Marina
Rebeka
Reviews
BIOGRAPHY
The Latvian soprano Marina Rebeka is one of the leading opera singers of our time and has made a name for herself in particular with roles of the dramatic bel canto.
Since her international breakthrough at the Salzburg Festival in 2009 under the baton of Riccardo Muti, Marina has been a regular guest at the world’s most prestigious concert halls and opera houses, such as the Metropolitan Opera and Carnegie Hall (New York), Teatro alla Scala (Milan), Royal Opera House Covent Garden (London), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Bavarian State Opera (Munich), Vienna State Opera and Zurich Opera House. She collaborates with leading conductors such as Riccardo Muti, Zubin Mehta, Antonio Pappano, Fabio Luisi, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Daniele Gatti, Marco Armiliato, Michele Mariotti, Thomas Hengelbrock, Paolo Carignani, Ottavio Dantone and Dan Ettinger. Outstanding is her varied repertoire, which ranges from Baroque (Handel), Bel canto (Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti) and Verdi (La Traviata; Simon Boccanegra; Il Trovatore), to Tchaikowsky (Eugeny Onegin) and Stravinsky (The Rake’s progress).
Marina will open the 2024/25 season with her role debut of Lisa in Verdis LA BATTAGLIA DI LEGNANO at Teatro Regio di Parma. As Maria in SIMON BOCCANEGRA Marina will return to Teatro San Carlo in Naples, followed by two MADAMA BUTTERFLY productions at Vienna State Opera and Opera Zurich. At Opéra national de Paris she will sing Elisabetta in Verdis DON CARLO bevor she returns to Teatro alla Scala in Milanto sing the title role in Bellinis NORMA. Besides her operatic engagements, Marina will sing concerts at Théâtre du Capitole Toulouse, as well as concerts in London, Barcelona and Madrid with the London Symphony Orchestra.
Highlights of her last seasons include her role debut of AIDA at Berlin State Opera, she sang Cherubinis MEDEE at Teatro alla Scala Milan as well as at Berlin State Opera. As Leonora in IL TROVATORE she returned to Munich State Opera, to the Royal Opera House in London and Berlin State Opera. She sang Elena in VESPRISICILIANI and Mimi in LA BOHEME at Teatro alla Scala and performed with the Munich Philharmonics, the Filarmonica della Scala and sang concerts at Palau deles Arts as well as at Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris.
During the summer 2021, Marina sung Nedda/PAGLIACCI at Arena di Verona, followed by her appearance at the Festival in Aix de Provence, where she sung Lucrezia/I DUE FOSCARI. She opened the 2021/21 season with Leonora/I TROVATORE at Opera Zürich before she debuted Cio-Cio-San/MADAMA BUTTERFLY at Palau de les Artes in Valencia. With the title role in THAIS she returned to La Scala in Milan, and opend with ANNA BOLENA the Tudor Trilogy at the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam. At the end of the season, she sang Julia/LA VESTALE at Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris and returned in the title role of NORMA to Liceu Barcelona.
The last seasons saw Marina Rebeka making her house debut at Théâtre du Capitole Toulouse as NORMA, at Teatro Real Madrid singing Violetta/LA TRAVIATA and Marguerite/FAUST, followed by her role and house debut with ANNA BOLENA at Opéra National de Bordeaux. She returned to the Salzburg festival as Amelia/SIMON BOCCANEGRA, to Hamburg in a new production of NORMA, to the Vienna State Opera to sing Tatyana/EUGEN ONEGIN and Amelia/SIMON BOCCANEGRA Mimi/LA BOHEME and to debut Nedda/PAGLIACCI. She sang Violetta/LA TRAVIATA at Teatro alla Scala in Milan, gave a recital in Paris, Zürich, Toulouse and at La Scala. She debuted as Desdemona/OTELLO at Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and returned for THAIS to Opera Montecarlo.
As an active and widely noticed concert performer, she has given recitals at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, the “Rudolfinum” Concert Hall in Prague, St. John’s Hall in London, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Großes Festspielhaus Salzburg, Palau della Música in Barcelona and Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, accompanied by such ensembles as the Mahler Chamber Orchestra Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, and Filarmonici della Scala.
She recorded Rossini’s “Petite Messe Solennelle” with the Orchestra of Santa Cecilia in Rome under Antonio Pappano for EMI (Warner Classics) in 2012. Her first solo CD, “Mozart Arias” with Speranza Scappucci and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, was released by EMI (Warner Classics) in November 2013. Her next album, “Amor fatale” – Rossini arias with Marco Armiliato and the Münchner Rundfunkorchester – was released in the summer of 2017 by BR-Klassik. The recording of Verdi’s “Luisa Miller” with Marina in the title role was released by BR Klassik in spring 2018 and in summer 2018 Deutsche Grammophon released the recording of Mozart’s “La Clemenza di Tito”, conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, featuring Marina in the role of Vitellia. Her third Solo Album “Spirito”, which includes the best-known scenes and arias of the dramatic bel canto repertoire has been released to critical acclaim under her own record label PRIMA CLASSIC in November 2018. In 2019 a full recording of LA TRAVIATA, featuring Marina in the role of Violetta was released, followed by her next solo albums “Elle” and “Credo” in 2020 and 2021.
Born in Riga, Marina Rebeka began her musical studies in Latvia and continued in Italy, where she graduated from the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia in Rome (2007). During her studies, she also attended the International Summer Academy in Salzburg and Rossini Academy in Pesaro. In the 2017/18 season she was named the first-ever artist in residence by the Münchner Rundfunkorchester. In December 2016 she was granted the Order of the Three Stars, the highest award of the Republic of Latvia, for her cultural Achievements.