Rapla Cultural Centre

29 June at 7 PM

OPERA GALA

Opera soloists of the XII Rapla International Summer Academy,
under the guidance of internationally acclaimed Italian mezzo-soprano Patrizia Patelmo

Laura Olev, Miriam Hendrikson, Maria Veretenina,
Ave Aava, and Theodore Kakhidze

Piano: Helin Kapten

Programme includes highlights from the world’s operatic masterpieces.​​​

​SIMONE MARZIALI studied classical piano at the Fiesole School of Music, early music at the Roman Philharmonic Academy, and opera conducting at the Bologna Philharmonic Academy. He has won first prizes in numerous national and international piano competitions, including the J. S. Bach Competition in Sestri Levante and the Città di Stresa International Piano Competition. For over 12 years, he served as principal répétiteur and assistant conductor at the Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago and has worked in many opera houses worldwide, including those in Pisa, Livorno, Oviedo, Lucca, Bergamo, the Avignon Opera in France, Opera Australia in Melbourne, NHK Tokyo, the “Luciano Pavarotti” Theatre in Modena, and the opera house in Palma de Mallorca. He has collaborated with many world-renowned singers such as Plácido Domingo, Raina Kabaivanska, Katia Ricciarelli, Daniela Dessì, Fabio Armiliato, and others, as well as with distinguished conductors including Alberto Veronesi, Kery-Lynn Wilson, Roberto Tolomelli, and Antonio Pirolli. Marziali is a highly regarded vocal coach and accompanist, leading masterclasses worldwide, including in Rome, Tallinn (within the PLMF competition), Jerusalem, St. Petersburg, Moscow, and Busseto. He has conducted and participated in numerous opera productions, including Aida, Madama Butterfly, Pagliacci, and La Bohème, and currently teaches at the Carlo Bergonzi Academy in Busseto. He is also the founder of the music agency Musikos in Florence, which represents internationally established artists and young emerging talents.