Dolora Zajick (born 24 March 1952) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer who specializes in the Verdian repertoire. Zajick has been described as having "one of the greatest voices in the history of opera".[1]
Born in Salem, Oregon, but raised in Nevada, Zajick was a pre-med student at the University of Nevada, Reno and member of the Nevada Opera chorus, when her talent was first noticed. Zajick had taken a chorus class as an elective at UNR. She then studied voice with Ted Puffer, conductor of Nevada Opera, whom she credits with developing her vocal technique[2] and guiding her in career moves, especially early in her performing career.[3]
Zajick attended South Tahoe High School in South Lake Tahoe, California, and is a Wall of Honor Recipient. She graduated from the University of Nevada with a Bachelor's and a master's degree in music before going to New York for further music studies at the Manhattan School of Music. In 1982 she won the bronze medal at the 7th International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, the only non-Soviet medalist that year and the first American musician to place in the contest in over twelve years. After this and graduating from the Manhattan School of Music, she was offered a place in the San Francisco Opera's Merola Program, she debuted with the San Francisco Opera as Azucena in Il Trovatore in 1986, which launched her to international acclaim.
In August, 2014 Zajick's first public composition, an opera scene titled "Roads to Zion" was premiered at The Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph in San Jose, CA. The work was written for performance during the celebrations by the Carmelite Order of the 500th anniversary of the birth of St Teresa of Avila and is available in a commercial recording. It sets a text derived from Psalm 84 and is in three parts: 1) "A Soul Yearns", 2) "A Soul Takes Flight" and 3) "A Soul Returns". The first and third parts contain dialogues between soloists and choir, while the middle movement is purely instrumental.
Reviewers praised the "accomplished vocal and instrumental writing ... that delivered its message in a resonant, almost beatific, glow"[9] and noted that "this music created an intense experience. Its impressive orchestration and unified architectural design made it a most fascinating piece".[10]
1989: Verdi's Aida (Amneris) with Aprile Millo as Aida. Metropolitan Opera, James Levine. Met Opera on Demand SD streaming video; also Deutsche Grammophon DVD
2009: Verdi's Aida (Amneris) with Violeta Urmana as Aida. Metropolitan Opera, Daniele Gatti. Met Opera on Demand HD streaming video; Decca DVD
2011: Verdi's Il trovatore (Azucena) with Sondra Radvanovsky as Leonora. Metropolitan Opera, Marco Armiliato. Met Opera on Demand HD streaming video; also Deutsche Grammophon DVD
A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; Italian: [ˌmɛddzosoˈpraːno]; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above (i.e. A3–A5 in scientific pitch notation, where middle C = C4; 220–880 Hz). In the lower and upper extremes, some mezzo-sopranos may extend down to the F below middle C (F3, 175 Hz) and as high as "high C" (C6, 1047 Hz). The mezzo-soprano voice type is generally divided into the coloratura, lyric, and dramatic.
Barbara Dever is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer who has appeared with Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, Zubin Mehta, Nello Santi and James Levine.
Nell Rankin was an American operatic mezzo-soprano. Though a successful opera singer internationally, she spent most of her career at the Metropolitan Opera, where she worked from 1951 to 1976. She was particularly admired for her portrayals of Amneris in Verdi's Aida and the title role in Bizet's Carmen. Opera News said, "Her full, generous tone and bold phrasing, especially in the Italian repertory, were unique among American mezzos of her generation.
Ghena Dimitrova was a Bulgarian operatic soprano. Her voice was known for its power and extension used in operatic roles such as Turandot in a career spanning four decades.
Rita Gorr was a Belgian operatic mezzo-soprano. She possessed a large, rich-toned voice and was an intense singing-actress, especially in dramatic roles such as Ortrud (Lohengrin) and Amneris (Aida), two of her greatest roles.
Ebe Stignani was an Italian opera singer, who was pre-eminent in the dramatic mezzo-soprano roles of the Italian repertoire during a stage career of more than thirty years.
Violeta Urmanavičiūtė-Urmana is a Lithuanian opera singer who has sung leading mezzo-soprano and soprano roles in the opera houses of Europe and North America.
Stefania Toczyska, born in Grudziądz, Poland, on 19 February 1943, is a Polish mezzo-soprano of international repute.
Dunja Vejzović is an operatic mezzo-soprano and soprano from Croatia.
Rachel Willis-Sørensen is an American operatic soprano.
Milijana Nikolic is an operatic mezzo-soprano.
Bernadette Eileen Cullen is an Australian dramatic mezzo-soprano who has performed in Australia, Europe, and Asia.
Ingrid Margareta Tobiasson is a Swedish mezzo-soprano opera singer. Her principal roles in an extremely versatile career include the title role in Bizet's Carmen and Elisabetta in Donizetti's Maria Stuarda.
Małgorzata Walewska is a Polish opera singer, dramatic mezzo-soprano.
James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala was a concert lasting approximately eight hours, that the Metropolitan Opera staged in 1996 in honour of its then principal conductor and artistic director. Excerpts from the gala were released by Deutsche Grammophon on a 72-minute CD, a 161-minute VHS videocassette and a 161-minute double Laserdisc in 1996, and on a 293-minute double DVD in 2005.
Ekaterina Semenchuk, is a Belarusian operatic mezzo-soprano.
Tichina Vaughn is an American operatic dramatic mezzo-soprano active internationally in opera, concert halls and recitals. Starting at the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at the Metropolitan Opera, her American career expanded into Europe, as member of the permanent ensembles of the Semperoper in Dresden and the Stuttgart Opera, where she was awarded the title of Kammersängerin in 2006. She has been a regular at the Arena di Verona and other major theaters worldwide, singing a wide repertoire span, with a "voluminous and dark mezzo" voice the dramatic Verdi roles such as Amneris in Aida, Eboli in Don Carlo, Azucena in Il trovatore and Ulrica in Un ballo in maschera, Wagner's Ortrud Lohengrin, Venus Tannhäuser, Fricka Die Walküre, Waltraute in Götterdämmerung and Strauss, Herodias in Salome and Klytemnestra in Elektra. According to Opernglas, Vaughn has a natural "great intensity" on stage, with an ample "voice, which flows richly, even in the low registers." The Neue Zürcher Zeitung describes her voice as an "enchanting satisfyingly rich mezzosoprano". Bernard Holland of The New York Times called hers "A voice of quality", which had "the presence and personality that might well fit the Met... a mezzo-soprano whose strong upper register gave hints of a dramatic soprano to come".
Mihoko Fujimura is a Japanese operatic mezzo-soprano who made an international career based in Europe. She was recognized internationally after her 2002 debut at the Bayreuth Festival as Fricka in Wagner's Ring cycle. In concert, she performed in Verdi's Requiem and Mahler's Resurrection Symphony. In 2020, she made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera.
Markella Hatziano is an operatic mezzo-soprano born in Athens, Greece.
Elena Manistina is a Russian operatic mezzo-soprano. She is a member of the Bolshoi Theatre and has appeared in many operas internationally. She also appeared as Verdi's Azucena at the Metropolitan Opera, the Deutsche Oper Berlin and Opéra Bastille, and as Amneris at the Arena di Verona.
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