianni Schicchi», Tamino/«Zauberflöte» and Italian Singer/«Der Rosenkavalier» at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Düsseldorf. 
 

After training at the Royal College of Music, the soprano born in Bedford (UK) made her debut at London’s Royal Opera House Covent Garden in 2001 as the Third Flowermaiden («Parsifal»). In 2013 she was awarded the Opera Awards Foundation Bursary to study with Dame Anne Evans. She made her name in the role of Isolde («Tristan und Isolde»), which she has performed at venues including the Théâtre des Champs Elysées, Stuttgart Opera, the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma and the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe. She has also performed the title role in «Fidelio», and Lady Macbeth («Macbeth») at Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe and for NI Opera as well as Eva («Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg») at both the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe and English National Opera in London. For Theater Basel she will be singing the role of Elektra for the first time. Rachel Nicholls is also a highly sought-after concert singer. She has appeared with such prestigious orchestras as the Bach Collegium Japan, the BBC Symphony, the City of Birmingham Symphony, the London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and has worked together with conductors including Sir Colin Davis, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Valery Gergiev, Sir Roger Norrington and Sir Simon Rattle.

Sofia Pavone (mezzo-soprano) began studying at the Musikhochschule in Cologne under Mechthild Georg and completed her Master’s degree at the Hochschule für Musik und darstellende Kunst Frankfurt with Hedwig Fassbender with distinction in July 2014.  She is now taking the postgraduate course there with an examination concert. She has taken masterclasses with Brigitte Fassbaender, Helmut Deutsch, Axel Bauni and Ulrich Eisenlohr. She has been awarded a scholarship by the Frankfurter Bachkonzerte and in 2013 received a scholarship from the Richard Wagner Association in Cologne to attend the Bayreuth Festival. Sofia Pavone’s concert repertoire extends from Bach via Rossini to contemporary music. Visiting opera performances took her to the Städtische Bühnen Münster and Theater Aachen at an early stage. Sofia Pavone made her debut as The Curious Old Lady in Prokofiev’s «The Gambler» in January 2013. The same year she appeared as the young Chinese Wu in the German premiere of Peter Maxwell Davies’s opera «Kommilitonen!» at the Stadttheater Giessen, where she was also recently seen as Pierotto in «Linda di Chamounix» by Gaetano Donizetti.  She also sang the role of Zita in Giacomo Puccini’s «Gianni Schicchi» at LAB Frankfurt.

The Italian baritone Vittorio Prato has taken leading roles in operas by Handel, Mozart, Donizetti and Rossini at some of Europe’s great theatres including; the Staatsoper Berlin, Liceu Barcelona, Barbican Centre London, Opéra de Lyon, Opéra de Liege, Théâtre du Capitole de Toulouse, the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées and Opera Comique in Paris, the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, Teatro Filarmonico di Verona and the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro. He has also been seen in «Die lustige Witwe» (Danilo) at the Teatro Petruzzelli Bari, «La Bohème» (Marcello) at the Opéra de Lausanne and Santiago de Chile and «Cosi fan tutte» (Guglielmo) at the Grand Théâtre de Genève. His most recent engagements include; «La Cenerentola» (Dandini) at the Gärtnerplatztheater Munich, «Il Segreto di Susanna» (Conte Gil) at Opéra de Liege, «L’elisir d’amore» (Belcore) and «Il barbiere di Siviglia» (Figaro) at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna, «Bianca e Fernando» at the Rossini Festival in Wildbad, «Demofoonte» (Matusio) at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna, «Le nozze di Figaro» (Conte) at the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma and «Il barbiere di Siviglia» (Figaro) at the Maggio Musicale in Florence. He made his debut as Germont («La traviata») as part of a tour of Japan with the Teatro Communale di Bologna.

Rolf Romei studied in Winterthur and Karlsruhe and has won several national and international competitions and prizes for emerging artists. In 1999 he was awarded the Swiss Cultural Prize. An important source of inspiration as a singer were private lessons with Nicolai Gedda. He has been engaged as a lyric tenor in companies at St. Gallen and Augsburg as well as Staatstheater Oldenburg. Guest appeareances have taken him to the opera houses in Stuttgart, Darmstadt, Berne, Aachen, Wuppertal, Würzburg, Düsseldorf, the Komische Oper Berlin, the Edinburgh Festival and the Teatro Real in Madrid.

Rolf Romei has been a company member at Theater Basel since the summer of 2006. Here he has been able to work on the great tenor parts of his metier. He has recently enjoyed great success as the titular hero in «Lohengrin», «Parsifal», «Idomeneo», «Faust» (Gounod and Berlioz) and «Hoffmann», as well as Don José, Lenski and Leukippos in «Daphne». He was also heard as Jimmy/Young Man/ in «American Lulu» by Olga Neuwirth at the Theater an der Wien.

