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ANY GOOD COMEBACK NEEDS SOME TRUE BELIEVERS…
Ascolta Artists www.ascolta-artists.com is re-opening today on the first of April and that is NO joke!
 
A boutique agency with more than 15 years of experience only specializing in assisting, helping, and advising opera singers and promoters to make the best match.
 
It has been an intense month of preparations, but we have collected a great list of established singers and young talents from all over Europe.
 
A HUGE thanks from the Ascolta Artists team to those artist and promoters who believe in us and have supported us all the way.
 
Looking forward to seeing you all in the concert halls and opera houses around the world!!!
 
Warm greetings from,
 

Jonas, Rita and Fany! 

NEWS OF MAY 2022
Double accolade for our gifted JOHANNA NYLUND as just a few weeks apart, our young soprano has been awarded with 2 prestigious prizes: the Barbro Salen scholarship and the Léonie Sonning Talent Prize. 
 
Smashing lyric debut for for our magnetic NANNA FABRICIUS (OH LAND) as Anna in Weill's «Die Sieben Todessünde» presented at the Royal Danish Opera in an exciting double programme with the world-premiére of Louise Alenius' «Manuale», where our radiant soprano SOFIE LUND shined as Angina too.
 
A dream role debut for TADAS GIRININKAS as Filippo II in Verdi's Don Carlo at the Lithuanian National Opera under the baton of maestro Sesto Quatrini, where our bass shown his powerful voice and poignant stage presence.
 
Our velvet-voiced soprano YANA KLEYN  brilliantly starred as  as both troubled Angelica and greedy Nella in the double Puccinian programme "Suor Angelica" &"Gianni Schicchi" at the Royal Swedish Opera
 
Shostakovich's «The Nose» successfully premiered at the Royal Danish Opera with the striking staging by La Fura dels Baus and an exceptional cast featuring our SIMON DUUS, CONNY THIMANDER, JONATHAN KOPPEL and NICOLAI ELSBERG.  
 
Bernstein's «Candide» delighted audiences at the Gärtnerplatztheater with a stunning production and a brilliant cast featuring our mezzosoprano ANNA AGATHONOS .
 
The peerless Opera di Setra announced its new season: the popular melodies of «The Sound of Music» will be fully enjoyed this summer in its Norwegian Woods where our splendid soprano ELDRID GORSET will encarnate sweet Fräulein Maria next July.
 
 
 
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NEWS OF APRIL 2022
Our Founder&Director JONAS FOSDAL was invited by radiobroadcast programme «Kammertonen» where he explained how he became an agent and the path followed since then.
 
The grand opéra successfully returned to Greek National Opera with Gounod's «Faust» with a top cast that featured our talented mezzosoprano ANNA AGATHONOS as Marthe.
 
Another ravishing role debut for our mezzosoprano EMMA SVENTELIUS, this time embodying Prince Orlofsky in Strauss' «Die Fledermaus» at Gärtnerplatztheater. Her outstanding vocal and acting portrait of the bored playboy aroused much applauce of audience and the praise of reviews.
 
And also at Gärtnerplatztheater was presented «Tiefe Gefühle» («Deep Feelings») that mixed opera and crossover for giving a well-deserved protagonism to low voices in a wide variety of characters. Both ANNA AGATHONOS and EMMA SVENTELIUS showed their mezzosoprano power.
 
Our stunning soprano ÅSA JÄGER dived into the Wagnerian universe at Landestheater Coburg where she became a brave Brühnnhilde in «Die Walküre» in a much-awaited and brilliant debut.
 
Verbier Festival is famous for its Atelier Lyrique that every summer features promising young singers and selected our talented soprano SOFIE LUND among this year's participants.
 
Årets Reumert announced the candidates list for its annual awards where our marvellous sopranos SOFIE JENSEN and TRINE MØLLER were  nominees as Best Singer. Prize ceremony will take place in June.
 
