Soraya Mafi is an operatic

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

and recording artist who has sung leading roles in the opera houses and concert halls of Europe and North America. Mafi's performances have been broadcast live on radio, television, and in cinema. She has performed at international festivals and sports events and was nominated for Young Singer of the Year at the International Opera Awards in 2019. She is an inaugural Honorary Associate Artist of the

Royal Northern College of Music The Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) is a conservatoire located in Manchester, England. It is one of four conservatoires associated with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music. In addition to being a centre of music education ...

Life and career

Mafi was born in Bury, a town in Greater Manchester, and was educated at Bury Grammar School for Girls and Holy Cross College. She attended the

where she studied singing under Sandra Dugdale, then the Royal College of Music under the tutelage of Janis Kelly. Upon choosing Mafi for their ‘''Rising Star – Great Artists of Tomorrow''’ series,

BBC Music Magazine ''BBC Music Magazine'' is a British monthly magazine that focuses primarily on classical music. History The first issue appeared in September 1992. BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the BBC was the original owner and publisher toget ...

published a feature interview that explored the challenges she faced as an undergraduate, undergoing surgery on her vocal cords, and her subsequent recovery with a vocal trauma specialist. During her time as a student, Mafi received multiple awards, including The RCM Lieder Prize and The Elsie Thurston Prize. Notable performances include singing in England's two largest football stadiums, Old Trafford Stadium and Wembley Stadium. She sang the Brazilian and English national anthems at Wembley Stadium’s inaugural match, England vs. Brazil, becoming the first woman to sing there. Still a student, Mafi made her professional début as Soeur Constance in

Grange Park Opera Grange Park Opera is a professional opera company and charity whose base is West Horsley Place in Surrey, England. Founded in 1998, the company staged an annual opera festival at The Grange, in Hampshire and in 2016–7, built a new opera hous ...

’s production of ''Dialogues des Carmélites'' to critics’ approval in The Times, The Telegraph and The Sunday Times. Graduating with distinction, Mafi was interviewed by Rupert Christiansen for his feature article ‘''New Face – Soraya Mafi''’ in The Telegraph. She then won the Royal Overseas League Competition, The Maggie Teyte Award, The Peter Hulsen Orchestral Song Award, Second Prize at The

Kathleen Ferrier Award The Kathleen Ferrier Award is a prestigious contest for Opera singers held each April in London, England. The first competition was held in 1956. According to the '' Telegraph'', the competition has a record of "spotting winners". Originally c ...

s, Second Prize and Audience Prize at the International Mozart Singing Competition and the Chilcott Award. Debuts in the UK and Europe followed: notable performances included performing solo recitals in ''Fauré’s Requiem'' at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

, French song in The Crush Room at the Royal Opera House as well as ''Britten’s Les Illuminations'' at

The Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I ...

and Karl Jenkins’ ''The Armed Man'' at

St David's Hall St David's Hall (Welsh: ''Neuadd Dewi Sant'') is a performing arts and conference venue in the heart of Cardiff, Wales. St David's Hall is the National Concert Hall and Conference Centre of Wales. It hosts the annual Welsh Proms and the bienni ...

. She made her debut at Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris as the title role in Mozart's ''Il Re Pastore'' (Aminta). Broadcast live to cinemas in the UK, Ireland, and Germany, Mafi sang Edith in Mike Leigh's ''The Pirates of Penzance'' at the London Coliseum ( English National Opera). With additional re-runs in the United States and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

– it overtook Franz Lehár's ''The Merry Widow'' at Metropolitan Opera to become "the most lucrative opera to be screened in cinemas". Mafi made her Welsh National Opera debut as Johanna in ''Sweeney Todd'' at the Millennium Centre in Cardiff. As a Harewood Artist, Mafi has sung numerous leading roles in productions for English National Opera (Mabel in Gilbert & Sullivan's ''Pirates of Penzance'' and Tytania in Britten's ''A Midsummer Night's Dream''). In The Telegraph, Rupert Christiansen wrote of Mafi's Mabel performance: “her scintillating ‘Poor Wand’ring One’ was in the Valerie Masterson class”. Of her Tytania

Christiansen __NOTOC__ Christiansen () is a Danish and Norwegian patronymic surname, literally meaning ''son of Christian''. The spelling variant Kristiansen has identical pronunciation. Christiansen is the sixteenth most common name in Denmark, but is shared ...

