Biography
Anna Alàs i Jové, mezzo-soprano, was born in Terrassa (Catalonia), where she received her first singing lessons with Alícia Prieto and continued these later with Julia Conwell (Vienna). During her Singing studies at the Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya with Enedina Lloris and Mireia Pintó, she attended the Karlsruhe Musikhochschule as a fellow of an Erasmus exchange programm, where she was a member of the Opera School and the Shirai/Holl Lied Class. Right after finishing her singing studies she was engaged at the Staastheater Nürnberg's International Opera Studio. Later, she completed her Masters Degree in Song and Oratorio at the Hochschule für Musik "Hanns Eisler" with Prof. Anneliese Fried and Prof. Wolfram Rieger. Important for her musical developement were masterclasses with KS Prof. Brigitte Fassbaender, KS Prof. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, KS Bernarda Fink, KS Prof. Thomas Quasthoff, KS Thomas Hampson and Cornelius L. Reid. Since the Art Song was a significant field for her, she also received inspiration from the pianists Irvin Gage, Malcolm Martineau and Hendrik Heilmann. She worked on her historical performance practice skills with Emma Kirkby, Andrew King, Al Ayre Español and harpsichordists Andrea Marchiol, Raphael Alpermann and María González.
She was awarded with the 1st Prize at the Singing Competition Joan Massia 2005, the 2nd Prize at the P.A. Cesti Singing Competition for Baroque Opera 2010, the 2nd Prize at the International Competition for the Art Song Stuttgart 2010 next to the pianist Alexander Fleischer and was finalist at the Richard Strauss Song Contest 2009. She also received scholarships from the Humboldt Foundation, the Caja Madrid (Spain) and the DAAD.
Due to her commitment to young composers she took part on many operas and song cycles premieres, but soon she also aroused the interest of the Baroque scene where she performed next to the Belgian Baroque Orchestra Ghent, Collegium 1704, Musica Florea, La Chimera, Vespres d'Arnadí, Ensemble Daimonion, Orquesta Barroca de Sevilla, Academia 1750, among others, at the Innsbrucker Festwochen der Alten Musik, Musikfestspiele Potsdam, Davos Festival, Music Bridge Prague-Dresden, WDR 3 Concerto Discreto, Teatro Gayarre, Teatro Arriaga, Festival de Música Antiga dels Pirineus, Festival Intl de Torroella de Montgrí and the Festival Castell de Peralada.
Within her work as a soloist, she has acquired a broad concert repertoire, which led her to the Berliner Philarmonie, Ópera National de Bordeaux, Heidelberger Frühling, Hirschberger Liedfest, the Berliner Konzerthaus, Glinka Hall (St. Petersburg), Palau de la Música Catalana, L'Auditori (Barcelona), Gaudí's La Pedrera, Teatro Principal (Vitoria), or the Schubertíada de Vilabertran, where she appeared alongside pianists as Wolfram Rieger, Albert Guinovart or Alexander Fleischer, and the Staatskapelle Weimar, Orquestra Camera Musicae. Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès or the Filharmonica de Málaga, among others.
As an opera singer she performed tens of roles including Rosina ("Il barbiere di Siviglia"), Donna Elvira ("Don Giovanni"), Cherubino ("Le nozze di Figaro"), Annio ("La Clemenza di Tito"), Dritte Dame ("Die Zauberflöte"), Diana ("La Calisto"), Siébel ("Faust"), L'enfant ("L'enfant et les sortilèges"), Dido ("Dido and Aeneas"), Kater ("Der gestiefelte Kater"), Simplicius ("Simplicius Simplicissimus") , Rita ("Rita"), Lola ("Cavalleria Rusticana"), Tebaldo ("Don Carlo"), La Messaggiera ("L'Orfeo"), Volpino ("Lo Speziale"), Clarisse ("L'amour des trois oranges") and Armelinde ("Cendrillon") on several stages, such as, i.a., the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin, Staatstheater Nürnberg, Karlsruhe Konzerthaus, Neuköllner Opera (Berlin), the Winteroper Potsdam, the Ludwigsburger Schlossfestspiele, Münster Theater, Landestheater Detmold, Brandenburger Theater, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Teatre Lliure (Barcelona), Teatre Nacional de Catalunya (Barcelona), Teatro Real (Madrid), Auditorio Nacional, Palacio de la Ópera La Coruña, Ópera de Oviedo, Teatre Principal de Palma de Mallorca, in collaboration with the Staatskapelle Berlin, the Nürnberg Philharmonic, the Brandenburg Philharmonic, the Orquesta Nacional de España, the Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia, the Filarmónica de Oviedo, next to inspiring artists such as Plácido Domingo, Susan Graham, Roberto Alagna, Linda Watson, Barbara Frittoli, Marc Minkowski, Thomas Hengelbrock, Konrad Junghanel, Corrado Rovaris, David Afkham, Diego Martin-Etxebarria, Achim Freyer, Robert Carsen, La Fura dels Baus, Joan Anton Rechi, Lindsay Kemp and David McVicar.