And last but least, april brought a newcomer as the sensational Lithuanian soprano AISTE PILIBA joined our roster for general management.
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NEWS OF MARCH 2022
Smashing debut for soprano TRINE MØLLER as Brünnhilde in Wagner's «Die Walküre» at Det Kongelige Teater with a rendition defined by reviews as «world class». A great success shared with mezzosoprano ANDREA PELLEGRINI and soprano JOHANNE HOJLUND with a powerful and moving rendering that aroused the applause of the audience.
 
Exciting Dutch-Turkish soprano AYLIN SEZER arrives to our roster for general management with a brilliant future ahead as apart from her traditional opera performances, she also enjoys crossing artistic boundaries.
 
The world of culture is doing its utmost to help Ukrainian refugees and so our artists are. Sopranos YANA KLEYN, KRISTINE NOWLAIN & ÅSA JÄGER, mezzosoprano MATHILDA BRYNGELSSON and bass NICOLAI ELSBERG have participated in several support concerts this month.
 
Puccini's «Suor Angelica» is being shown successful and simultaneously in Malmö Opera and Det Kongelige Teater. Mezzosoprano MATHILDA BRYNGELSSON embodied Sorella Zelatrice in Malmö while soprano YANA KLEYN made her role debut in a last-minute jump-in in Copenhagen.
 
Past March 28, Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark hosted «The Palace Dance» at Amalienborg for the presentation of Queen Ingrid's Honorary Grants and this relevant event featured our bass NICOLAI ELSBERG
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NEWS OF FEBRUARY 2022
Our ravishing soprano YANA KLEYN was chosen as «Talent of the Year» by  Copenhagen Opera Festival thanks to the intensity and passion of a voice that draws directly into the soul as well as her total surrender to each role played on stage.
 
Jump in for our talented baritone MODESTAS SEDLEVIČIUS as Figaro in Rossini's «Il Barbiere di Siviglia» at Malmö Opera with a great applause from the audience.
 
So proud of having extremely talented artists as baritone SIMON DUUS in our roster: he is not only a fantastic singer but also shines as librettist, designer and director. His children opera «Papageno&Papagena» (based on Mozart characters) was on stage this month at Det Kongelige Teater with great reviews and sold out.
 
Magazine Opera Now spotted our imposing bass NICOLAI ELSBERG among the young singers to keep an eye on, remarking the extraordinary presence of his voice as well as his commanding poise on stage.
 
February ended with a new award for one of our rising singers as mezzosoprano MATHILDA BRYNGELSSON received the Anders Walls Giresta scholarship.

 

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NEWS OF JANUARY 2022
 2022 will surely be a year of changes, challenges and new things and that is why are so excited to welcome our first countertenor ever:  Baroque specialist STEFFEN JESPERSEN is our first joining of the year.
 
Greek National Opera annouced its new opera season where our marvellous mezzosoprano ANNA AGATHONOS will feature in Gounod's «Faust» in April.
 
Our magnificent mezzosoprano EMMA SVENTELIUS was one of the singers participating at the Gala Concert from Kungliga Operan which was broadcast via SVT Play.
 
The so-much attended New Year's concert by Lyngby-Taarbæk Symfoniorkester featured our expressive soprano YANA KLEYN who put love and beauty to this comeback after restrictions by singing Puccini arias.
 
Det Kongelige Teater reopened its doors with Mozarts's «Don Giovanni» featuring our incredible artists NICOLAI ELSBERG, JENS SØNDERGAARD , TOMI PUNKERI and ELDRID GORSET.
 
Under the suggestive motto «Så går vi til Maxim» (Take me to Maxim!!), the OperetteKompagniet celebrated a belated New Year gala with a sparkling repertoire sung by our brilliant SIDSEL ERIKSEN and JONATHAN KOPPEL.
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NEWS OF DECEMBER 2021
Coronavirus played havoc again and many theatres and opera houses were forced to cancel performances and even close for some days but our artists still had the opportunity of singing during this month.
 
