Sonia Ganassi (born 1966) is an Italian mezzo-soprano. Born in

Reggio Emilia Reggio nell'Emilia ( egl, Rèz; la, Regium Lepidi), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has abou ...

, she made her debut as Rosina in

Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards f ...

’s ''

The Barber of Seville ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an '' opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was b ...

'' in Rome in 1992. She has performed in many of the world’s famous opera houses including the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and the

Teatro alla Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard language, Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the List of cities in Italy, second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 ...

. She is best known for her work in the

bel canto Bel canto (Italian for "beautiful singing" or "beautiful song", )—with several similar constructions (''bellezze del canto'', ''bell'arte del canto'')—is a term with several meanings that relate to Italian singing. The phrase was not associat ...

repertoire. Her roles in Rossini operas also include soprano parts, such as Elisabetta in ''

Elisabetta, regina d'Inghilterra ''Elisabetta, regina d'Inghilterra'' (; ''Elizabeth, Queen of England'') is a '' dramma per musica'' or opera in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to a libretto by Giovanni Schmidt, from the play ''Il paggio di Leicester'' (''Leicester's Page'') by ...

'' ( ROF, 2004), Elena in ''

La donna del lago ''La donna del lago'' ( English: ''The Lady of the Lake'') is an opera composed by Gioachino Rossini with a libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola (whose verses are described as "limpid" by one critic) based on the French translationOsborne, Charles ...

(Lady of the Lake)'' (

Rossini in Wildbad Rossini in Wildbad is a bel canto opera festival in Bad Wildbad, Baden-Württemberg, specialising in the lesser-known operas of Gioachino Rossini and his contemporaries. The festival commemorates a stay by Rossini at the town's spa in 1856, whi ...

, 2006), ''

Ermione ''Ermione'' (1819) is a tragic opera (azione tragica) in two acts by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola, based on the play '' Andromaque'' by Jean Racine. Performance history 19th century ''Ermione'' was fi ...

'' (ROF, 2008), and Elcia in ''

Mosè in Egitto ''Mosè in Egitto'' (; "''Moses in Egypt''") is a three-act opera written by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian language, Italian libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola, which was based on a 1760 play by Francesco Ringhieri, ''L'Osiride''. It premièred ...

'' (ROF, 2011).In 2010 she also debuted the soprano title role in

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his train ...

's '' Rodelinda'' at the 36th Festival della Valle d'Itria,

Martina Franca Martina Franca, or just Martina ( Martinese: ), is a town and ''municipality'' in the province of Taranto, Apulia, Italy. It is the second most populated town of the province after Taranto, and has a population (2016) of 49,086. Since 1975, ...

. In 2009 she participated in a live recording of Giuseppe Verdi's Messa da Requiem conducted by Antonio Pappano (EMI Classics 6 98936 2). In October 2019 she debuted the leading role of Lady Macbeth in Verdi's ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

'' at the

Teatro Lirico di Cagliari The Teatro Lirico di Cagliari is an opera house in Cagliari. It is the main theatre of the city. The Teatro Lirico was built in order to provide a large theatre to the city. After the destruction of the ''Teatro Civico'', damaged by the shelli ...

Repertory

Her roles included:

References

External links

Teatro delle Muse Ancona

Streamopera.com/Sonia Ganassi
Italian opera singers Operatic mezzo-sopranos Living people 1966 births {{italy-opera-singer-stub