Gala Concert of the International Opera Studio

Amin Ahangaran, bass, was born in Iran. He completed his artistic training at the Tehran Conservatory of Music as well as in Graz. From 2020 to 2022, he was a member of the Young Artist Program at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, where he appeared in the productions "Rigoletto", "Siberia", and "Ariadne auf Naxos". He also performed in Florence and in various concert halls in Italy as a bass soloist. In the summer of 2022, he participated in the competitions “Voci Verdiane in Busseto” (finalist), “Riccardo Zandonai” in Riva del Garda, and the “CLIP” competition in Portofino. From 2022 to 2024, he was a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House, where he was heard in productions including "La traviata", "Eugene Onegin", and "Viva la mamma". He then joined the ensemble of the Opéra de Paris, where he has been a member ever since. In the 2025/26 season, he will appear there, among other roles, as Dottor Grenvil in "La traviata" and in a new production of Philip Glass’s "Satyagraha". He returns to the Zurich Opera House as Brander in the concert version of "La Damnation de Faust".

Aksel Daveyan comes from Armenia, where he studied at the State Conservatory in Yerevan. He has been awarded prizes at several competitions, including the Elena Obraztsova Competition in St. Petersburg, the Queen Sonja Competition in Oslo, the Stanisław Moniuszko Singing Competition in Warsaw, and the Gohar Gasparyan Competition in Armenia. From 2022 to 2024, he was a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House, where he appeared as Maestro in Donizetti's "Viva la mamma", Moralès ("Carmen"), Dumas ("Andrea Chénier"), soloist in "Timekeepers", Sciarrone ("Tosca"), Page ("Roberto Devereux"), and as the Consul ("Eliogabalo"). Since 2024, he has been a company member at the Oldenburg State Theatre. His repertoire there includes Giorgio Germont ("La traviata"), Ottokar ("Der Freischütz"), the Forester ("Das schlaue Füchslein"), Moralès, the Captain (Manfred Gurlitt's "Wozzeck"), Figaro ("Il barbiere di Siviglia"), and the Police Chief ("Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk"). As a guest, he has appeared as Marcello ("La bohème") at the Glyndebourne Festival, Figaro ("Il barbiere di Siviglia") at Theater Bonn, and as Prince Yamadori ("Madama Butterfly") with the Berlin Philharmonic at the Baden-Baden Easter Festival, as well as in concert at the Berlin Philharmonie. In concert, he has sung Mansurian's "Requiem" at the National Chamber Music Hall in Yerevan, Haladjian's "Missa de Lumine" at the Frankfurt St. Thomas Church, Fauré's "Requiem" as well as "Seven Prayers" at the Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall, and Mansurian's "Hymnus Navapet" at the Mendel Festival in Brno. He returns to the Zurich Opera House as Albert ("Werther") and Sonora ("La fanciulla del West").

Gregory Feldmann studied at the Juilliard School with Elizabeth Bishop, Randall Scarlata, and Sanford Sylvan. At Juilliard Opera, he appeared as Belcore in “L’elisir d’amore”, as Virgil T. in “The Mother of Us All”, and as Guglielmo in “Così fan tutte”. At the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, he sang Almaviva in “Le nozze di Figaro”. As a soloist, he has performed in Fauré’s “Requiem” as well as Handel’s “Israel in Egypt” and “Messiah”. He has a close artistic partnership with pianist Nathaniel LaNasa. In 2019, he won first prize at the “Joy in Singing” International Song Competition and in 2021, first prize at the “Gerda Lissner” Song/Lieder Competition. In 2022, he was a Young Artist at the Glimmerglass Festival. From 2022 to 2024, he was a member of the International Opera Studio at Zurich Opera House, where he appeared in productions including “Roberto Devereux”, “Don Pasquale”, “Serse”, “Jakob Lenz”, “Sweeney Todd”, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, and “Carmen”. Together with pianist Nathaniel LaNasa, he has given song recitals at Wigmore Hall in London, at the September Festival: Royaumont in Viarmes (FR), and at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris.

