Julia Lezhneva

We at the International Academy of Voice at Cardiff University are delighted that our President Dame Kiri Te Kanawa has chosen to present Julia as her protégé. It will launch Julia’s career on a global level and we are proud that our work here is also being recognised as the institution to have contributed to the advanced preparation and development of this new world-class artist.

This season saw Lezhneva's debut with Cleveland Orchestra conducted by Franz Welser-Möst performing the Mozart's Great Mass in C minor, K. 427. She appeared in concerts throughout Europe with several solo programmes, including a Handel tour to Grenoble, Lausanne and Berlin Staatsoper as well as a ‘Mozart Da Ponte’ tour throughout France, both projects with Marc Minkowski and Les Musiciens du Louvre. She performed a role of Trasimede in a worldwide premiere European tour (Kraków, Caen, and Vienna Konzerthaus) and made a live recording of Vivaldi's Oracolo in Messenia for Virgin Classics. In a return to the Salzburg Mozartwoche 2012, she performed soprano 2 solo in Bach's Magnificat and Mozart's Litanie K. 243 with Marc Minkowski and Les Musiciens du Louvre. Lezhneva also performed recitals with pianist Mikhail Antonenko throughout Russian Federation and Europe, including such venues as St-Petersburg Philharmonic, Ghent Festival of Flanders and Torroella Festival. Lezhneva performed a concert with Philippe Jaroussky under Diego Fasolis andI Barrochisti in Neumarkt and recorded a Pergolesi Duet Album for Erato/Warner classics.

Lezhneva started the season with Handel's Alessandro in concert version at the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall. The performance was followed by a recital at the Bolshoi Theatre, opening the new Baroque Festival at the theatre. She continued touring the new Handel programme performing at La Monnaie, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Grand Théâtre de Provence, Munich Herculessaal (televised by ARTE), Hamm, Merano, Basel, Zurich Tonhalle, Aschau and historical Marmorsaal in St Florian performing with different baroque groups, including La Voce Strumentale conducted by Dmitry Sinkovsky, Helsinki Baroque Orchestra, Kammerorchester Basel and Concerto Köln. Lezhneva also reprised Hasse's Siroe in Budapest Vígszínház and Theater an der Wien. In June 2015 Lezhneva made her London stage debut at the Royal Opera House performing Zerlina in Mozart's Don Giovanni.

In addition to her live performances Lezhneva recorded Handel, a new solo album with Il Giardino Armonico. The album was released on October 2015 on the Decca label and is dedicated to the composer's early works written during his trip to Italy between 1706-1710.

Lezhneva's opera performances included Zerlina in Don Giovanni on the Royal Opera House's on Japan tour in September 2015; Laodice in Hasse's Siroe in Kraków, Moscow and Amsterdam on October 2015; Asteria in Handel's Tamerlano at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and Barbican Hall in November 2015; Almirena in Handel's Rinaldo on a concert tour with Il Pomo d'Oro in February 2016; Desdemona in Rossini's Otello at the Liceu in February 2016 (her house debut); and Fiordiligi in Mozart's Così fan tutte at the Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden in May 2016.

January 2014 saw her performing the soprano solo in Pergolesi's Stabat Mater with I Barocchisti, conducted by Diego Fasolis at the Essen Philharmonie, Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the KKL. In April 2014 Lezhneva performed in solo concerts with the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra under Aapo Haekkinen in a tour that included the Helsinki Music Centre and the Lisbon Gulbenkian.

In his review of Lezhneva's recital of Handel arias at the Barbican Theatre in 2014, Andrew Bell called Lezhneva’s voice a phenomenal gift, serene and sleek with a bell like resonance, and technically flawless. He felt her interpretation lacked emotion, remarking on the apparent disconnection of the "voice of notable personality" from the person embodying it. He ranked the performance 3 out of 5 stars.

The season saw further projects with Il Giardino Armonico – her new Decca solo album Alleluia was released in March 2013 and she performed in numerous solo concerts dedicated to the CD programme throughout Europe. The CD was a Gramophone's "Editor's Choice", and received an ECHO-Klassik award.

She performed Rosina in Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia on 14 June 2013, at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, conducted Roger Norrington.

On 6 October 2013 she received her first ECHO-Klassik Award, for the Alleluia album. She also performed at the ceremony, held at the Konzerthaus Berlin, broadcast nationwide by ZDF.

Lezhneva performed a recital with pianist Mikhail Antonenko at the Quincena Festival on 6 August 2013 and continued performing recitals during that season at venues which included St. Petersburg Great Philharmonic Hall, Moscow Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts (December Nights Festival), Vic L'Atlantida, Pamplona Teatro Gayarre, Girona Auditorium. Lezhneva made her Australian debut with a recital at the Melbourne Recital Centre and a concert for Hobart Baroque Festival. She also appeared at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow on 26 December 2013 participating at the Elena Obraztsova Anniversary Gala.

