Beatriz Parra Durango on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
Beatriz Parra Durango (born 1940) is an Ecuadorian classical soprano.
She earned several first places in vocal competitions in Barcelona and
The Voice of Russia: Interview and brief biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parra Durango, Beatriz 1940 births Living people Operatic sopranos 20th-century Ecuadorian women singers People from Guayaquil Ecuadorian expatriates in the Soviet Union 21st-century Ecuadorian women
Beatriz Parra Durango (born 1940) is an Ecuadorian classical soprano.
Early life and education
Parra Durango was born inGuayaquil
, motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America
, pushpin_re ...
. Her mother was journalist Dora Durango Lopez. Her first studies took place at the Conservatory Antonio Neumane in Guayaquil
, motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America
, pushpin_re ...
, where she became the soloist of the Conservatory's choir.
Career
In 1957 she received her first prize when she participated in the competition "Searching for a Voice in Ecuador", organized by the House of Culture and Radio CRE. That same year she became part of the cast of the Lyrical Ensemble of the House of Culture, and in 1958 she performed for the first time as a soloist onstage in the role of Duchess Carolina in the zarzuela "Luisa Fernanda". In 1959 she sang the lead role in the Spanishopera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...
''Marina'' under the direction of the Spanish Maestro Carlos Arijita.
In 1960 she travelled to Moscow on a scholarship given by the Ministry of Culture of the then USSR, and studied classical singing at the Moscow Conservatory
The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory (russian: Московская государственная консерватория им. П. И. Чайковского, link=no) is a musical educational inst ...
, studying under Nina Dorliak
Nina Dorliak (russian: Нина Львовна Дорлиак, translit=Nina L'vovna Dorliak; 7 July 190817 May 1998) was a Russian soprano and a voice teacher at the Moscow Conservatory. She is known for forming a duo with pianist Sviatoslav Ri ...
, wife to pianist Sviatoslav Richter
Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter, group= ( – August 1, 1997) was a Soviet classical pianist. He is frequently regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time, Great Pianists of the 20th Century and has been praised for the "depth of his int ...
. She graduated with the Award For Excellence in 1966. In 1965 she won the silver medal and second place in the International Vocal Competition organized by the city of Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...
, France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
. She sang as a soloist with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Moscow and the Moscow Chamber Orchestra. That same year she received the gold medal in the Musical Competition of George Enesco
George Enescu (; – 4 May 1955), known in France as Georges Enesco, was a Romanian composer, violinist, conductor and teacher. Regarded as one of the greatest musicians in Romanian history, Enescu is featured on the Romanian five lei.
Biogr ...
, Romania.
She earned several first places in vocal competitions in Barcelona and Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of S ...
. In 1975 she received the award "Conchita Badía" in Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of S ...
.
For fifteen years she was a prima donna
In opera or commedia dell'arte, a prima donna (; Italian for "first lady"; plural: ''prime donne'') is the leading female singer in the company, the person to whom the prime roles would be given.
''Prime donne'' often had grand off-stage per ...
and soloist with the Colombia Opera Theater, where her repertoire included verismo
In opera, ''verismo'' (, from , meaning "true") was a post-Romantic operatic tradition associated with Italian composers such as Pietro Mascagni, Ruggero Leoncavallo, Umberto Giordano, Francesco Cilea and Giacomo Puccini.
''Verismo'' as an ...
such as 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 ...
and Puccini
Giacomo Puccini ( Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long ...
, romanticists such as Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the ''bel canto'' opera style duri ...
and classicists such as Mozart. She performed the role of Michaela in Carmen for the Bolshoi Opera House . In the fall of 2001 she was a guest performer of the Iberoamerican Culture Festival.
Personal life
Parra Durango married Enrique Gil, with whom she had her only daughter, singer and classical trainee Beatriz Gil Parra. Currently, although retired, she teaches voice as head of the Beatriz Parra Foundation, along with theArmenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...
n baritone Konstantin Simonian.
References
External links
The Voice of Russia: Interview and brief biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parra Durango, Beatriz 1940 births Living people Operatic sopranos 20th-century Ecuadorian women singers People from Guayaquil Ecuadorian expatriates in the Soviet Union 21st-century Ecuadorian women