Natalie Dessay debuts at LIFE Victoria with a recital in tribute to great women in music
February 2024
- The legendary French soprano Natalie Dessay will offer a recital at the Auditori AXA in Barcelona on March 5, accompanied by pianist Philippe Cassard.
- Coinciding with Women’s Month, Dessay will debut at LIFE Victoria with a recital in memory of soprano Victoria de los Ángeles, dedicated to great women composers.
- The repertoire includes works by Fanny Mendelssohn, Clara Schumann, and Alma Mahler, as well as opera fragments of female characters that Victoria de los Ángeles immortalized throughout her career.
- That same day, the Main Hall of the Auditori AXA will be renamed the Auditori-Sala Victoria de los Ángeles at the initiative of the District of Les Corts – Barcelona City Council, as a contribution to the centenary celebration.
Next Tuesday, March 5, at 8:00 PM, the Lied Festival Victoria de los Ángeles (LIFE Victoria) will present Natalie Dessay and Philippe Cassard at the Auditori AXA in Barcelona. The legendary French soprano, recognized as one of the great singers of recent history, will offer a recital in tribute to Victoria de los Ángeles in which the figure of the woman will be the protagonist.
The first part of the program will be dedicated to the works of three composers who have been fundamental to the history of music: Fanny Mendelssohn, Clara Schumann, and Alma Mahler. The second part will include works by French composers Claude Debussy, Jules Massenet, Francis Poulenc, Ernest Chausson, and Charles Gounod.
With this repertoire, and specifically with the pieces ‘Mes longs cheveux’ from Pelléas et Mélisande by Debussy, and ‘Ah, je ris de voir si belle’ from Gounod’s Faust, Natalie Dessay will remember two of the opera characters with which Victoria de los Ángeles became world-famous: Marguerite (Faust) and Mélisande (Pelléas et Mélisande).
That same day, the Main Hall of the Auditori AXA will be renamed the Auditori-Sala Victoria de los Ángeles, at the initiative of the District of Les Corts – Barcelona City Council, as a contribution to the centenary celebration.
Natalie Dessay (Lyon, 1966) is recognized as one of the greatest stars of the operatic world, captivating audiences as both a singer and an actress. She is admired as a lyrical performer and for her portrayals of bel canto heroines such as Violetta (La traviata), Lucia di Lammermoor, Marie (La Fille du régiment), Amina (La sonnambula), or Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), although she initially earned her reputation with coloratura roles such as Offenbach’s Olympia, Mozart’s Queen of the Night, and Strauss’s Zerbinetta. Her discography includes a dozen recordings of operas and lyrical pieces. In 2013, Dessay retired from the opera stage to devote herself to other musical formats. She recently announced that in 2025, for her 60th birthday, she will make her final retirement.
For her recital at LIFE Victoria, the soprano will be accompanied by pianist Philippe Cassard (Besançon, 1962), trained at the Paris Conservatory and one of the great specialists in Debussy. As a chamber musician, his performances with Natalie Dessay on Europe’s most prestigious stages stand out. Furthermore, he is a frequent guest of the main British orchestras and has an extensive discography as a soloist and chamber musician.