He had previously aroused considerable attention as the Prince in Prokofiev’s «Love of Three Oranges», Sou Chong in «Das Land des Lächelns», the Painter in Berg’s «Lulu», Skuratov in Janáĉek’s «From the House of the Dead», the Prince in Dvorak’s «Rusalka» and the tenor part in the staged version of Britten’s «War Requiem».

Alongside his stage work, he pursues an active concert career. Thanks to his extensive repertoire, he is equally in demand as a performer of contemporary music and as a soloist for great oratorios and chamber music. So he has appeared at the Lucerne Festival in Mozart’s «David de Penitente» and as the Evangelist in Bach’s «St. John Passion», in the Zurich Tonhalle in Britten’s «War Requiem», in the Berlin Philharmonie with Martin’s «Golgotha» and in Lisbon with Dvorak’s «Stabat Mater». Under Helmuth Rilling he has sung in Penderecki’s «Credo», Bach’s «Mass in B-minor» and Haydn’s «Creation» and has also recorded Mozart’ s «Great Mass in C-minor» with Michel Corboz  for Swiss radio.

In the 2015/2016 season he can be heard in the Swiss premiere of «Donnerstag aus LICHT» by Karlheinz Stockhausen and in the role of  Andrey Khovansky in «Khovanshchina» by Modest Mussorgsky – conducted by Kirill Karabits and directed by Vasily Barkhatov.

After studying in Lucerne and Zurich, Mona Somm attended the Manhattan School of Music in New York to train with opera singer Mignon Dunn. For many years afterwards she was accompanied by Eva Krasznai-Gombos from Basel. On stage she has sung Senta («Der fliegende Holländer») with the Czech Opera in Prague and Ortlinde («Die Walküre») at Frankfurt Opera. Mona Somm has been a regular guest at the Tiroler Festspiele in Erl, making her debut in 2009 in the title role of Elektra, appearing as Venus («Tannhäuser») and Kundry («Parsifal») in 2011, and as Floria Tosca («Tosca») in 2012. At Theater Freiburg she delighted audiences of the new production of «Lohengrin» as Ortrud and made her debut as Sieglinde. The soprano continued her career as an interpreter of the great Wagnerian heroines as Brünnhilde in Erl («Die Walküre», «Die Götterdämmerung») in 2014 and Isolde («Tristan und Isolde») in the summer of 2015. Guest engagements have taken her to Trento, Theater Trier, the Canadian Opera Company in Toronto, the Lithuanian National Opera Vilnius, the Slovak National Theatre Bratislava, Opera Novaya in Moscow and to Shanghai and Beijing.

The mezzo-soprano from Krefeld trained in Düsseldorf and London, where she graduated from the Royal Academy of Music with distinction as a Master of Arts. She has attended masterclasses with Charlotte Lehmann, Rudolf Piernay, Barbara Bonney, Grace Bumbry and Helmut Deutsch. Kristina Stanek won the award as «Best Young Female Singer» at the European Music Festival in Rome and won First Prize at the Rotary Music Competition and at the Mozart Competition in Prague. From 2012 to 2015 Kristina Stanek was an ensemble member at Theater Trier. Here she was able to perform roles such as the eponymous heroine in Bizet’s «Carmen», Ravel’s Concepción in «L’Heure espagnole», Maddalena in «Rigoletto», Gluck’s «Orfeo», Prince Orlofsky in «Die Fledermaus», Veronica Quaife in the German premiere of Howard Shore’s «The Fly», Olga in «Eugene Onegin» and Sesto in «La Clemenza di Tito». From 2015 to 2017 she joined the ensemble at the Badisches Staatstheater in Karlsruhe where roles she sang included Romeo in Bellini’s «I Capuleti e i Montecchi», Eliza in «My Fair Lady», Hänsel in «Hänsel und Gretel», Cherubino in «Le nozze di Figaro», Annio in« La Clemenza di Tito», 3rd Lady in «Die Zauberflöte» and Wellgunde in Wagner’s «Rheingold».
Since the beginning of the 2017/2018 season Kristina Stanek has been a member of the Theater Basel ensemble.