wrote: “Soraya Mafi continues to ride the upward trajectory of her career with a diamantine Tytania, scattering coloratura like stardust.” ( The Telegraph). The critics at The Times chose Soraya Mafi as the opera 'Face to Watch' in ''The Arts Highlights of 2019''. She made her Wigmore Hall solo recital debut with Graham Johnson. Undertaking her first opera in the United States, Mafi made her Seattle Opera debut as Flora in Britten's ''Turn of the Screw''. Mafi played the title role in

's five-star rated production ( The Telegraph and The Evening Standard) of Humperdinck's ''Hansel & Gretel''. Returning to Washington, Mafi sang the role of Gilda in ''Rigoletto'' for Seattle Opera, which was recorded for broadcast on Classic King FM. Mafi played the title role in Menotti's two-person opera, ''The Telephone'' - a Scottish Opera film for Edinburgh International Festival. The production was awarded five-stars by The Scotsman, The Times and

Bachtrack ''Bachtrack'' is a London-based international online music magazine which publishes listings of classical music, opera, ballet and dance, as well as reviews of these genres, interviews and general feature articles. History Bachtrack Ltd was r ...

and was the opera pick of the week in The Times’ ‘The Hot List’. Broadcast live from

Alexandra Palace Alexandra Palace is a Grade II listed entertainment and sports venue in London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. It is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and the later Tottenham Wood Farm. Origi ...

on SkyArts, Mafi played Musetta in Puccini's ''La Bohème'' by English National Opera. Described as 'Europe's first drive-in opera', the production was nominated for a Royal Television Society Award (Best Live Event). Notable roles in 2022 include: Susanna in Mozart's ''Marriage of Figaro'' at Seattle Opera; a guest artist appearance at Seattle Symphony’s Stravinsky & Brahms Concerts at

Benaroya Hall Benaroya Hall is the home of the Seattle Symphony in Downtown Seattle, Washington, United States. It features two auditoria, the S. Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium, a 2500-seat performance venue, as well as the Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital H ...

; Susanna in Mozart's ''Marriage of Figaro'' for Glyndebourne Touring Opera; and Morgana in Handel's ''Alcina'' at the Glyndebourne Festival.

Discography

Mafi's recordings include: *

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

: Il sogno di Scipione – Stuart Jackson (Scipione), Soraya Mafi (Fortuna), Klara Ek (Costanza), Krystian Adam (Publio), Robert Murray (Emilio), Chiara Skerath (Licenza); The Choir and Orchestra of Classical Opera; Ian Page (conductor) Church of St. Augustine, Kilburn, London, UK, October 2016">St Augustine's, Kilburn">Church of St. Augustine, Kilburn, London, UK, October 2016 2 CDs. Released 2017.

Signum Classics Signum Records, also known as Signum Classics, is a classical musical record label in the UK founded in 1997. The label began with a project to make the first recording of the complete works of Thomas Tallis. The artists for the Tallis recordin ...

. SIGCD499 * Cellier & Gilbert: The Mountebanks – Soraya Mafi (Teresa), Thomas Elwin (Alfredo), BBC Concert Orchestra, BBC Singers, James Cleverton (Arrostino), Sharon Carty (Minestra), John-Colyn Gyeantey (Risotto), Catherine Carby (Nita), John Savournin (Bartolo), Geoffrey Dolton (Pietro), Madeleine Shaw (Ultrice), Martin Lamb (Elvino), John Andrews. Released 2018. Dutton. 2CDLX7349 * Decades: A Century of Song Vol. 3 1830-1840 – John Mark Ainsley (tenor), Lorna Anderson (soprano), Alexey Gusev (bass-baritone), Angelika Kirchschlager (mezzo), Soraya Mafi (soprano), Malcolm Martineau (piano). Released 2018. Label: Vivat. VIVAT116 * Debussy & Saint-Saëns: Ruhr Piano Festival Edition Vol. 37: Vive La France! Sergei Redkin, Jamina Gerl,

Mao Fujita Mao Fujita (born 28 November 1998) is a Japanese pianist. Life Mao Fujita was born 28 November 1998 in Tokyo and began learning piano at age three. He studied piano with Ms. Yuka Matsuyama and Prof. Gen Matsuyama from age 9 until at least 2016. H ...

, Inga Fiolia,

Juan Carlos Fernández-Nieto Juan Carlos Fernández-Nieto (born January 26, 1987) is a Spanish-American pianist. He was described by Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung as "A musical sculptor who chisels out melodic lines with sharp contours". and "He set off a firework on the 88 ...

