Marianne Cornetti
Marianne Cornetti is recognized internationally as one of the leading Verdi mezzo-sopranos in the world. She has appeared as Amneris in Aida, Azucena in Il trovatore and Eboli in Don Carlo at theaters including the Teatro alla Scala, Royal Opera House – Covent Garden, Metropolitan Opera, Vienna State Opera, Bayerische Staatsoper, Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Théâtre Royale de la Monnaie (Brussels), Teatro Comunale (Florence), Arena di Verona, Gran Teatro del Liceo (Barcelona), Teatro San Carlo (Naples), and many others. In 2005, Cornetti sang her first Wagnerian role, appearing as Ortrud in Lohengrin at the Teatro Giuseppe Verdi in Trieste. She continued her excursion into this repertoire with her debut as Brangäne in Tristan und Isolde at the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma. She has since sung Ortrud in Amsterdam, Paris and Palermo, and appeared as Brangaene in Genoa. Cornetti’s verismo repertoire includes the Principessa di Bouillon in Adriana Lecouvreur, Santuzza in Cavalleria rusticana and Rosa in Cilea’s L’arlesiana, the last mentioned which she sang to great acclaim at Carnegie Hall with the Opera Orchestra of New York under Eve Queler.
The current 2015–2016 season marks several important engagements for Ms. Cornetti. She will appear in both La Coruña, Spain and Tel Aviv as Azucena in (Il trovatore), a role which she also recently performed at the prestigious NCPA theatre in Beijing, China. Ms. Cornetti can also be seen as Ortrud in Lohengrin in São Paolo and as Ježibaba in Rusalka at Minnesota Opera. She will make an additional concert appearance in Ferrol, Spain as well. Future engagements include Eboli in Parma (Italy), Dame Quickly in Falstaff in La Coruña (Spain), the Principessa in Cagliari (Italy) and the Witch for Lyric Opera of Kansas City.
Engagements for the 2013–2014 season included Lady Macbeth in Macbeth and Laura in La Gioconda with Deutsche Oper Berlin; Azucena in Il trovatore at the National Theatre of China in Beijing and the Teatro Municipal in São Paulo, Brazil. Cornetti also returned to the Teatro Regio for Verdi concerts and appeared with the company as Ulrica on their tour to Japan. In the 2014–2015 season, she returned to the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in Un ballo in maschera, performed as the Witch in Hansel and Gretel at Minnesota Opera and returned as Azucena in Il trovatore to the National Theatre of China. Future performances include return engagements at the Teatro Municipal as Ortrud in Lohengrin, and at Minnesota Opera as Ježibaba in Rusalka, amongst others.
Marianne Cornetti began the 2012–2013 season as Preziosilla in La forza del destino at Gran Teatre del Liceu. She then sang her first staged performances of the title role of La Gioconda at the Rome Opera. Cornetti was heard in two productions at the New National Theatre Foundation in Tokyo, appearing as Amneris in Aida and Abigaille in Nabucco. She also sang Amneris in Palermo. Engagements for the 2013–2014 season include Lady Macbeth in Macbeth and Laura in La Gioconda with Deutsche Oper Berlin; and Azucena in Il trovatore at the National Theatre of China in Beijing; and the Teatro Muncipal in São Paulo (Brazil). Cornetti will also return to the Teatro Regio for Verdi concerts and appears with the company as Ulrica on its tour to Japan.
Marianne Corrnetti returned to the Teatro alla Scala in January of 2011 as Santuzza. Earlier in the season she appeared at the Metropolitan Opera as Azucena, in Bilbao as Eboli and in Palermo where she sang her first Laura in La Gioconda. In April of 2011, Cornetti returned to Brussels as Abigaille in concert performances of Nabucco with La Monnaie. She also sang Amneris with the Israeli Opera at Masada. In the autumn of 2011, Cornetti returned to the Metropolitan Opera as Abigaille. In February of 2012, she returned to La Scala in the role of Amneris in Aida, and also appeared in the role at the Hamburg State Opera. Subsequently she sang her first performance of the title role in La Gioconda in Timisoara. She then performed Adriana Lecouvreur at the Gran Teatro del Liceu.
Marianne Cornetti began her professional career, like Giulietta Simionato before her, singing supporting roles in important theaters such as the Metropolitan Opera, Pittsburgh Opera and Wolf Trap. Her performances of Azucena at the Teatro alla Scala, at the Arena di Verona, and at the Teatro dell Opera di Roma, brought her international recognition. She made her debuts at the Vienna State Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Théâtre Royale de La Monnaie, Teatro Carlo Felice (Genoa), at the Choregies d’Orange as Amneris; and at the Teatro Comunale, Teatro San Carlo, Bavarian State Opera (Munich), Teatro Regio (Parma) and at the Bregenz Festival as Azucena. She also starred as Azucena on the Teatro Comunale di Bologna’s tour in Japan. Cornetti sang her first Eboli in Don Carlos under Daniel Oren in Tokyo and has been subsequently acclaimed for her portrayal of this role in Rome, Bilbao, Vienna and London. She made her debut with the Netherlands Opera as Ulrica in Un ballo in maschera and sang her first staged performances of Preziosilla in La forza del destino at La Monnaie. She had previously sung this role in concert at Carnegie Hall in New York. Cornetti added the role of the Principessa di Bouillon in Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur to her repertoire at the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma in May of 2002. She has since sung Adriana at the Teatro Regio in Turin, as well as in Florence and Amsterdam. She also sang Rosa in Cilea’s L’arlesiana for L’Opéra de Montpellier and with Opera Orchestra of New York at Carnegie Hall.
Marianne Cornetti appears frequently in concert in works such as the Verdi’s Requiem, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Rossini’s Stabat mater, Elgar’s Sea Picture and De Falla’s El amor brujo. She has recorded Cilea’s L’arlesiana and Puccini’s Edgar opposite Plácido Domingo.
