Anita Rachvelishvili

Noted for her exceptionally powerful voice and passionate performances, Anita Rachvelishvili first came to fame in the role of Carmen in the opera of the same name although she also distinguished herself as Delilah in 'Samson & Delilah', Dulcinee in 'Don Quixote' and Koncakovna in 'Prince Igor'. From Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, she sang jazz and soul at high school before falling in love with opera after seeing a live performance of 'Don Giovanni'. She went on to study piano at the Mukhran Machavariani School and singing at the Vano-Sarajishvili Conservatory. Still a student, she appeared as Maddalena in 'Rigoletto' and as Olga in 'Eugen Onegin' and in 2007 became a student at La Scala Academy where she drew great inspiration from one of her tutors, the Turkish soprano Leyla Gencer. She went on to be discovered by Daniel Barenboim who invited her to star in the title role of 'Carmen' at La Scala even though she originally auditioned for the role of Mercedes. It was the televised opening night playing the famed gypsy star in 2009 that made her an instant international star. A strong and resilient person she particularly responded to the social aspects to opera playing a series of strong women after 'Carmen' including Amnris in 'Aida', Azucena in 'Il Trovatore' and Eboli in 'Don Carlo'. She went on to specialise in interprerations of Verdi and wasn't afraid to diversify, singing at one point with the Italian prog rock band Profusion.

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