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The German soprano, Katharina Hagopian, studied with Kai Wessel in Köln, Germany, earning diplomas in voice, music education, and vocal pedagogy. She continued her studies at Mannes College The New School in New York City, studying with Amy Burton and earning her Master of Music degree in vocal performance in 2009. She has been studying privately with Snezana Stamenkovic since 2012. She is a recipient of a Fulbright Scholarship (2007-2008), a DAAD grant (2008-2009), as well as scholarships from the Tavitian Foundation, the German Forum, and Horst-und-Gretl-Will-Stiftung. She has participated in master-classes with Regina Resnik, Luana DeVol, Martina Arroyo, Kurt Widmer, Rudolf Piernay and Edda Moser. She regularly works with Snezana Stamenkovic and Franco Farina. She and is the 1st Prize Winner of the European Art-Song-Competition “Euriade Vocal Concours Kerkrade” (Netherlands), as well as 2nd Prize Winner of the competition “Ton und Erklärung”, Preis der Deutschen Wirtschaft (Germany).
Katharina Hagopian made her operatic debut in 2008 with the Mannes Opera in New York City as Madame Lidoine in Poulenc´s Dialogues of the Carmelites ("Katharina Hagopian radiated dignified piety as Madamee Lidoine", The New York Times). One year later, she sang Rosalinde in Strauss' Die Fledermaus with the Martina Arroyo Prelude to Performance Program. During the 2010-2011 season she performed in numerous recitals and concerts as a member of the prestigious International Opera Studio in Zürich, Switzerland. Since the 2011-2012 season, she has been a principal in Theater Aachen, Germany, where her roles have included Micaela in Georges Bizet's Carmen, Contessa Almaviva in W.A. Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro, Pamina in W.A. Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, Ginevra in Ariodante, Alcina in George Frideric Handel's Alcina and Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus. In the summer of 2012, she performed Alice Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff at Opera Festival Berbiguieres, France, and in 2013, she jumped in to sing Ginevra in Landestheater Salzburg, Austria. In September 2014, she returned to New York City, to sing Alcina at the Whitebox Art Center. Roles for the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 seasons included Agathe in Freischütz and Marie in Bartered Bride. Scheduled for 2016-2017 are Euridice in Orpheus ed Euridice and Nella in Gianni Schicchi.
Katharina Hagopian has been praised by national and international press for her “hauntingly beautiful colors”, “ethereal top voice” and “differentiated and deep portrayals” of major operatic roles. Her Alcina in was received enthusiastically by the press: "Her voice full of heat as the sorceress Alcina, the soprano Katharina Hagopian was sometimes poignantly needy and sometimes a funny caricature of rage" (The New York Times), "With her warm soprano, Katharina Hagopian interprets wonderfully the sorceress's sufferings and presents her anger in a truly dramatic manner" (Online Music Magazine), her "pure tone and vocal ripeness meets erotic flair" (Grenzecho), and "her phenomenal performance balances heart-warming singing with stage presence, especially in her sensational interpretation of the aria 'Ombre Pallide'" (Aachener Zeitung). She has performed as soloist in recitals including Schumannfest Düsseldorf, Carnegie Hall, Philharmonie Essen, Philharmonic Hall Ljubljana and International Festivals for Contemporary Music in Germany and Belgium. She has been featured in radio and CD recordings.
A versatile concert and recital singer, embracing repertoire from the Baroque period to contemporary works, she regularly performs with pianists Ulrich Eisenlohr, Michael Schütze, Erika LeRoux, Edward Rushton and Naré Karoyan. |
