Mezzo-soprano Elizabeth DeShong has developed a reputation as “one of the most intelligent stage performers of her generation (Opera News).” Lauded equally for her musicianship and commanding stage presence, she has established herself as a regular on concert and operatic stages worldwide.
Ms. DeShong has performed extensively throughout the world with such companies as the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Opéra national de Paris, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Los Angeles Opera, Canadian Opera Company, English National Opera, Wiener Staatsoper, Royal Opera and Ballet, Oper Stuttgart, Opernhaus Zürich, Opéra National de Bordeaux, the Glyndebourne Festival, Santa Fe Opera, and Aix-en-Provence. The list of symphony orchestras with whom she has performed includes the Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Cincinnati Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony, the Royal Flemish Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Oregon Symphony, Houston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, The English Concert, and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. Her roles include repertoire from Handel (Bradamante in Alcina, Sesto in Alcina, Juno and Ino in Semele), Verdi (Ulrica in Un ballo in maschera, Azucena in Il Trovatore), Wagner (Fricka in Das Rheingold), Rossini (Calbo in Maometto II, Arsace in Semiramide, Angelina in La Cenerentola, Rosina in Barber of Seville), Puccini (Suzuki in Madama Butterfly), Mercadante (Odoardo Douglas in Il Proscritto), Tchaikovsky (Polina in Pique Dame), Bellini (Adalgisa in Norma), Mozart (Sesto in La Clemenza di Tito), Humperdick (Hänsel), Britten (Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream).
Ms. DeShong was the recipient of the Washington National Opera’s “Artist of the Year” award in 2010, for her performance as the Composer in Richard Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos. On DVD, she can be seen as Suzuki in the Royal Opera’s production of Madama Butterfly on Opus Arte, Hermia in the Metropolitan Opera’s pastiche opera The Enchanted Island (Virgin), Suzuki in the Glyndebourne Opera production of Madama Butterfly, and as Maffio Orsini in the San Francisco Opera’s production of Lucrezia Borgia (EuroArts Music and Naxos of America). Her recording of Handel’s Messiah with the Toronto Symphony under the direction of Sir Andrew Davis was released by Chandos and nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2018. Recent recordings include Handel’s Alcina with Marc Minkowski and Les Musiciens du Louvre (Pentatone) and Meyerbeer’s Le Prophète (Live from Festival d’Aix-en-Provence) with Sir Mark Elder and the London Symphony Orchestra.
Gianluca Macheda
ul. Grzybowska 43a, lok. 72 00-855
Warsaw Poland
gmacheda@gmartandmusic.com
Stefania Ramacciotti
Via Romana 578/B 55100 Lucca Italy
+39 3479762848
sramacciotti@gmartandmusic.com
A contralto opulence with blazing top notes and some of the most staggering coloratura you will ever hear
- Blessed with a splendid instrument that is rich and full from top to bottom. DeShong sailed through every demand Rossini made. Her coloratura was impeccable, her diction firm and clear.
- DeShong, an alto-ish mezzo with a voice as rich as those chocolate bars with 90 per cent cocoa, doesn’t just make Rossini’s music, fiendish coloratura and all, dance with pleasure and passion: she’s also a lovely, understated heroine.
- Vocally stunning, and shining with personality, American mezzo Elizabeth DeShong achieves power and sensitivity with her rich, focused voice, and dazzles with precise, fluent coloratura.