EMMA SVENTELIUS combined performances of Humperdinck's «Hänsel und Gretel» with rehearsals of  Offenbach's «Les Contes d'Hoffmann» at Gärtnerplatzteater, even during the same day. Moreover, she was ranked  #11 among the 20 most influential&successful people and events of 2021 according to the list released by Swedish musical magazine OPUS. A brilliant closure of this year for our outstanding young mezzosoprano!!
 
Fellow mezzosoprano MATHILDA BRYNGELSSON performed in «Hänsel & Gretel» playing the Mother at Kammeroper Schloss Rheinsberg with a big success with the audience.
 
And the third mezzosoprano busy this month was SIDSEL ERIKSEN, who sang «Messiah» in a rewritten version in Danish by composer John Frandsen along with Aarhus Symphony Orchestra( Aarhus Symfoniorkester at Musikhuset Aarhus .
 
A great challenged successfully completed by CONNY THIMANDER: being called for a jump-in of a world premiere, learning the score in just one day and dare to sing. Our bold tenor sang «Weinachtsoratorium» by Thomas Agerfeldt Olesen at Musikhuset Aarhus with maestro Florian Helgath conducting the Aarhus Symfoniorkester.
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NEWS OF OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 2021
Det Kongelige Teater presented "The Merry Widow" featuring some of our artists within the cast: tenor ANDERS KAMPMANN, bass-baritone SIMON DUUS and soprano GINA GLORIA TRONEL delighted the spectators with their brilliant performances.
 
Moreover SIMON DUUS also was awarded the Holger Bruusgaards scholarship by the Royal Danish Orchestra.
 
NICOLAI ELSBERG was one of the contestants at Operalia Singing competition, being held at Bolshoi Theater in Moscow this year. Despite not being into the final round, our impressive bass left an excellent impression among the jury thanks to his rendition on Fiesco's aria from Verdi's "Simon Boccanegra".
 
Absolute debut as a soloist for our SYNNE VINJE in "Rigoletto" at The Royal Swedish Opera.
 
Maison Van Cleef & Arpels offered a stylish soirée that featured YAROSLAV ABAIMOV. Our elegant tenor showed his skills, not only as a singer but also as a pianist, surprising the distinguished guests. 
 
DOROTHEA SPILGER debuted as Amneris in Verdi's «Aida» this evening at Den Jyske Opera. A great new role with a powerful staging for our outstanding mezzosoprano.
 
Rightly defined as LIFE on stage, «La Bohème» was presented at Det Kongelige Teater with the participation of many of our amazing artists: sopranos YANA KLEYN and SOFIE JENSEN, baritones JENS SØNDERGAARD and LUTHANDO QAVE, bass-baritone SIMON DUUS, and basses NICOLAI ELSBERG and STEFFEN BRUUN. Puccini's masterpiece is always an emotional appeal and once again, a huge success among the operagoers.
 
Two young and talented artists joined our roster: delicious soprano ELDRID GORSET and rising baritone Tomi Punkeri who respectively embodied bubbly Musetta and playful Schaunard in «La Bohème» at Det Kongelige Teater.
 
For the very first time in its history, Strauss' «Der Rosenkavalier» was premiered at Volksoper Wien with our sensational mezzosoprano EMMA SVENTELIUS embodying Octavian. Reviews praised not only the beauty of her voice but also her expressful acting. Some weeks later, she jumped in at Gärtnerplatztheater for singing Olga at Tchaikovski's «Eugene Onegin» in a last-minute call.
 
November 2, All Souls'Day was the perfect date chosen by Gärtnerplatztheater for opening the theater to audience again and premiering Menotti's «The Medium» with ANNA AGATHONOS leading the cast as Madame Flora. Later that month, our mezzosoprano reprised the roles of Berta in Rossini's "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" and Filipievna in «Eugene Onegin».
 
The Icelandic Opera premiered Verdi's «La Traviata» featuring our imposing baritone HRÒLFUR SAEMUNDSSON as Giorgio Germont.
 
