Talia Or (born 1977)[1] is a soprano in opera and concert, born in Israel and based in Germany, where she made an international career. Her repertoire includes roles such as Mozart's Pamina, Nicolai's Frau Fluth and Tchaikovsky's Tatjana. She has a broad repertoire, from concert and lied, to contemporary music including world premieres such as Paweł Łukaszewski's Miserere. She lectures on singing at the Musikhochschule München.

Talia Or
Talia Or in 2022
Born	1977 (age 44–45) Jerusalem, Israel
Education	Musikhochschule Hamburg
Occupation	Operatic soprano Academic teacher
Organizations	Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz Musikhochschule München
Website	www.talia-or.com

Early life and education

Born in Jerusalem, Or grew up in Germany[2] from age four, when the family moved to Aachen. Her father was a teacher at the synagogue, and her mother a singer in the opera chorus.[3] She appeared at the Stadttheater Aachen at the age of ten.[4] She studied at the Musikhochschule Hamburg.[2][5]

Career

Or made her debut at the Hamburg State Opera during her studies,[2] appearing as Taumännchen in Humperdinck's Hänsel und Gretel and as Papagena in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte.[1] As a member of the opera studio of La Monnaie in Brussels, she appeared in 2002 as Cherubino in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro.[1][5] She was a member of Junges Ensemble of the Bavarian State Opera, and a member of the ensemble of the Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz from 2004 to 2008, where she appeared as Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, Gretel in Hänsel und Gretel and Rosina in Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia, among others. She performed as a guest in Turin, Valencia, Sao Paulo and Tokyo. Her repertoire includes Marzelline in Beethoven's Fidelio, Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss, and Tatjana in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin.[5]

In 2010, she appeared as Lisa in Weinberg's Das Portrait at the Bregenzer Festspiele, when the opera was first performed in Western Europe.[6] In 2012, she performed as the Voice of a Falcon in Die Frau ohne Schatten by Richard Strauss at La Scala in Milan, directed by Claus Guth and conducted by Semyon Bychkov.[7] She appeared at the operklosterneuburg opera festival in 2013, portraying Frau Fluth in Nicolai's Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor.[8] Reviewer Lena Dražic of the Wiener Zeitung noted:

The incessantly scheming Frau Fluth, as embodied by Talia Or, not only holds all the strings in terms of content, but with her noble soprano is also vocally the undisputed ruler of the scenery. (Die unablässig Ränke schmiedende Frau Fluth hält in der Verkörperung durch Talia Or nicht nur inhaltlich alle Fäden in der Hand, sondern ist mit ihrem edlen Sopran auch stimmlich unangefochtene Herrscherin über die Szenerie.)[8]

In concert, she performed Mahler's Symphony No. 2 with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Zubin Mehta, Mozart's Great Mass in C minor conducted by Andris Nelsons, and Bach's Christmas Oratorio conducted by Peter Schreier for the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.[1][2] On 3 May 2009, she performed in the world premiere of Paweł Łukaszewski's Miserere for soprano, mixed chorus and orchestra at the Gaude Mater International Festival of Sacred Music in Częstochowa, with the Polish Chamber Choir and the Morphing Vienna Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Michał Dworzyński [pl].[9] On 4 June 2016, she was the soprano soloist in three works with five choirs at the choral festival in Lüneburg, singing Poulenc's Gloria, the Requiem "Schwarz vor Augen und es ward Licht" by Harald Weiss, and Bernstein's Symphony No. 3 "Kaddish".[10] On 3 October 2022, she was the soprano soloist in Verdi's Requiem at St. Bonifatius, Wiesbaden, in a version for small ensemble, with Silvia Hauer, Sung Min Song, Johannes Hill and members of the Hessisches Staatsorchester conducted by Johannes Schröder.[11][12]

In 2008, Or recorded the soprano solo for Bach's cantata Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 140, with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Mehta[13] in a live performance at the Jerusalem Theatre of the ICC International Center in Jerusalem.[14] In 2010, she recorded Weinberg's Three Palms, a setting of Lermontov's "Three Palms" for soprano and string quartet, Op. 120. A reviewer noted her "heartfelt passion".[15] She recorded two works by Simon Mayr, the dramatic cantata L’Armonia and the Cantata for the Death of Beethoven, with the Simon Mayr Choir and the Ingolstadt Georgian Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Franz Hauk.[16]

Other work

Or is a lecturer of singing at the Musikhochschule München.[17]

References

External links

• Media related to Talia Or at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website
• Talia Or discography at Discogs
• Talia Or operabase.com
• Talia Or (management) mennicken-pr.com
• Talia Or (Soprano) Bach Cantatas Website 2017