mentors
Discover our exceptional Masterclasses and the esteemed mentors leading them.
Sergei Leiferkus – Curriculum Vitae
Sergei Leiferkus is considered one of the world’s most renowned and accomplished performing artists. With an international career stretching over 40 years, he made a name for himself in complex opera roles, such as Scarpia (Tosca), Iago (Otello), Rangoni (Boris Godunov), Telramund (Lohengrin) or Alberich (Ring des Nibelungen), to name but a few. He is a frequent guest at the world’s leading opera houses, such as London’s Royal Opera House, Opéra de Paris, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Vienna State Opera, La Scala, Semperoper (Dresden), New York Met, San Francisco, Chicago (Lyric Opera) and Teatro Colón; and at festivals like Salzburg, Glyndebourne or Bregenz.
His repertoire goes on to include famous baritone roles, like Don Giovanni, Nabucco, Macbeth, Simon Boccanegra, Amonasro, Klingsor, Eugene Onegin, Prince Igor or the High Priest of Dagon, and he continues to add new roles, like Schigolch (Lulu) or the Forester (Cunning Little Vixen).
On the concert repertoire, he has appeared with the world’s most famous orchestras, under eminent conductors like Abbado, Solti, Maazel, Levine, Gergiev, Haitink, Muti, Harnoncourt, Tilson Thomas or Ashkenazy. His discography comprises almost 40 recordings, including in opera the roles he is most noted for, and with a particular attention to Russian concert repertoire and the Russian song tradition, from Glinka to Shostakovich.
A native of St. Petersburg, Mr. Leiferkus started his career there (Maly Theatre, then the Mariinsky), before his international breakthorugh in Berlin, in 1980.
Aleksandar Nikolić – Curriculum Vitae
Aleksandar Nikolić is one of the most active opera and theatre directors in Eastern Europe. He has been collaborating with Belgrade’s National Theater since 2009 and, since the 2018-19 season, also with the National Theater Novi Sad (Serbia’s first National Theatre), having been appointed Principal Opera Director there in 2023.
Mr. Nikolic studied Drama, Audiovisual Arts, Art History and Stage Design in Belgrade and served as assistant director to the 13th revival of Richard Eyre’s original 1994 production of Verdi’s ‘La Traviata’ at London’s Royal Opera House (2016).
From 2019 through 2023, he was general manager at Little Theater Duško Radović, in Belgrade, where he produced a total 22 works.
In Serbia and abroad, he moves with equal ease in opera, theatre and dance, and his work on the opera stage includes Aida, Faust and Rigoletto for the National Theatre Novi Sad, Orfeo ed Euridice, L’incoronazione di Poppea and La serva padrona at the National Theatre Belgrade, Tosca with the Belgrade Philharmonic, Don Giovanni and The Telephone for Sarajevo’s National Theatre, Don Giovanni at Universal Artists Festival (Boston), Pyramus and Thisbe and Die Fledermaus in Jerusalem and Il Barbiere di Siviglia at the Vrnjačka Banja Summer Festival. Next June, he will be staging Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, the final event in Belgrade Philharmonic’s 100th Jubilee Season.
Anna Samuil – Curriculum Vitae
Soprano Anna Samuil is among the most sought-after singers of her generation and has been steadily engaged as a soloist at the Staatsoper Berlin since 2004.
After her international debut as Violetta (Traviata) at Berlin State Opera in 2003, her career quickly brought her to important stages, like La Scala Milan, New York Met, Bavarian State Opera, Semperoper, Hamburg SO, Valencia, Lyon and Tokyo; and to renowned festivals, like Salzburg, Aix-en-Provence, Edinburgh, Glyndebourne, Verbier, Arena di Verona and Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.
Recordings documenting Anna Samuil’s artistic activities include ‘Eugene Onegin’ from the Salzburg Festival, ‘Don Giovanni’ from Glyndebourne, ‘Das Rheingold’ and ‘Götterdämmerung’ from La Scala, ‘Der Rosenkavalier’ from Berlin SO, Britten’s ‘War Requiem’, Beethoven’s ‘Ninth Symphony’ and her latest CD release, “Il mondo felice”, an homage to Maria Malibran with her violinist sister Tatiana.
Anna has collaborated with conductors such as Daniel Barenboim, Zubin Mehta, Lorin Maazel, Antonio Pappano, Plácido Domingo, Myung-whun Chung and Gustavo Dudamel, to name just a few. Directors who have guided her career include Franco Zeffirelli, Peter Stein, Jonathan Miller, Achim Freyer, Claus Guth, and Guy Cassiers. Since 2011 she is a Voice Professor at the Hanns Eisler Music University in Berlin.
Jennifer Larmore – Curriculum Vitae
Jennifer Larmore is an American mezzo-soprano, a Grammy award winner with over 100 recordings to her name, Chevalier of the French government, Richard Tucker Award winner, Georgia Hall of Famer, voice teacher, author and actress in the new Netflix series King the Land.
