Anna Kasyan (; born 7 October 1981) is a Georgian-born

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

opera singer (

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

) based in France.

Early life and education

Kasyan began her early musical training by studying piano and violin at the Central Music School for gifted children in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

, Georgia. From an early age, she participated in many performances as a soloist. At the age of nine, she made her debut with an orchestra. In 1999, Kasyan entered

Tbilisi State Conservatory Tbilisi State Conservatoire ( ka, თბილისის სახელმწიფო კონსერვატორია, ''Tbilisis Saxelmc̣ipo Ḳonservaṭoria'') is the State Conservatoire of Georgia (country), Georgia, located in t ...

in violin class. By this time she became interested in singing and in 2001, she continued studying singing at the same Conservatoryby professor Svetlana Egorova. After completing her musical education, Kasyan continued her studies in France. Since 2003, she pursued singing classes at the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris, where she graduated in 2008 with the Diploma of Higher Concertiste with unanimous approval. Simultaneous to her studies, Kasyan also entered "cycle du perfectionnement" (specialization) at

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), or the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (; CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue Jean Ja ...

between 2004 and 2006. Kasyan participated in master classes led by Tom Krause, Raina Kabaivanska, Viorica Cortez, Janine Reiss and

baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Classical music, Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance music, Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Class ...

with Nicolau de Figueiredo and Jory Vinikour.

Awards and nominations

Kasyan is a prize-winner of numerous international competitions, including the 1st

Renata Tebaldi Renata Tebaldi ( , ; 1 February 1922 – 19 December 2004) was an Italian spinto soprano, lirico-spinto soprano popular in the post-World War II, war period, and especially prominent as one of the stars of La Scala, Teatro di San Carlo, San ...

International Competition in San Marino (organized by the Renata Tebaldi Foundation in 2005, Second Prize); a First Prize in Singing Musical Autumn Festival, Adams, then a 1st Prize in Singing Competition in

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

. She was the winner of the Meyer Foundation award for the years 2004–2005. Kasyan was selected by Adami (Society for Administration of Rights of Artists, Musicians and Performers) for Revelations Classics 2006. In May 2008, she participated in International Queen Elisabeth Music Competition in Belgium. She gave an outstanding performance and the competition went well for Kasyan: 24 candidates were selected out of 72 eligible to compete. Kasyan participated in the semi-final on 13 May 2008. At the end of the semi-finals, she was one of the 12 finalists, and then became the winner of the 4th prize in this very prestigious competition held every four years. On 12 June 2009, Anna Kasyan won the Grand Prix at the 3rd International Singing Competition at the 71st Strasbourg Music Festival under the chairmanship of Barbara Hendricks. In 2010, Anna Kasyan was nominated for the Victoires de la Musique Classique award. In 2012, Anna Kasyan was selected by Ararat as being among top 50 most influential Armenians today, among other notable names such as

Charles Aznavour Charles Aznavour ( ; ; ; born Shahnur Vaghinak Aznavourian; 22 May 1924 – 1 October 2018) was a Armenians in France, French singer and songwriter of Armenian descent. Aznavour was known for his distinctive vibrato tenor voice: clear and ringi ...

Serj Tankian Serj Tankian ( , ; born August 21, 1967) is an Armenian-American musician. He is best known as the lead vocalist of the alternative metal band System of a Down, which was formed in 1994. Tankian has released five albums with System of a Down ...

, Ruben Vardanian and others.

Performances

Being an active performer, Kasyan has sung in prestigious halls such as

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...

, Opéra de Genève,

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, Salle Cortot in Paris, UNESCO, Cité de la Musique, gives concerts in San Marino and in Italy. In December 2005, she made the notable performance of Mozart's ''

Requiem A Requiem (Latin: ''rest'') or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead () or Mass of the dead (), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the souls of the deceased, using a particular form of the Roman Missal. It is ...

'' at St. Eustache Church in Paris. In 2006, she sang

Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of ...

- Scarlatti-

Haendel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well-known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

in Paris. She also performed works of

composer Garbis Aprikian before her

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

concert in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

. Her talent was rewarded again in the same year 2006, when she received: the 3rd Prize in Opera category, Mozart Prize and the Best Opera Singer Prize at the ARD International Music Competition in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, and 1 Song Award at the International

Pamplona Pamplona (; ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Navarre, Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. Lying at near above sea level, the city (and the wider Cuenca de Pamplona) is located on the flood pl ...

. In 2007, she performed in

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

, where she performed songs of

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

and French opera arias. The artist also gave a series of Mozart concerts in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, Zurich,

Osnabrück Osnabrück (; ; archaic English: ''Osnaburg'') is a city in Lower Saxony in western Germany. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population of 168 ...

and

and appeared in recital at the Festival of Sacred Music in

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one million Toulon Toulon (, , ; , , ) is a city in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera and the historical Provence, it is the prefecture of the Var (department), Var department. The Commune of Toulon h ...

(Jano in ''Jenufa''). Her recently notable roles include Zerlina in

's ''

Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; full title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanish legen ...

'', Despina in

's ''

Così fan tutte (''Women are like that, or The School for Lovers''), Köchel catalogue, K. 588, is an opera buffa in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was first performed on 26 January 1790 at the Burgtheater in Vienna, Austria. The libretto was written ...

'', Rosina in

Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. He gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano p ...

's ''

The Barber of Seville ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( ) is an ''opera buffa'' (comic opera) in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's French comedy ' ...

'' and Norina in

Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian Romantic composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the ''bel canto'' opera ...

's ''

Don Pasquale ''Don Pasquale'' () is a Gaetano Donizetti opera buffa, or comic opera, in three acts, with an Italian libretto completed largely by Giovanni Ruffini as well as the composer. It was based on a libretto by Angelo Anelli for Stefano Pavesi's oper ...

''. In September 2019, with the baritone Adam Barro, she was the head of the concert organized in tribute to Komitas in the Church of the Madeleine in Paris.

References

External links

AnnaKasyan.com – official websiteBiographical note
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kasyan, Anna Musicians from Tbilisi French operatic sopranos Georgian people of Armenian descent 21st-century Armenian women opera singers Emigrants from Georgia (country) to France 21st-century women opera singers from Georgia (country) 1981 births Living people Prize-winners of the Queen Elisabeth Competition Armenian operatic sopranos École Normale de Musique de Paris alumni 21st-century French women opera singers