The American tenor Matthew Swensen trained at the Juilliard School New York and the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. The young tenor is a sought-after concert and oratorio singer and made his debut at Carnegie Hall during the 2016/2017 season in Bach’s «Magnificat» alongside the Cecelia Chorus and Orchestra conducted by Dennis Keane. He also sang the tenor part in Mozart‘s «Requiem» under conductor Gary Thor Wedow at the Alice Tully Hall. Matthew Swensen was a member of the Gerdine Young Artist Program at St. Louis Opera, where he appeared on stage in works including «Grapes of Wrath» and «Madama Butterfly». He had previously been a member of the Wolftrap Opera Studio. Matthew Swensen is also a keen Lied recitalist who has performed Schubert’s «Die schöne Müllerin» in Rochester and in the Paul Recital Hall at Lincoln Center New York City. In January 2016 he was part of Marilyn Horne’s The Song Continues Festival at Carnegie Hall. Matthew Swensen is a member of Theater Basel’s opera studio OperAvenir for the 2017/2018 season.

Der aus Weissrussland stammende Tenor Pavel Valuzhin ist einer der führenden Tenöre am Bolschoi Theater. Dort sang er Partien wie u.a. Rodolfo («La Bohème»), Herzog von Mantua («Rigoletto») und Likov («Die Zarenbraut»). Als Alfredo in «La traviata» am Theater Basel singt Pavel Valuzhin erstmals in Westeuropa. Kurz darauf folgt sein Deutschlanddebüt an der Deutschen Oper Berlin in «Rigoletto». Seine Ausbildung erhielt der Tenor am Molodechny Music College und am St. Petersburger Rimsky-Korsakov Staatskonservatorium. 2013 wurde er Teil des Young Artists Program des Bolschoi Theaters, wo er seine Gesangsstudien bei Maestro Dmitry Vdovin fortsetzte. Aktuelle Projekte sind u.a. die CD-Aufnahme von Leonid Desyatnikovs «Rosenthals Kinder» unter der Leitung von Aleksander Vedernikov, ein Konzert mit Semen Skigin in Bad Kissingen und sein Debüt als Kai in Sergei Banevichs «Die Geschichte von Kai und Gerda» am Bolschoi Theater. 

Die amerikanische Sopranistin Corinne Winters erhielt ihre Ausbildung am Peabody Conservatory, der Towson University und der Academy of Vocal Arts, Philadelphia. 2013 gab die mit zahlreichen internationen Preisen ausgezeichnete Sopranistin ihr Europadebüt an der English National Opera als Violetta Valery («La traviata»). Diese Partie ist seither zu einer ihrer Paraderollen geworden, die sie auf Opernbühnen weltweit interpretiert (u.a. Royal Opera House Covent Garden, San Diego Opera, Seattle Opera, Opera Lyra Ottawa, Opera Hong Kong). Die Ausnahmesopranistin begeisterte jüngst u.a. als Katja Kabanowa an der Seattle Opera und als Desdemona («Otello») an der Opera Vlaanderen sowie als Tatjana («Eugen Onegin») an der Arizona Opera. Als Liù («Turandot») debütierte sie mit dem Orquesta Sinfónica Simon Bolívar de Venezuela unter der Leitung von Gustavo Dudamel. Am Royal Opera House Covent Garden war sie zudem als Fiordiligi («Così fan tutte») und an der English National Opera und der Washington National Opera als Mimì («La Bohème») zu erleben. In der Spielzeit 2015/2016 sorgte die Sopranistin am Opernhaus Zürich als Mélisande («Pelléas et Mélisande») für Furore. Als Liedsängerin trat Corinne Winters beim New York Festival of Song, den Vocal Arts DC und beim Tucson Desert Song auf. Hier interpretierte sie spanische Liebeslieder ihres Debütalbums «Canción amrosa». In der Saison 2017/2018 wird Corinne Winters ausser am Theater Basel auch erstmals bei den Bregenzer Festspielen und der Opera Australia zu erleben sein.

Vince Yi wurde in Südkorea geboren und wuchs in Kalifornien auf. Er studierte an der Boston University und an der University of Michigan. 2007 erhielt er einen Platz im Merola Opera Program für junge Künstler der Oper San Francisco. Sein Debüt feierte Yi 2009 an der Carnegie Hall im Rahmen der «The Song Continues»-Serie der Marilyn Horne Foundation. 2012 sang er an den Musikfestspielen Potsdam Sanssouci die männliche Hauptrolle in Hasses «Piramo e Tisbe». 2013 trat er in der Neuproduktion von Purcells «The Indian Queen» an der Oper Perm und im Teatro Real in Madrid auf. Die Produktion wurde auf DVD aufgenommen und später auch am Bolshoi Theater und an der English National Opera gespielt. Er wurde dafür in der Kategorie Bester männlicher Sänger für den russischen Golden Masks Award nominiert. Vince Yi sang ausserdem die Titelrolle in Vincis «Artaserse» an der Opéra Royal de Versailles, der Oper Köln und im Amsterdamer Concertgebouw, sowie Emilia in Vincis «Catone in Utica» (auf CD erhältlich), Sigismondo in «Arminio» (auf CD erhältlich) und Fraarte in «Radamisto».