Adrianne Pieczonka

Adrianne Pieczonka, OC (born March 2, 1963) is a Canadian soprano opera singer. Pronounced AY-dree-in pyeh-CHON-kuh.[1]

Career

She was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, and grew up in Burlington and graduated from the Opera School of the University of Toronto.[2] She also graduated from the University of Western Ontario in 1985.[3] Her professional debut occurred with the Canadian Opera Company in 1988 in Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of Mtensk. She soon after moved to Europe, joining the Vienna Volksoper in 1989 and the Vienna Staatsoper in 1991. In 1995, she made her British debut at Glyndebourne as Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni and debuted at the Metropolitan Opera in 2004 as Lisa in Tchaikovsky's The Queen of Spades. With the completion of the Four Seasons Centre in Toronto making working back home more viable, she returned to live in Toronto.

Her operatic repertoire includes Mozart, Britten, and more recently Wagnerian roles, especially Sieglinde. The German magazine Die Zeit referred to her as "the Sieglinde of our time."[4] Pieczonka's rendition of Sieglinde in the Canadian Opera Company's inaugural Ring Cycle at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts received positive reviews.[5]

Her album Adrianne Pieczonka Sings Wagner and Strauss was nominated for Classical Album of the Year - Vocal or Choral Performance at the 2007 Juno Awards.

In March 2007, Pieczonka was invested as a Kammersängerin in Austria. She, along with tenor Michael Schade, are the first two Canadian singers to have had this honour. In 2007, she was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Personal life

She resides in Toronto with her wife, mezzo-soprano Laura Tucker, and their daughter Grace.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "Interview: Adrianne Pieczonka - The Diva Next Door". Musicalcriticism.com. 2009-01-15. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  2. ↑ "Renowned Alumni". University of Toronto. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  3. ↑ "Western News - Music alumnae earn Juno awards". Communications.uwo.ca. 2010-04-19. Retrieved 2012-02-23.
  4. ↑ "Ringing endorsement". Canada.com. 5 September 2006.
  5. ↑ Canadian Opera Company
  6. ↑ "What do you say, Adrianne Pieczonka?". The Grid, Toronto. Retrieved 2013-10-18.

External links