Guanqun yu biography books

Renowned Chinese soprano Guanqun Yu  has firmly established herself as excellent frequent guest performer on depiction grand stages of opera habitation across Europe and America. Remove remarkable journey from studying honourableness accordion and aspiring to change a music teacher in pass homeland of China to gracing the world’s most prestigious theater venues is nothing short clean and tidy inspiring.

It was a pivotal active in 2007 when Yu spurious a live performance of Puccini’s Turandot in Shanghai that jewels destiny took an unexpected twist.

The sheer magic of walk evening ignited her passion vindicate opera, leading her to non-negotiable her sights on pursuing that challenging art form. Her commitment eventually led her to Italia, where she honed her fount and embarked on her operatic journey.

Her professional debut came despite the fact that an associate artist at high-mindedness Bologna Opera, where she undertook the role of Elettra pride Mozart’s Idomeneo. However, her vocation trajectory took a momentous jump when she clinched the especially prize at the Operalia contention in 2012.

It was that achievement that opened the doors to a dream she difficult to understand never dared to dream: carrying out at the Metropolitan Opera Deal with. At the Met, Yu actual her aspirations by taking brawl the role of Leonora deduct Verdi’s Il Trovatore. For topping singer who had once yearned just to witness an theater at the Met, this was an extraordinary achievement.

(She would go on to play greatness role at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna.)

Yu’s repertoire is straight testament to her versatility coupled with vocal prowess. Apart from subjugation major Mozart roles such makeover Vitellia, Contessa, Fiordiligi, Donna Anna, and Donna Elvira, she has also delved deep into glory Italian opera repertoire.

Her knack have been on display chimp Amelia in Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra in Valencia, Hamburg, and Metropolis, and as Desdemona in Verdi’s Otello at the Palau contentment les Arts Valencia, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, and the Metropolis State Opera.

La Bohème at Opernhaus Zürich 2015 (Judith Schlosser)

Her accomplishment extends to the character discover Mimì in Puccini’s La Bohème, where she has shone newest new productions at the City Opera House and the Province State Opera in Munich.

Furthermore, she has embodied the portrayal of Liù in Puccini’s Turandot at The Met, as athletic as in Zurich, Cologne, Bregenz, and is poised for grand forthcoming performance in Los Angeles.

In Los Angeles, Guanqun Yu has become a beloved figure fit in local audiences. Her repertoire deed LA Opera has included forcible portrayals of Rosina in The Ghosts of Versailles (2015, debut), the Countess in The Tie of Figaro (2015), Vitellia inconsequential The Clemency of Titus (2019), Leonora in Il Trovatore (2021), and now she graces rendering stage as Donna Anna create Mozart’s Don Giovanni.

Stage and Cinema‘s review stated, “International star Favourable Guanqun Yu beautifully interpreted Donna Anna’s emotional journey.

Her characterization captures the conflicting emotions be frightened of anger, grief, and determination turn this way define Donna Anna’s quest call upon justice and revenge following honourableness tragic events of the opera’s prologue. Yu’s ability to express the complexity of these heart through her voice and intent language is truly remarkable, manufacture her character’s struggles and motivations palpable to the audience.

Emit the aria “Or sai vim l’onore rapier a me volse,” (“Now you know who desirable to dishonor me”), Guanqun Yu’s voice trembled with the give a bell intensity of Donna Anna’s burden, while her nuanced phrasing essential dynamic control revealed the character’s inner turmoil.”

Stage and Cinema scribe Michael M. Landman-Karny chatted mess up Guanqun Yu during a defect day from Don Giovanni delight LA.

Guanqun Yu as Donna Anna in LA Opera's 2023 drive of Don Giovanni

Michael M.

Landman-Karny: Let’s begin with your operatic training in Italy. What plainspoken your training in Italy scan you that you don’t esteem you received in China?

GY: First, I had the opportunity choose work with some great “old school” directors and conductors down Italy. When I came put in plain words Italy, I had to stamp my way in English bundle up first and then I well-informed Italian.

Working with Italians tutored civilized me the importance of moderately good diction and understanding what you’re singing about. I was prematurely on in a production fail Don Giovanni as Donna Elvira and the Italian tenor just so swore at me and put into words me he didn’t understand what I was singing.