In November–December 2015 Lezhenva toured her new Handel album in concerts in Germany, Switzerland, and Moscow. She gave solo concerts in April 2016 at the Budapest Liszt Academy and Prague Estate Theatre for the opening of the new Mozart Festival. In May 2016 she performed an evening of Lieder at the Mozartsaal of Wiener Konzerthaus accompanied by Mikhail Antonenko.

Lezhneva performed Elena's aria from Rossini's La donna del lago during the 2012 Victoires de la Musique Classique ceremony. She returned to the Salzburg Festival for the third consecutive season, singing the role of Asteria in Handel's Tamerlano at the Großes Festspielhaus with Marc Minkowski conducting Les Musiciens du Louvre.

Naïve released Lezhneva's first solo recording in spring 2011, Rossini arias with Marc Minkowski and Sinfonia Varsovia. The CD won the Diapason d'Or de l'Année "Jeune talent". It was the Gramophone Editor's Choice for July 2011 and the German MDR "CD des Jahres 2011".

Lezhneva's stage debut at La Monnaie in Brussels earned the artist "Nachwuchssängerin des Jahres 2011" from Opernwelt magazine.

As of 30 November 2011, Lezhneva is an exclusive DECCA solo artist.

Following her British debut in Liverpool in February 2009, Lezhneva made her London debut on 13 May 2010, at the age of 20, singing Elena's Final Rondo from Rossini's La donna del lago at the Classical Brit awards at the Royal Albert Hall. Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, recipient of the evening's Lifetime Achievement award, personally introduced Lezhneva as her protégée. Operatic tenor Dennis O'Neill, director at the Cardiff International Academy of Voice, where Lezhneva has studied since September 2008, said:

In 2010 Lezhneva participated in Il Giardino Armonico's European concert tour and recording of Vivaldi's Ottone in villa in which she sang the role of Caio. She also gave debut solo concerts at the Salzburg Festival with the Mozarteum Orchestra and Marc Minkowski

In August 2009 Lezhneva became the youngest winner of the Mirjam Helin International Singing Competition, winning first prize during its sixth competition. Among Lezhneva's other awards is the Russian 'Triumph' award for her contribution to culture and art. Lezhneva performed in concerts at such international festivals as the Salzburg Mozartwoche Festival (with conductor Marc Minkowski) and Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro (with conductor Alberto Zedda and tenor Juan Diego Flórez).

During the 2009/10 season, Julia gave solo performances in the UK, Poland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain, Norway, and Italy. In January 2010 she made her debut at the Salzburg Mozartwoche Festival, performing the soprano part in Mozart's Great Mass conducted by Marc Minkowski. In April 2010 she participated in the memorial concert for late Polish president Lech Kaczynski, singing the soprano part in Mozart's Requiem under Marc Minkowski at the Main Square of Kraków.

Lezhneva made solo appearances at the Great, Small and Rachmaninoff Halls of Moscow State Conservatory, the Great and Small Halls of Saint-Petersburg Philharmonic, the Bolshoi Theatre and also in Poland, Japan, Slovakia, Great Britain, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain, Norway and Italy. At the age of 12 Lezhneva began to participate in vocal competitions and festivals. She won the Grand Prix at both of Elena Obraztsova's international competitions, the first Competition for Young Vocalists (2006) and the sixth Competition for Young Opera Singers (2007), in which she also won all special prizes. The jury included Christa Ludwig, Eva Marton and Teresa Berganza among others.

Julia Lezhneva was born in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (Sakhalin island), Russia, into a family of geophysicists. In 2004, Lezhneva graduated with distinction from the Gretchaninov Music School in Moscow. In June 2008, she received an honours degree for her vocal studies and a diploma for piano at the Moscow Conservatory Academic Music College. She pursued her studies from 2008 until summer 2010 at what is now the Wales International Academy of Voice under Dennis O'Neill with the support of the Kempinski Arts Support Programme initiated by Marylea Van Daalen. Lezhneva there participated in masterclasses of Richard Bonynge, Carlo Rizzi, Kiri Te Kanawa, Ileana Cotrubas, and Rebecca Evans. She attended masterclasses with Elena Obraztsova in St. Petersburg in 2007, and with Alberto Zedda at the Accademia Rossiniana in Pesaro in 2008. She also attended masterclasses with Thomas Quasthoff during the 2009 Verbier Festival.

Julia Mikhaylovna Lezhneva (Russian: Юлия Михайловна Лежнева ; born 5 December 1989) is a Russian soprano opera singer and recitalist, specialising in soprano and coloratura mezzo-soprano material of the 18th and early 19th century. She studied with Tamara Cherkasova, Irina Zhurina, Elena Obraztsova, Dennis O'Neill and Yvonne Kenny.