The brilliant Russian mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Semenchuk graduated from the St Petersburg State Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatoire.
In previous seasons she has sung as Marina (Boris Godunov) and Polina (The Queen of Spades) at the Metropolitan Opera as well as Azucena (Il trovatore) in Valencia under Zubin Mehta and at the Teatro alla Scala (under Daniele Rustioni). She has also sung at the Royal Opera House (Covent Garden) and the Berliner Staatsoper as Preziosilla (La forza del destino) and Polina (The Queen of Spades) under Daniel Barenboim. Under Valery Gergiev she has performed as Didon (Les Troyens) at the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg, Carnegie Hall in New York, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatoire and the Konzerthaus in Vienna. She has also appeared as Fricka (Die Walkьre) at the Los Angeles Opera (under James Conlon) and the Mariinsky Theatre (under Valery Gergiev).
She recently made her debut at the Salzburg Festival as Eboli in a new production of Don Carlo under the baton of Sir Antonio Pappano in addition to celebrating Shostakovich in recital at the Konzerthaus in Vienna and Tchaikovsky at Wigmore Hall in London. In concert she has sung Verdi’s Requiem under Gustavo Dudamel, Das Klagende Lied at the Ravinia Festival under James Conlon with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Alexander Nevsky cantata at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome under Vasily Petrenko. At the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and at the Konzerthaus in Vienna she has performed Berlioz’s La Mort de Clйopвtre under Valery Gergiev.
Other highlights include La Gioconda under Roberto Abbado and Samson et Dalila under Charles Dutoit at the Opera di Roma, concerts featuring Dvoшбk’s Requiem with the Orchestre de Paris, Berlioz’ Romйo et Juliette at La Scala under James Colon, Benvenuto Cellini at the Thйвtre des Champs-Йlysйes under Valery Gergiev, Aida at La Scala under Gianandrea Noseda and Pier Giorgio Morandi and at the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples under Nicola Luisotti and Il trovatore at La Scala.
Future plans include Rossini’s Stabat Mater at the Filarmonico di Verona, recitals at Wigmore Hall in London, St Petersburg, Moscow, Vienna (Konzerthaus) and Berkeley with Helmut Deutsch, Carmen at the Arena di Verona, Mazepa at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Anna Bolena at the Wiener Staatsoper, Il trovatore (the San Carlo), Luisa Miller and Aida at the San Francisco Opera under Nicola Luisotti, La forza del destino under Zubin Mehta, the Verdi Requiem with the Accademia Santa Cecilia under Sir Antonio Pappano, Il trovatore at the Salzburg Festival, Covent Garden and the Opйra de Paris and Les Troyens at the Edinburgh Festival under Valery Gergiev.
Her debut recording of Russian songs is available on the Harmonia Mundi label; she has also recorded Oedipus Rex under Valery Gergiev and Sarti’s Magnificat and Gloria (with Mattia Rondelli and Barbara Frittoli) on the Sony Classical label. Plans include a recording as Amneris (Aida) for EMI Classics under Sir Antonio Pappano. DVD recordings include Don Carlo (ORF, Salzburg Festival, Sir Pappano), Aida (RAI 5, the San Carlo, Luisotti) and Il trovatore (RAI 5, La Scala, Rustioni).
Ekaterina was invitedto sing at the 2005 wedding of HRH Charles, Prince of Wales, and Camilla Parker Bowles, where she performed Grechaninov’s Orthodox Creed.