She has a wide-ranging repertoire, having begun with coloratura roles from the Baroque and bel canto then adding music from the Romantic and Contemporary periods, sung at virtually every major opera house in the world, including the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Paris Opera, Tokyo, Berlin Deutsche Oper, and London Covent Garden, in collaboration with world renowned orchestras under the direction of Muti, Lopez-Cobos, Bernstein, Runnicles, Sinopoli, Masur, von Dochnanyi, Jacobs, Mackerras, Nelson, Spinosi, Abbado, Barenboim, Bonynge, Maazel, Osawa and Guidarini.
Miss Larmore, in collaboration with the double bass player Davide Vittone, created an ensemble called Jennifer Larmore and OpusFive. This is a string quintet offering programs that are entertaining and varied with Songs and Arias, Cabaret/Operetta and Movies and Broadway and have given concerts in Seville, Pamplona, Valencia, Las Palmas, Venice, Amiens, Olten, Aix en Provence, Dublin, and Paris. At the Magève.
Miss Larmore is widely known for teaching and giving masterclasses, having taught all over the world. She has recorded over widely for the Teldec, RCA, Harmonia Mundi, Deutsche Grammophon, Arabesque, Opera Rara, Bayer, Naive, Chandos, VAI and Cedille labels in over one hundred CDs to date as well as DVDs.
In addition to her many activities, travels, performances and causes, author Jennifer Larmore is working on books that will bring a wider public to the love of opera such as her book “Una Voce” that explores the world and psychology of the performer.
Jorge Balça – Curriculum Vitae
Over the past three decades, primarily in London, Portugal and Amsterdam, Dr Jorge Balça has developed a strong portfolio of work and a unique combination of skillsets – as a stage director (of theatre, opera, and hybrid forms), a teacher and workshop leader, a presentation skills, acting and creativity coach, and practice-based researcher. His work in all these domains is distinguished by his commitment to and skill in making fantasy and invention emerge from precise knowledge and training – and by his ability to inspire a similar alchemy in his collaborators.
Classically trained as an actor and countertenor, he studied theatre directing in London and Moscow, specialising in Shakespeare, techniques of adaptation, Meyerhold and commedia dell’arte. Jorge also holds a PhD exploring the dramatic training of opera performers.
With a love for site specific projects and collaborative forms, and an equal flair for comedy and drama, his work is dramaturgically inventive, visually striking, and physically engaged. He was the artistic director of Bloomsbury Opera and associate director of The Opera Makers, both in London. In Portugal, he has recently directed L’Heure Espagnole and The Turn of the Screw at Centro Cultural de Belém, and Don Giovanni and La Voix Humaine at Festival de Ópera de Óbidos. Jorge is committed to his work as a teacher, having taught at the Dutch National Opera Academy, Morley College London, Portuguese School for Theatre and Cinema, and other institutions. He maintains an international coaching private practice and is the acting coach at the Neil Semer Vocal Institute in Italy.
Watch Jorge Balça’s TEDx Talk “The Changing Body from Within and Without” here!
Juliane Banse – Curriculum Vitae
Few artists of her generation are as successful as Juliane Banse in so many areas of diverse repertoire. Her operatic repertoire ranges from Feldmarschallin, Figaro-Gräfin, Fiordiligi, Donna Elvira, Vitellia to Genoveva, Leonore, Tatjana, Arabella, Marschallin, Grete (Schreker’s Der ferne Klang) and Schneewittchen (in Heinz Holliger’s Schneewittchen).
Born in southern Germany and raised in Zurich, the soprano first took lessons with Paul Steiner, later with Ruth Rohner at the Zurich Opera House, and then completed her studies with Brigitte Fassbaender and Daphne Evangelatos in Munich.
Since the winter semester 2020/2021, she has been teaching as a professor at the Mozarteum in Salzburg and in the winter semester 2023 she has taken over the direction of the singing class at the Escuela Reina Sofia in Madrid. She also gives master classes in Austria and abroad and participates as a jury member in international competitions.
The artist worked with numerous renowned conductors, including Lorin Maazel, Kent Nagano, Riccardo Chailly, Bernard Haitink, Franz Welser-Möst, Claudio Abbado and Manfred Honeck.
Lieder recitals have always been her passion and have taken her to the Schubertiade Schwarzenberg, Wigmore Hall in London, Konzerthaus Vienna, Kölner Philharmonie, Berlin’s Boulez Hall and Madrid, among others.
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ACTING & STAGECRAFT MASTERCLASS
"Towards an Embodied Competition Experience"
A welcome icebreaker session covering a few fundamental acting technique and stagecraft elements of body in performance.
This masterclass is an important event, for all the contestants to take part in.
No audience is allowed for this event.
VENUE
Pestana Cidadela Hotel (Disco)
TIME
11:30am - 1:30pm
Participant details
Group session for all competition contestants
Duration: aprox. 2h
All contestants are automatically signed up
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Bring attire suitable for movement work and expect to be physically active.
- No repertoire needed.
- There are changing facilities, but no showers.