And exciting news for ending November brilliantly as it was announced that OH LAND will be composing a brand new opera to be premiered at Den Fynske Opera in 2023.  Under the title "Grass is greener", this piece will be born in collaboration with musician Adi Zukanović and artist Ida Agnete Fogh Kiberg and coproduced with Danmarks Underholdningsorkester.
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NEWS OF SEPTEMBER 2021
 Last minute jump-in for our bass TADAS GIRININKAS as Mephistopheles in Gounod's «Faust» at Det Kongelige Teater along with SOFIE JENSEN and LUTHANDO QAVE, with enthusiastic final applauses for all of them.
 
Mezzosoprano EMMA SVENTELIUS has been chosen as coverface of Volksoper Wien magazine upon her house debut there for embodying one of her iconic roles: Octavian at  "Der Rosenkavalier".
 
Radio broadcast on DR for soprano TRINE MØLLER and baritone JENS SØNDERGAARD singing pieces by Alexander Zemlinski and Alma Mahler under the baton of Kristiina Poska conducting the Sønderjyllands Symfoniorkester.
 
Great success also for baritone HRÓLFUR SAEDMUNDSSON singing the title role  in Verdi's "Macbeth" at Norrlandsoperan. And continuing with Verdi, mezzosoprano ANDREA PELLEGRINI composed an intriguing Principessa d'Eboli in «Don Carlo» at Folkoperan in Stockholm.
 
Our booming tenor CONNY THIMANDER has  been awarded with a scholarship from Friends of Drottningholms Slottsteater delivered during a ceremony at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre by King Carl XVI Gustaf Of Sweden and HM Queen Silvia of Sweden.
 
Young baritone MODESTAS SEDLEVICIUS, one of the most promising Baltic singers of his generation, is our latest and exciting joining to Ascolta Artists roster.
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NEWS OF JULY-AUGUST 2021

Summer joinings to our rosters included exciting new artists as sopranos MONIKA KUCINSKA & SYNNE VINJE, mezzosoprano MATHILDA BRYNGELSSON and tenor TOMAS PAVILIONIS, and we give the warmest welcome to all of them.

Inspired by Monty Phyton's most famous film, the oratorio «Das Leben des Brian» was premiered at Gärtnerplatzteater in Munich. Featuring our comical mezzo ANNA AGATHONOS, it was a hilarious delight for the audience.

Once again, very proud and happy of the achievements of our phenomenal NICOLAI ELSBERG, who has been selected for Operalia Contest to take place in Moscow next October. Meanwhile, our young bass sang in one of the most awaited musical events this summer is the concert by the picturesque Roskilde Cathedral featuring the stars of Det Kongelige Teater, along with our amazing soprano TRINE MØLLER and baritone JENS SØNDERGAARD


Rousing tenor MOISÉS MARÍN embodied Normanno in «Lucia di Lammermoor»at Gran Teatre del Liceu within a top-class cast including Nadine Sierra and Javier Camarena under the baton of maestro Giacomo Sagripanti.

Sparkling tenor LIANGHUA GONG captivated the audience at Immling festival with a superb rendition of Don Ramiro in Rossini's «La Cenerentola» while brave fellow tenor JEFFREY HARTMANN made a last-minute jump-in for singing Verdi&Puccini arias at the Gala Concert in the same festival.

Role debut for tenor ANDERS KAMPMANN as Canio in «Pagliacci»at the beautiful stage of Søholm Opera. Congratulations to our talented tenor!

Den Ny Opera successfully premiered Verdi's last masterpiece, «Falstaff» with the participation of JENS SØNDERGAARD ,JONATHAN KOPPEL, PHILIPPA COLD and the onstage debut of SOFIE LUND-TONNESEN

Wagner, Mozart, Piazzola, Cher, Queen, David Lynch, RuPaul were mixed all in one for creating «Begærets mysterier» (The Mysteries of Desire), an extremely suggestive show that Det Kongelige Teater premiered this past August featuring bass-baritone SIMON DUUS as The secret lover

The moving art of Puccini was the leitmotif for «Viva Verismo», the annual gala concert at Tivoli featuring our charming soprano YANA KLEYN. In this edition, there was a double concert, as it also took place at Den Røde Plads some days later.