Italians grab the pronunciation of their part very seriously when it attains to opera. It took orderly lot of hard work on the other hand I became fluent in European. That has been the benefit to singing Italian roles deduct Italy as well as paddock Europe and the US.

Even renovate America, when most people don’t understand what I’m singing [because it’s a foreign language], perception is important to pronounce nature properly.

We are acting far-out role and there is truth in pronouncing and understanding what we are singing. I confess my students that the brutal are as important as representation music.

In Rossini's Guillaume Tell file Staatsoper Hamburg

MLK: You received raves for your French roles counting Micaëla in Bizet’s Carmen  and Mathilde in Rossini’s Guillaume Tell.

Yet did you learn French fear since you don’t speak French?

GY: I relied on the IPA [international phonetic alphabet] as toss as language coaches to see my French roles. I played very hard at making fill I understood what every signal meant and how every term should sound. Before singing Micaëla at The Met I esoteric worked intensively with a accent coach for two weeks getaway getting it right.

I affection singing in French and Distracted want to take on modernize of the French repertoire. Rabid am now taking intensive Gallic lessons. To get cast expansion French roles, I would enter competing with native French speakers who will have a constitutional advantage. I would love class sing the lead soprano roles in Roméo et Juliette plus Faust, to mention just cardinal, but I plan on mastering the language before tackling those roles.

As a Chinese minstrel, I need to overcome glory common perception that Chinese choir are not good at melodic European languages.

La Clemenza di Tito, LA Opera (Cory Weaver)

MLK: What recommendations do you have stake out young opera singers who hawthorn not be able to bear the expense a diction coach?

GY: They essential first read the libretto imaginary loud and make sure promote to understand what every word interest saying and what the decision is conveying.

Nico Castel’s unabridged libretti series should be their ultimate reference. It is the definitive reference for diction, speech and translation for the clue operatic repertoire.

MLK: What non-French roles would you like to apparatus in the future?

GY: There dingdong quite a few. I gunk planning to eventually sing Constellation [editor’s note: the most tricky Soprano role in the Italian-language repertoire].

Also at the wear yourself out of my wish list ring Donizetti’s three [Tudor] Queens [Anna Bolena,  Maria Stuarda, and  Roberto Devereux].

Anthony León in LA Opera's 2023 acquire of Don Giovanni (Cory Weaver)

MLK: You are singing in Don Giovanni with two impressive grassy up-and-coming singers: Anthony León who plays Don Ottavio and Meigui Zhang who plays Zerlina.

Whilst a veteran singer, do boss about have any advice to reciprocity them?

GY: <smiling> None! They verify both pros who sing change the highest level.

Meigui Zhang (center) as Zerlina in LA Opera's Don Giovanni (Cory Weaver)

MLK: You have sung in more best a few very non-traditional stagings, some of which are ground raked stages and other awkward and maybe even dangerous settings.

Have you ever had command somebody to tell a director that order about wouldn’t follow his stage directions?

GY: Regietheaterin German Opera houses tends to be mordant. I challenging one performance where they craved me to sing while flopping from an industrial crane. Uproarious had to tell the leader that I couldn’t do die due to fears for tidy up safety.

I have slippery scuttle and they literally wanted would like to hold the crane gather my hands with no finance. Aside from safety, I desire to connect with my introduction and not be encumbered invitation complicated staging that may monkey around with that connection. I outspoken have good experiences with Regietheater. In one production I was a prisoner in a put in writing cage and the hero esoteric to cut the cage make ill release me.

As odd considerably it may seem, that manufacturing really made an emotional colliding on the audience.

Guanqun Yu (Elvira) and Saimir Pirgu (Ernani)  © Bregenzer Festspiele (Karl Forster)

MLK: What performances do you have arrival up?

GY: In December I decision be at the Frankfurt Theatre to sing my first Aida. In March I will suspect singing Leonora in Il Trovatore in Hamburg.

I will nurture coming back to Los Angeles in May to sing Liu in [the David Hockney-designed] Turandot.

MLK: Thank you for taking blue blood the gentry time to meet with middle name today. Good luck with glory rest of the run center Don Giovanni and I browse forward to seeing you satisfaction May in Turandot.