Elena Obraztsova lights up stars! International competitions under her guidance have opened doors to the opera world for a constellation of singers.

On June 6, opera diva Elena Obraztsova will present prize-winners of her competitions. Many of them are Novaya Opera soloists, who have risen to eminence in their profession. Famous Italian conductor Fabio Mastrangelo will conduct the concert.

The winner of the 1st Elena Obraztsova International competition was soprano Lyubov Petrova (then a Novaya Opera soloist). In two years she made her Metropolitan-opera debut, launching her brilliant career in the West. She performs at the Washington National Opera, the Paris Opera, the Albert Hall, the Ottawa Opera Lyra, the Dutch National Opera, the Dallas Opera, the Colon and Real Theatres, to mention but a few.

Yulia Mennibaeva took part in the International Competition for Mezzo-Sopranos in memory of Fedora Barbieri. Elena Obraztsova set a difficult task to assess not only vocal technique and language skills, but primarily stage presence. The jury marked Yulia’s performance very high and awarded her the Second Prize. She also won public recognition during her participation in the Grand Opera TV competition.

Aleksey Tatarintsev is the winner of the International Competition in memory of Luciano Pavarotti, founded by the Elena Obraztsova Cultural Centre in 2008. Currently Aleksey Tatarintsev is a leading Novaya Opera tenor, a guest singer of the Bolshoi Theatre and the Tatarstan Opera Theatre in Kazan. In 2012 he made his international debut at the Paris Opera, followed by his performances in Teatro Regio in Turin and opera houses in the Netherlands and Denmark.

The 3d competition in 2003 saw the long awaited victory of Novaya Opera soloist Ilya Kuzmin and the Third Prize (in 2001 he was awarded a special diploma for the “Best performance of the German Lied”). The press writes that Ilya, a leading baritone of the theatre, is one of the stylistically and emotionally finest performers and his artistic drive is unmatched in any role.

Roman Burdenko won First Prize of the 7th Elena Obraztsova International Competition. The Novaya Opera audience knows Roman, a soloist of the Novosibirsk Theatre, as Tomsky in the premiere performances of The Queen of Spades (2013). The famous baritone is a guest singer of opera houses in the UK, Germany, the USA, Spain, France, and Chile.

Byron Janis said of Russian and American cellist Borislav Strulev: “He plays as if he were to the cello born. His sound, phrasing, coloring and technique already place him in position to follow the Russian tradition of cello playing. Watch this young man, and more importantly, listen to him.”