| Carla Huhtanen |
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Introduction “For the role of the heroine ‘Lisetta’, Garsington has found a real star in the Canadian soprano Carla Huhtanen. Her coloratura was fluent and accurate and she sang cantilena with a pure tone. She also has a winning stage presence - a noteworthy British debut. Her duet with her lover…was one of the hits of the evening.” The Sunday Telegraph, Michael Kennedy BiographySoprano Carla Huhtanen, combining vocal brilliance and an alluring stage persona, is in demand internationally for an enviable mix of repertoire. In the U.K., she debuted as Serpetta in the Garsington Opera production of Mozart’s LA FINTA GIARDINIERA, a performance that was repeated at the Barbican Centre’s Mostly Mozart series. She debuted in Italy at Gran Teatro la Fenice in Venice as Daisy Park in Gershwin’s LADY BE GOOD (televised on RAI) and was invited back for a complete change of pace as Athenaïs in Cherubini’s ANACREON, which was heard on “Saturday Afternoon at the Opera” (CBC). In France, she was heard in the title role of Purcell’s THE FAIRY QUEEN for Festival Mars en Baroque (Marseille, Tarascon and Aix-en-Provence) and as Angelica in Handel’s ORLANDO for Festival Musique au Couer (Antibes). A reprise performance of LADY BE GOOD took her to Lisbon’s Teatro Sao Carlos and she was featured soloist in a Leonard Bernstein Tribute with the Israel Philharmonic Of particular note was Ms. Huhtanen’s performances in the world premier of Omar Daniel’s opera THE SHADOW for Tapestry New Opera Works. She is also a member of Tapestry’s resident company and is involved with their programmes devoted to the creative process including ‘Lib-Lab’, ‘Opera Briefs’ and ‘Opera to Go’. She returned to Opera Atelier in for Susanna in LE NOZZE DI FIGARO and had great success in CARMINA BURANA with the Kitchener Waterloo Symphony. Recent Opera Atelier productions include IL RITORNO D’ULISSE IN PATRIA, DIE ENTFÜHRUNG AUS DEM SERAIL and CORONATION OF POPPEA. For Opera Omaha she sang BLIZZARD VOICES and premiered a set of Salonen songs with the Kitchener Waterloo Symphony conducted by Edwin Outwater. Looking forward, she will be heard for the Edmonton Opera as Blondchen in DIE ENTFÜHRUNG AUS DEM SERAIL. Past highlights include Handel’s ORLANDO with Festival de Chartres in France, Cunegonde in CANDIDE for Toronto Operetta Theatre, Papagena in DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE for Opera Atelier and Orchestra London (Canada). She was featured as Cunegonde (CANDIDE) with the BBC Concert Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall in London and was also heard in this role for the Valleta Festival in Malta. Recording credits include the Juno winning disc MOZART’S MAGNIFICENT VOYAGE and Herbert’s BABES IN TOYLAND with the London Sinfonietta. Ms. Huhtanen is a graduate of the University of Ottawa and the University of Toronto (Opera Division) and she has been awarded scholarships and prizes from the Canadian Opera Women’s Committee, the Luciano Pavarotti Foundation, International Yrjo Kilpinen Art Song Competition, National Association of Teachers of Singing and the Poulenc Prize from Journées de la musique française competition in Montreal. She was a young artist at Le Centre national des Artistes Lyriques, performing concerts and recitals in Marseille, Toulon and Avignon. Other roles in her wide ranging repertoire include Tytania in Britten’s A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, Soeur Constance in DIALOGUES DES CARMELITES, Therèse in LES MAMELLES DE TIRÉSIAS, Despina in COSI FAN TUTTE and Adele in DIE FLEDERMAUS. Ms. Huhtanen has been heard with Opera in Concert, Toronto’s Aldeburgh Connection, and at Roy Thomson Hall, the Glenn Gould School and the Toronto Centre for the Arts. August 2010 For further information, please visit www.carlahuhtanen.com Full RepertoireOPERA
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Reviews"...soprano Carla Huhtanen had the dual challenge of performing some of the sweetest, and the most dramatic and diffucult notes in the repertoire. With laser-lie precision and a sweet feeling of confidence and assertiveness, Huhtanen delivered the climactic money notes with style and good expression." From NOW magazine’s list of Top 10 theatre artists in 2008 "Soprano Carla Huhtanen gave the evening's most memorable performance. She sang with a soaring, translucent soprano that produced - in its highest register - notes of glistening weightlessness." World-Herald - John Pitcher (Opera Omaha - The Blizzard Voices)“Huhtanen’s voice is quite breathtaking—the clarity of tone and smoothness of line is matched only by her exquisite acting: her Glitter and be Gay was sensational and any singer, past or present would have put their name to it with pride.” Opera News – Matthew Peacock “Garsington has found a real star in Carla Huhtanen …her colorature was fluent and accurate and she sang cantilena with a pure tone…a winning stage presence. Her duet with her lover…was one of the hits of the evening.” The Sunday Telegraph – Angela Gheorghiu “Lisetta is sung with bright agility by Carla Huhtanen.” The Times – John Allison “In Menotti’s ‘Monica’s Waltz , you have the most beautiful voice in the world – in particular, we appreciated Carla Huhtanen with her impeccable lines of singing, her ease, her grace, especially in the aforementioned waltz, with all her charming lightness.” La marseillaise – Simone Serret “….the splendidly pouty, marriageable bird (Carla Huhtanen) tinged with vivid, fine-toned, accurately-placed coloratura.” The Independent (The Monday Review) – Roderic Dunnett “Ingrams (Garsington Opera Director) found his prima donna in Canadian Carla Huhtanen, the coloratura with warblings of finely polished jewels who plays an oddball teenager.” Die Welt (Berlin) – Siegfried Helm “One must really lend an attentive ear and admire the prowess…notably to the soprano Carla Huhtanen.” La Provence – Arlane Allard |