In June of 2026 I was invited by the Sinfonietta Rotterdam and the International Competition to sing in a Masterclass with opera superstar Pretty Yende. The theme was Mozart arias and I had a hard time choosing my victim as there are a lot of mbeautiful melodies written for my voice type.
I ended up going with an aria from a role that I’d studied intensely in my Master Programme but never got to sing on stage: Donna Anna from Don Giovanni. The aria in question is Crudele… Non mi dir. A gorgeous, lyrical aria with a tricky recit at the beginning and tricky coloraturas at the end… Perfect for a tuneup after some years of leaving it be.
In this time my voice and capabilities have developed quite a lot and it was great fun to dissect the music together with Pretty, accompanied by the inimitable Amy Chang on piano. As you can see by the picture it was all about freeing up the sound, having fun and being soft in the discovery of new ideas and interpretation. Quelle joie!