26
VOCAL MASTERCLASSES
All contestants that did not proceed to the Semifinal are allowed to sign up to any of the masterclasses on this day.
Each contestant will have at least one session with one of the mentors.
The order of the masterclasses is on a "first come first served" basis of sign up.
Sign Up: 26th April, 1pm - 2pm in person, in the Competition Office (Centro Cultural Cascais), after the feedback.
Audience seating open to the general public with free entry. No ticket required, entry subject to space availability.
VENUE
Museu Condes de Castro Guimarães
TIME
2:30pm - 6pm
Participant details
Available for contestants that did not proceed to the Semifinal
6 participants max, aprox 35 min each
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to two arias from their competition repertoire.
- Chosen pieces to be communicated at the time of sign up.
VENUE
Cascais Cultural Center
TIME
2:30pm - 6pm
Participant details
Available for contestants that did not proceed to the Semifinal
5 participants max, aprox 40 min each
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to two arias from their competition repertoire.
- Chosen pieces to be communicated at the time of sign up.
VENUE
Cascais Music Conservatory
TIME
2:30pm - 6pm
Participant details
Available for contestants that did not proceed to the Semifinal
5 participants max, aprox 40 min each
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to two arias from their competition repertoire.
- Chosen pieces to be communicated at the time of sign up.
VENUE
Casa das Histórias Paula Rego
TIME
2:30pm - 6pm
Participant details
Available for contestants that did not proceed to the Semifinal
6 participants max, aprox 35 min each
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to two arias from their competition repertoire.
- Chosen pieces to be communicated at the time of sign up.
27
ACTING MASTERCLASS
Audience seating open to the general public with free entry. No ticket required, entry subject to space availability.
VENUE
Casa das Histórias Paula Rego
TIME
10:30am - 1:30pm
2:30pm - 6pm
Participant details
For all contestants that did not proceed to the Semifinal
12 participants max, aprox 35 min each
Sign Up: All Contestants that did not proceed to Semifinal are automatically enrolled, in order of performance. Contact the office for changes.
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Proposal of 3 arias.
- The mentor will choose 2 arias, with more emphasis on one, to work on during masterclass.
- Bring 3 copies of the arias for the masterclass.
28
ACTING MASTERCLASS
Audience seating open to the general public with free entry. No ticket required, entry subject to space availability.
VENUE
Casa das Histórias Paula Rego
TIME
10:30am - 1:30pm
2:30pm - 6pm
Participant details
For all contestants that did not proceed to the Semifinal
12 participants max, aprox 35 min each
Sign Up: All Contestants that did not proceed to Semifinal are automatically enrolled, in order of performance. Contact the office for changes.
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Proposal of 3 arias.
- The mentor will choose 2 arias, with more emphasis on one, to work on during masterclass.
- Bring 3 copies of the arias for the masterclass.
29
VOCAL MASTERCLASSES
All contestants that did not proceed to the Final are allowed to sign up to any of the masterclasses on this day free of charge.
Each contestant will have at least one session with one of the mentors.
The order of the masterclasses is on a "first come first served" basis of sign up.
Sign Up: 28th April, 6:30pm - 8pm in person, in the Competition Office (Centro Cultural Cascais), after the feedback.
Audience seating open to the general public with free entry. No ticket required, entry subject to space availability.
VENUE
Museu Condes de Castro Guimarães
TIME
10:30am - 1:30pm
Participant details
Available for contestants that did not proceed to the Final.
4 participants max, aprox 45 min each
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to two arias from their competition repertoire.
- Chosen pieces to be communicated at the time of sign up.
VENUE
Casa de Histórias Paula Rego
TIME
10:30am - 1:30pm
3pm - 6pm
Participant details
Available for female voices only, contestants that did not proceed to the Final.
8 participants max, aprox 45 min each
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to two arias from their competition repertoire.
- Chosen pieces to be communicated at the time of sign up.
VENUE
Cascais Cultural Center
TIME
10:30am - 1:30pm
Participant details
Available for contestants that did not proceed to the Final.
3 participants max, aprox 60 min each
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to two arias from their competition repertoire.
- Chosen pieces to be communicated at the time of sign up.
30
VOCAL MASTERCLASSES
Audience seating open to the general public with free entry. No ticket required, entry subject to space availability.
Fee: €150
VENUE
Museu Condes de Castro Guimarães
TIME
3pm - 6pm
Participant details
Open to all singers who did not participate in the competition.
4 participants max, aprox. 45 min each
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to three arias.
- The program must be submitted at least two weeks in advance.
- Note: If demand is high, the masterclasses might be extended and a waiting list may be created.
Fee: €150
VENUE
Casa das Histórias Paula Rego
TIME
2pm - 6pm
Participant details
Open to all singers who did not participate in the competition.
5 participants max, aprox. 45 min each. 1 last spot available.
Technical guidelines / repertoire
- Up to three arias.
- The program must be submitted 3 days in advance
- Note: If demand is high, the masterclasses might be extended and a waiting list may be created.
