Search - Julia Lezhneva :: Julia Lezhneva - Handel

The emphasis for this album is very much on youth and prodigious talent: at 25, Julia Lezhneva is ideally suited to the soprano arias of the young Handel, who arrived in Italy from Germany as a 21 year old at the beginning of the 18th century.

Lezhneva has been praised for her unforgettable spiritual expression and perfect artistry in Handels music, whether in rapidfire coloratura passages or the gentle radiance that casts a tangible spell in slow music. (The Guardian)

She has the perfect partners in Il Giardino Armonico and Giovanni Antonini whose recordings of music from the Italian baroque are celebrated for their fizzing virtuosity and exquisite cushion of sound (The Independent). For some tracks the orchestra is led by Dmitry Sinkovsky, the extraordinary Russian violinist and one of today s most versatile Baroque musicians.

The music encompasses the best of Handel s operatic and religious works from his years in Florence and Rome: the operas Rodrigo and Agrippina and the oratorios Il Trionfo and La Resurrezione as well as the complete Salve Regina and soprano solo from Dixit Dominus. Best known is the radiant Lascia la spina from Il Trionfo and its later incarnation as Lascia ch'io pianga from the opera Rinaldo

The recording was made in the famously musical and historic Italian city of Cremona in the beautiful auditorium of the Museo del Violino.

Julia Lezhneva is one of the few singers to have been widely celebrated so early on in their career.
Young artist awards include:
The youngest ever winner of the Mirjam Helin International Singing Competition
Opernwelt 'Young Singer of the Year'
Kiri Te Kanawa invited Julia to perform at the Classic Brits (UK) in 2010
Lezhneva lit up the stage The Guardian
After that Classic Brits performance, Decca Classics signed Julia
Her debut Decca album Alleluia was released in 2013. It is the bestselling debut vocal release across Universal Classics since 2008.

Alleluia topped numerous classical charts around the world:
#1 in UK Official Specialist Classical Album Chart
#3 in Amazon Germany classical
chart
#4 in the Belgium s Classical Charts
#9 in Russian Chart
#10 in French Classical Chart

Julia received major critical acclaim including:
Classical Source: Although only 23 years old, the purity of tone in her voice and the technical prowess she displayed was remarkable
Fonoforum (Germany) 3 page feature: Her musicality and natural expression inspire wonder
Crescendo (Germany) 3 page feature
Russia 24 interview (Russia)
4MBS Classic FM Programme Guide (Australia) cover feature
The Independent (UK): A singer of uncommon ability and vivacity
Gramophone: Immaculately fluent in coloratura... a singer who rivals the young Bartoli in high-octane virtuosity
Vogue feature (Russia)

International TV and Radio appearances/live performances:
Andrew Marr BBC1 TV (UK)
In Tune interview & live studio performance BBC Radio 3 (UK)
Portrait of Julia documentary ZDF TV (Germany)
Echo Awards Ceremony performance ZDF TV (Germany)
Dresden SemperOpernball MDR TV (Germany)
Dresden Christmas Concert MDR TV (Germany)
Theatre Royal de la Monnaie (Brussels) performance and signing
Musiques en Fete TV performance (France)

Prizes and accolades for Alleluia:
Echo Klassik award for Newcomer of the Year
Gramophone Editor s Choice