Danielle de Niese

With her "soft, radiant soprano," "phenomenal musicality," "unerringly comical yet immensely moving" portrayal, as well as youthful freshness and physical presence, Danielle de Niese is a regular guest at the most famous opera houses and concert halls. Her first album, Handel Arias, released in 2007 under her exclusive contract with Decca, and the Mozart Album, which followed two years later, were international successes. Her career had a promising start when, at 18, she became the youngest artist ever accepted into the Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. A year later, she made her house debut as Barbarina in Jonathan Miller's new production of Le nozze di Figaro with Renée Fleming, Bryn Terfel, and Cecilia Bartoli, conducted by James Levine. Soon after, important opera debuts followed at the Nederlandse Opera, the Saito Kinen Festival, and the Opéra de Paris. Her major international breakthrough came in 2005 as Cleopatra in her Glyndebourne debut in David McVicar's production of Handel's Giulio Cesare. The New York Times wrote of her performance: "Her absolutely secure singing is a sheer delight... She conveys an impression of pure joy and perfection, for the eyes as well as for the ears." Since then, Danielle de Niese has celebrated successes at the Opéra de Paris, Opernhaus Zürich, Nederlandse Opera, San Francisco Opera, and Lyric Opera of Chicago, to name but a few. In the concert hall, she has appeared with the New York Philharmonic, the Cleveland Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, among others. In the 2009/10 season, Danielle de Niese returned to the Metropolitan Opera and sang Susanna in the same production of Le nozze di Figaro in which she had debuted there. Other important opera engagements included L’incoronazione di Poppea at the Teatro Real, Handel's Semele at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Giulio Cesare at Glyndebourne, and Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. She also performed an all-Handel program on a European tour, accompanied by the period instrument ensemble Il Giardino Armonico. The 2010/11 season began for the singer with appearances as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro at the San Francisco Opera under Nicola Luisotti, followed by Despina in Così fan tutte under the direction of William Christie at the Metropolitan Opera, and the title role in Handel's Rodelinda under Nikolaus Harnoncourt at the Theater an der Wien. In June 2011, she will return to Glyndebourne to sing Adina in L’elisir d’amore for the first time. Danielle de Niese was born in Australia to Sri Lankan and Dutch parents and grew up in Los Angeles. She captivated audiences as a teenager when she hosted a weekly arts-oriented show for young people on a Los Angeles television station, for which she received an Emmy Award. She received dance, piano, and music lessons at the renowned Colburn School in Los Angeles and attended summer courses in Tanglewood, Aspen, and Marlboro before moving to New York in 1997 to study at the Mannes School for Music. The Nederlandse Opera awarded Danielle de Niese the "Prix d’Amis" for the audience's favorite performer of the past season. In 2008, she received the Echo Prize in the "Young Artist of the Year" category and the Orphée d’or from the Académie du Disque Lyrique for her album Handel Arias. Her highly praised second recording, The Mozart Album, was released in 2009, and Diva appeared in July 2010 in the UK. Beauty of the Baroque – an album of popular arias from English, German, and Italian music, accompanied by The English Concert under the direction of Harry Bicket – is scheduled for release in June 2011. 3/2011