, Graham Johnson, Soraya Mafi, François le Roux, Sarah Fox, Victor Julien-Laffarière, Théo Fouchenneret, Mi-Sa Yang, delian quartett, Benjamin Moser, Liza Ferschtman (soloists). Released 2019. Label: Avi Music. AVI8553465 * Dibdin & Garrick: The Jubilee – Simon Butteriss (Artist), Stephen Higgins (Artist), Soraya Mafi (Artist), Heather Shipp (Artist), Robert Murray (Artist). Released 2019. Label: Retrospect Opera. RO006 *

Menotti Menotti may refer to the following people: ;Given name *Menotti Aristone (c.1942–2013), American jockey *Menotti de Tomazzo Sobrinho (born 1943), Brazilian football player *Menotti Del Picchia (1892–1988), Brazilian poet, journalist and painte ...

The Telephone ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

( Edinburgh International Festival) – Soraya Mafi (Lucy), Jonathan McGovern (Ben), The Orchestra of Scottish Opera, Stuart Stratford. Released 2020. Label: Linn Records. CKD670 * Strauss: Ariadne auf Naxos ( Edinburgh International Festival) – Gantner, Röschmann, Gantner, Quasthoff, Huskinson, Manu, Morison, Redpath, Butt Philip, Barnett-Jones, McGovern, Sprague, Huskinson, Mafi, Hopkins, Brenda Rae, Manu, Dladla, Röschmann, Rea, Bronder (soloists), Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Lothar Koenigs. Released 2021. Label: Linn Records. CKD689 * Barber: The Complete Songs – Dylan Perez (piano), Samantha Clarke, Soraya Mafi, Louise Kemény, Mary Bevan (sopranos), Fleur Barron (mezzo), Jess Dandy (contralto), Nicky Spence (tenor), Dominic Sedgewick, Julien Van Mellaerts (baritones), William Thomas (bass), Navarra String Quartet. Released 2022. Resonus Classics. RES10301

References

External links

Official Website

Artist's page
at Askonas Holt Artist Management
Soraya Mafi
on Operabase * {{imdbname, 9476834
Soraya Mafi
on Spotify * Interviews *
"Winner Soraya bids to match Pavarotti"
interview by unnamed reporter (July 2004) Lancashire Telegraph *
"Soraya back on song"
interview by unnamed reporter (May 2007) Manchester Evening News *
"Soraya's Wembley debut"
interview by Dianne Bourne (April 2007) Manchester Evening News *
"Dream Role for Soraya"
interview by Dianne Bourne (April 2010) Manchester Evening News *
"New Face – Soraya Mafi"
interview by Rupert Christiansen (May 2014) The Telegraph *
"Soraya Mafi and David Webb: fair days will shine"
interview by Mark Valencia (February 2017) WhatsOnStage *
"Rising Star: Great Artists of Tomorrow – Soraya Mafi"
interview by Elinor Cooper (March 2017)

*
"Soraya Mafi on playing Titania, Queen of the fairies"
interview by Sean Rafferty (March 2018)

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

*
"BWW Interview: Soraya Mafi Shows Operatic Expertise Beyond her Years"
interview by Erica Miner (September 2018) Broadway World *
"Essential Classics with Suzy Klein: Soraya Mafi"
interview by

Suzy Klein Suzanne Rebecca Klein (born 1 April 1975) is a British writer and radio and television presenter, specialising in music and arts programmes. Since October 2021, she has held the post of Head of Arts and Classical Music TV for the BBC. Early ye ...

(June 2019)

*
"Take Five - Soraya Mafi"
by In Tune (June 2019)

*
"Take Five: a young artist takeover of Radio 3"
(June 2019)

*
"Jess Gillam with... Soraya Mafi"
interview by

Jess Gillam Jess Gillam (born 24 May 1998) is a British saxophonist and BBC radio broadcaster from Ulverston, Cumbria. Gillam hosts ''This Classical Life'' on BBC Radio 3. Education Gillam attended the Junior Royal Northern College of Music while at se ...

(February 2020)

*
"Soraya Mafi, Gawain Glenton and Silas Wollston, Teyber Trio"
interview by Sean Rafferty (March 2021)

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people English operatic sopranos Singers from Manchester Alumni of the Royal College of Music