The development and nurturing of a true Verdi soprano is a passionate affair, and Sharon Azrieli is fortunate in possessing a lirico-spinto voice of power, warmth and point – while also having as her guide and mentor into the major soprano roles in operas such as La Forza Del Destino, Aida, Un Ballo In Maschera, and Il Trovatore – New York's finest voice teacher, Bill Schuman. To her delight, she has found that the great Verdi heroines suit her vocally and artistically, a roster of roles to which she has added the Puccini heroines of Tosca, Madame Butterfly, Manon Lescaut, and Liu in Turandot.
Earlier in her career, Ms. Azrieli has portrayed Juliette (Romeo and Juliette) with the Canadian Opera Company in 1992 and in the same season covered the role of Mimi (La Bohème). Later, at the Banff Center in Alberta she created the lead role in the new opera Nosferatu, was engaged by l'Opéra Bastille in Paris to cover Mirella Freni as Adriana (Adriana Lecouvreur), and received glowing praise for her portrayal of Laurette (Dr. Miracle) with L'Opéra Français de New York. During the summer of 2003, she sang Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) with the Vermont Opera Festival and more recently, the Verdi Requiem with the New West Symphony in Los Angeles, and Mahler Symphony No. 8 with the National Academy Orchestra of Canada.
She has performed varied works of Sacred Music, including the Mass in C Minor by Beethoven and Rossini's Stabat Mater. On the concert stage, Ms. Azrieli has brought to life opera arias and a large collection of songs by Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninov. Her concerts with orchestras include the Jerusalem Symphony, the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, the Haifa Symphony, the Israel Cameri Orchestra and the McGill Chamber Orchestra.
A native Montrealer, Ms. Azrieli is a graduate of Vassar College and the Juilliard School, fluent in six languages, finalist in the Luciano Pavarotti International Vocal Competition, and district winner of the 1993 Metropolitan Opera auditions.
REPERTOIRE
