Rachel Harnisch (born 1 August 1973) is a Swiss operatic

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 ...

Life

Born in

Brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...

, Harnisch studied at the

Hochschule für Musik Freiburg The Hochschule für Musik Freiburg ("University of Music Freiburg or Freiburg Conservatory of Music") is a public music academy subsidized by the State of Baden-Württemberg for academic research and artistic and pedagogical training in music. ...

with

Beata Heuer-Christen Beata Heuer-Christen (born 27 February 1935) is a Swiss-German soprano concert singer and voice teacher. Life Born in Bern, Heuer-Christen is the daughter of the violinist and member of the Bern Symphony Orchestra, Caesar Christen,August Ludwi ...

. In 2000, she made her debut as Pamina ''(

The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...

)'' at the

Stadttheater Bern Bern Theatre, known in the city as Stadttheater Bern, is an opera house and theatre in Bern, Switzerland. The theatre works in four areas: Bern Symphony Orchestra, Musiktheater (opera), Schauspiel (theatre) and Tanz (dance). History The theat ...

under the direction of Miguel Gomez-Martinez and at the

Zürich Opera House The Zurich Opera House () is an opera house in the Swiss city of Zurich. Located at the Sechseläutenplatz, it has been the home of the Zurich Opera since 1891, and also houses the Bernhard-Theater Zürich. It is also home to Ballett Zürich. I ...

with

Franz Welser-Möst Franz Leopold Maria Möst (born 16 August 1960), known professionally as Franz Welser-Möst, is an Austrian conductor. He is currently music director of the Cleveland Orchestra. Biography Franz Leopold Maria Möst was born in Linz, Austria, ...

. Further engagements took her to the

Grand Théâtre de Genève Grand Théâtre de Genève is an opera house in Geneva, Switzerland. As with many other opera houses, the Grand Théâtre de Genève is both a venue and an institution. The venue is a majestic building, towering over Place Neuve, officia ...

, to Zurich and to Santiago de Chile. In 2004, she was Fiordiligi in ''

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 ...

'' in Ferrara under the direction of

Claudio Abbado Claudio Abbado (; 26 June 1933 – 20 January 2014) was an Italian conductor who was one of the leading conductors of his generation. He served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the Berlin Philharm ...

. In Modena and Reggio nell'Emilia, she sang Micaela in ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

'', also in Bern and

Avenches Avenches () is a Switzerland, Swiss municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, located in the district of Broye-Vully District, Broye-Vully. History The roots of Avenches go back to the Celts. A ...

. She made her debut in Paris at the

Opéra Bastille The Opéra Bastille (, "Bastille Opera House") is a modern opera house in the 12th arrondissement of Paris, France. Inaugurated in 1989 as part of President François Mitterrand's '' Grands Travaux'', it became the main facility of the Paris N ...

as Pamina, directed by Robert Wilson and under the musical direction of

Jiří Kout Jiří Kout (born 26 December 1937) is a Czech conductor who currently works as both chief conductor of the and as a director of the Theater St. Gallen. Coming from the eastern surroundings of Prague, Kout experienced the Soviet influence earl ...

. In 2006, she sang her first Contessa in ''

Le nozze di Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienna ...

'' in Verona. In 2007, she made her debut at the

Deutsche Oper Berlin The Deutsche Oper Berlin is a German opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin. The resident building is the country's second largest opera house (after Munich's) and also home to the Berlin State Ballet. Since 2004, the ...

as Pamina, followed by her first Amor in ''

Orfeo ed Euridice (; French: '; English: ''Orpheus and Eurydice'') is an opera composed by Christoph Willibald Gluck, based on the myth of Orpheus and set to a libretto by Ranieri de' Calzabigi. It belongs to the genre of the '' azione teatrale'', meaning an ...

'' conducted by

Leopold Hager Leopold Hager (born 6 October 1935, Salzburg) is an Austrian conductor known for his interpretations of works by the Viennese Classics (Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert). Hager studied piano, organ, harpsichord, conducting, and composition a ...

in 2008 and Clémence in Kaija Saariaho's '' L'amour de loin'') in Antwerp and Ghent in 2009. In 2011, she sang Blanche ''

Dialogues des Carmélites ' (, ''Dialogues of the Carmelites''), FP 159, is an opera in three acts, divided into twelve scenes with linking orchestral interludes, with music and libretto by Francis Poulenc, completed in 1956. Poulenc wrote the libretto for his second o ...

'' at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. In 2012, she sang Hélène d'Egmont in the world premiere of Gaetano Donizetti's ''

Le duc d'Albe ''Le duc d'Albe'' (its original French title) or ''Il duca d'Alba'' (its later Italian title) is an opera in three acts originally composed by Gaetano Donizetti in 1839 to a French language libretto by Eugène Scribe and Charles Duveyrier. Its ...