She also participated in radio and television recordings for Bayerischer Rundfunk, DeutschlandRadio, COM Radio, Catalunya Música, the International TV Channel from Portugal or RNE Radio Clásica, as well as several recordings for Editorial L'Avenç (Folklore National Award 2012), Discmedi (Best Classical Album 2015 Enderrock Critics Award, Ficta Edicions, Seed Music and Naxos Records.
Updated December 2020
OPERA (* performed on stage)
BATTISTELLI Prova d'orchestra (1º Trombone*)
BERLIOZ Benvenuto Cellini (Ascanio)
CAVALLI La Calisto (Diana*)
M.A. CHARPENTIER Actéon (Junon)
CILÉA Adriana Lecouvreur (Dangeville *)
CUI Der gestiefelte Kater (Kater*)
DEMESTRES L'eclipsi (Clàudia*)
DONIZETTI Rita (Rita *)
FALLA La vida breve (Salud)
GLUCK Iphigénie en Tauride (Sacerdotesse*)
GOUNOD Faust (Siebel*)
GUINOVART Alba eterna (Celsa*)
HAENDEL Jepthta (Storgè *)
HAYDN Lo speziale (Volpino*)
HARTMANN Des Simplicius Simplicissimus Jugend (Simplicius *)
JANACEK Tagebuch eines Verschollenen (Woman III*, Woman I)
MAGRANÉ Diàlegs de Tirant e Carmesina (Plaerdemavida * , Viuda Reposada *)
MASCAGNI Cavalleria rusticana (Lola *)
MONTEVERDI L'Orfeo (Messaggiera * / Proserpina *)
MOZART Don Giovanni (Donna Elvira *)
MOZART Le Nozze di Figaro (Cherubino *)
MOZART La Clemenza di Tito (Annio *)
MOZART Die Zauberflöte (3. Dame *)
MORERA La Santa Espina (Rosa Vera/Dardell*)
MORERA La viola d'or (Clareta*)
PROKOFIEV Die Liebe zu den drei Orangen (Clarisse*, Smeraldine)
PURCELL Dido and Aeneas (Dido*)
RAVEL L'enfant et les sortilèges (Enfant*, Maman, Écureuil, Chauve-souris)
ROSSINI Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Rosina*, Berta)
BONFILL/GARCIA/MAGRANÉ/RUMBAU Dido reloaded (Belinda, Witch) *
SPINOFF COLLECTIVE Go, Aeneas, go! (Europe) *
SERRA Tempesta esvaïda (Clara*)
STRAUSS Der Rosenkavalier (Adelige Weise*)
STRAUSS Elektra (2. Magd*)
VIARDOT Cendrillon (Armelinde*)
VERDI La Traviata (Flora*)
VERDI Don Carlo (Tebaldo*)
WAGNER Lohengrin (Edelknabe*)
WAGNER Götterdämmerung (Wellgunde*, Flosshilde*)
WAGNER Die Walküre (Grimgerde*)
CONCERT (* performed on stage)
J.S. BACH Magnificat D dur, Johannespassion *, Matthäuspassion, Cantatas BWV 11*, BWV 34*, BWV 37*, BWV 42*, BWV 43*, BWV 85*, BWV 108*, BWV 170*
L. van BEETHOVEN 9. Sinfonie *
A. VIVALDI Gloria *, Stabat Mater
J. HAYDN Nikolausmesse *, Nelsonmesse *, Paukenmesse *
G. F. HAENDEL Messiah *, Jephtha *
J. HASSE Sant'Elena al Calvario *, Brockes Passion *
G. MAHLER Symphony No. 4 *, Symphony No. 2 *
F. MENDELSSOHN Paulus *, Elias *
MONTEVERDI Madrigali: Se languidi miei sguardi *, Lamento d'Arianna *, Ohimè dov'è il mio ben *, Chiome d'oro *, Lidia spina del mio core *, Ohimè ch'io cado *, Si dolce è il tormento *
W. A. MOZART Requiem*, Grosse Messe C moll, "Ch'io mi scordi di te" *
P. CASALS El Pessebre *
G. B. PERGOLESI Stabat Mater *
F. SCHUBERT Messe Nº 4 in C, D 452 *
J. BRAHMS Altrhapsodie *
C. SAINT-SÄENS Oratorium de Noël * (mezzo & alto), Mass Num 4 *
ART SONG
MOZART, C. y R. SCHUMANN, SCHUBERT, ZEMLINSKY, A. y G. MAHLER, BRAHMS, KORNGOLD, STRAUSS, WOLF, LISZT, BEETHOVEN, SHOSTAKOVICH, DVORAK, DEBUSSY, FAURÉ, MESSIAEN, VAUGHAN WILLIAMS, BACHELET, SCHÖNBERG, GRANADOS, TOLDRÀ, MOMPOU, MONTSALVATGE, de FALLA, RODRIGO, BLANCAFORT, ELGAR, BRITTEN, CIVIL, GARCÉS, MASSIÀ, RIHM, BRIDGE, HEAD, FABREGAS, BROTONS, TIMON, CASANELLES, GARCÍA OLALLA, GARCÍA TOMÁS, ÁLVAREZ, MAGRANÉ...
Updated July 2018