Helen Lokuta (born 12 April 1975 in

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after the Northern European country's political and financial capital, Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 91,407 (as of 2021). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of ...

) is an

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

opera singer (

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; 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 ...

). Lokuta studied in Music Class at ''Tartu 7th High School'' (currently ''Karlova Gymnasium'') and graduated from Aino Kõiv’s violin class at the

Heino Eller Tartu Music School The Heino Eller Tartu Music College is a music school in Tartu, Estonia, founded in 1919. It got its current name in 1971, after the Estonian composer and music teacher Heino Eller, who taught in the school from 1920 until 1940. Tartu School ...

in 1997. She has also studied in ''Karlsruhe University of Music'' in 2000 and ''Karlsruhe Opera Highschool'' in 2001 with Prof. Maria Venuti. In 2002 she graduated with a bachelor's degree from Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre with

Pille Lill Pille Lill (born on April 20 in 1962) is an Estonian opera singer (soprano) and an active member of the cultural life, the founder and artistic director of PLMF Music Trust. Biography Pille Lill started her journey as a musician with piano st ...

and Prof. Tamara Novitšenko. In 2014 she obtained magister's degree from Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre with Jaakko Ryhänen. Since 2004 she has participated in

Tõnu Kaljuste Tõnu Kaljuste (born August 28, 1953) is an Estonian conductor. Born in Tallinn, Kaljuste is the son of Heino Kaljuste (1925–1989), an Estonian choral conductor, and Lia Kaljuste, a radio journalist. Tõnu sang in his father's choirs as a chil ...

’s project Nargen Opera. From 2001 to 2006 Helen Lokuta has worked as free-lance/guest soloist and since 2006 as a soloist at the

Estonian National Opera Estonian National Opera (''Rahvusooper Estonia'') is the national opera company of Estonia. The company is based at the Estonia Theatre in Tallinn. The theatre has had several names throughout its existence. The latest one being "The Estonian Nati ...

Awards

* 1994 1st prize in Estonian Youth Singers Competition * 2005 2nd prize in International vocalists competition in

Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre The Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre in Vilnius, Lithuania, is a state-supported conservatory that trains students in music, theatre, and multimedia arts. History Composer Juozas Naujalis founded a music school in 1919 in Kaunas. This ...

* 2005 Young Musician of the Year from the Pille Lill Music Fund * 2007 Annual Prize of Estonian Teatre Union * 2007 Estonian Cultural Endowment prize * 2011, 2015 and 2019 SEB Audience Award

Roles

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', whi ...

"Carmen" (Carmen) * Rimskij-Korsakov "Tsaari Mõrsja" (Ljubaša) *

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

"La Traviata" (Flora) * Pjotr Tšaikovski "Padaemand" (Polina) * Wolfgang Mozart “Le nozze di Figaro” (Cherubino) * Emmerich Kálmán “Die Csardasfürstin” (Silva) * George Händel “Julius Caesar” (Cleopatra)

References

Living people 1975 births 21st-century Estonian women opera singers {{Estonia-musician-stub