'' at the

Vlaamse Opera Opera Ballet Vlaanderen ( Dutch; "Opera Ballet Flanders") is an opera and ballet company in Belgium directed by Jan Vandenhouwe. It operates in two different opera houses in the Flemish cities of Ghent and Antwerp. However, the company shares one ...

in Antwerp and Ghent. The work, unfinished by Donizetti, was completed by the contemporary composer

Giorgio Battistelli Giorgio Battistelli (born 25 April 1953) is an Italian composer of contemporary classical music. A native of Albano Laziale (province of Rome), he studied at the conservatory in L'Aquila and is a former student of Stockhausen and Kagel. Battistel ...

who was present at the premiere. As a concert singer, Harnisch sang Luigi Nono's ''Prometeo-Suite,'' Tippetts ''

A Child of Our Time ''A Child of Our Time'' is a secular oratorio by the British composer Michael Tippett, who also wrote the libretto. Composed between 1939 and 1941, it was first performed at the Adelphi Theatre, London, on 19 March 1944. The work was inspired b ...

,'' Schumanns ''Szenen aus Goethes Faust,'' Mendelssohn's '' Elijah '' and ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a Comedy (drama), comedy play written by William Shakespeare in about 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One s ...

,'' Debussy's ''

Le Martyre de Saint Sébastien ''Le Martyre de saint Sébastien'' is a five-act musical mystery play on the subject of Saint Sebastian, with a text written in 1911 by the Italian author Gabriele D'Annunzio and incidental music by the French composer Claude Debussy (L.124). ...

,'' Haydn's '' the Creation'' and the '' Caecilien-Messe,'' Händel's ''

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...

,'' Bach's ''

St John Passion The ''Passio secundum Joannem'' or ''St John Passion'' (), BWV 245, is a Passion or oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, the earliest of the surviving Passions by Bach. It was written during his first year as director of church music in Leipzi ...

,'' Mahler's Symphony No. 2 and Symphony No. 4, Pergolesis ''Stabat Mater,'' Haydn's '' L’isola disabitata,'' 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 ...

'' and '' Great Mass in C minor, K. 427,'' Beethoven's

Symphony No. 9 Symphony No. 9 most commonly refers to: * Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven) in D minor (Op. 125, ''Choral'') by Ludwig van Beethoven, 1822–24 * Symphony No. 9 (Dvořák) in E minor (Op. 95, B. 178, ''From the New World'') by Antonín Dvořák, 1893 ...

, Brahms' ''

Ein deutsches Requiem ''A German Requiem, to Words of the Holy Scriptures'', Op. 45 () by Johannes Brahms, is a large-scale work for chorus, orchestra, and soprano and baritone soloists, composed between 1865 and 1868. It comprises seven movements, which together l ...

'' and Poulenc's ''Gloria'' with conductors like Claudio Abbado,

Kent Nagano Kent George Nagano (born November 22, 1951) is an American conductor and opera administrator. Since 2015, he has been ''Generalmusikdirektor'' (GMD) of the Hamburg State Opera (until 2025). Early life and education Nagano was born in Berkeley, ...

and

Nikolaus Harnoncourt Johann Nikolaus Harnoncourt (6 December 1929 – 5 March 2016) was an Austrian conductor, known for his historically informed performances. He specialized in music of the Baroque period, but later extended his repertoire to include Classical ...

. With

Lieder In the Western classical music tradition, ( , ; , ; ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German and Dutch, but among English and French speakers, is often used interchangea ...

recitals - together with

Irwin Gage Irwin Gage (September 4, 1939 – April 12, 2018) was an American pianist, specializing in accompanying Lieder. Biography Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Gage studied piano at the University of Michigan with Eugene Bossart, and later at Yale with Ward ...

Maurizio Pollini Maurizio Pollini (5 January 1942 – 23 March 2024) was an Italian pianist and conductor. He was known for performances of Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy, and the Second Viennese School, among others. He championed works by contemporary composers ...

, Cedric Pescia and

Jan Philip Schulze Jan Philip Schulze is a German classical pianist. Life Schulze studied with Klaus Schilde and Michael Schäfer at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich and with Lev Naumov at the Moscow Conservatory. As accompanist and chamber musi ...

- she has performed in Zurich, Geneva, Bochum, Berlin, Bern, Florence, Perugia, Rome and at the

Lucerne Festival Lucerne Festival is one of the leading international festivals in the world of classical music and presents a series of classical music festivals based in Lucerne, Switzerland. Founded in 1938 by Ernest Ansermet and Walter Schulthess, it curr ...

.Rachel Harnisch
on Schweizerfonogramm

Recordings

* ''Requiem KV 626''. Universal Music, 1999 * ''Matthäuspassion''. Musik-Forschung-Verlag, 2000 * ''Die Schöpfung''. Musik-Forschung-Verlag, 2000 * ''Stabat mater''. Universal Music, 2009 * ''Fidelio''. Universal Music, 2011

References

External links

* *
Rachel Harnisch
Homepage {{DEFAULTSORT:Harnisch, Rachel Swiss operatic sopranos 1973 births Living people People from Brig-Glis Hochschule für Musik Freiburg alumni 21st-century Swiss women opera singers

Life

Recordings

Further reading

References

External links