The Swiss tenor Felix Gygli completed his training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. He is the winner of the 2023 Kathleen Ferrier Awards and the 2024 Lieder Prize of the Queen Sonja Competition, and among other distinctions, a scholarship recipient of the Hildegard Zadek Foundation. He is a Samling Artist and was a "Young Artist" at the National Opera Studio in London in 2022/23, as well as a member of the Académie Lyrique of the Verbier Festival in 2023, where he was awarded the Prix Thierry Mermod as "Most Promising Singer." From 2023 to 2025, he was a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House. In 2024, he participated in the Carnegie Hall SongStudio under the patronage of Renée Fleming. In 2022, he made his debut as Papageno in "Die Zauberflöte" with Ouverture Opéra Sion and performed at the Verbier Festival 2023 as the Second Craftsman ("Wozzeck"). He gave an opera gala concert with the Opéra Orchestre National de Montpellier and appeared as a soloist in Brahms’ Requiem with the Theater Orchester Biel Solothurn. As a lied singer, he gave recitals in the UK, France, and Switzerland. He made his US debut with a performance of Schubert’s "Winterreise" at the Boston Text and Tone Festival. His oratorio repertoire includes, among others, Fauré’s "Requiem" and Bach’s "St. Matthew Passion." At the Zurich Opera House, he sang roles including Starveling in Britten’s "A Midsummer Night’s Dream" and stepped in for the title role of "Elijah" in 2025. In the 2025/26 season, he made his debut as Schaunard ("La bohème") at the Concert and Theater St. Gallen.

Raúl Gutiérrez, Tenor, studierte bei Emilio Pons in New York und Alejandro Armenta in Mexico-Stadt. Er war Mitglied der Vincerò Aca­demy, in deren Rahmen er in der Carnegie Hall New York auftrat. 2022 war er
Finalist bei der New Yorker Opera Index Competition und Gewinner der Meistersinger Competition Graz. In der Opernstudio-Produktion der Bregenzer Festspiele 2023 sang er die Titelrolle in Massenets Werther. Seit der Spielzeit 2023/24 ist er Mitglied des Internationalen Opernstudios am Opernhaus Zürich. Hier war er bisher u.a. in Sweeney Todd, Il turco in Italia, Jim Knopf, A Midsummer Night’s Dream und I vespri siciliani zu hören.

Yewon Han is a South Korean soprano. She completed her bachelor’s degree at Seoul National University and continued her training in the Young Artist Program of the Korea National Opera Studio, as well as from 2022 to 2024 in the International Opera Studio in Zurich. She has interpreted a wide range of roles in Korea and Europe, including Lauretta in "Gianni Schicchi", Papagena in "Die Zauberflöte", Adele in "Die Fledermaus", Romilda in "Serse", Li Si in "Jim Knopf und Lukas der Lokomotivführer", Titania in "A Midsummer Night’s Dream", and Najade in "Ariadne auf Naxos". In 2025, she appeared as Ophelia in "Hamlet" at the Buxton International Festival. She has received numerous awards, including first prize at the 60th Concurso Tenor Viñas (2023), third prize at the International Singing Competition Neue Stimmen (2022), as well as several first prizes at major singing competitions in South Korea. Since the 2025/26 season, she has been a permanent ensemble member of the Zurich Opera House and has recently been seen there in "Hänsel und Gretel", "Manon", and "Carmen".

Jonas Jud studierte am Conservatorio di Musica Agostino Steffani in Veneto und an der Yale School of Music in Connecticut. Die Rolle des Caronte in L’Orfeo sang er an der Ouverture Opera in Sion, Colline in La bohème bei den Opernspielen Munot, Truffaldin in Ariadne auf Naxos und Skomorock in Das Märchen des Zaren Saltan an der Isny Oper sowie Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte an den Theatern Bagnoli di Sopra, Civico di Schio und Accademico di Castelfranco Veneto, Bartolo in Le nozze di Figaro und Theseus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream unter Harry Bicket an der Santa Fe Opera. 2019 war er Solist in Mozarts Missa Brevis in d-moll unter Juri Baschmet und in Bachs Magnificat sowie Haydns Nelsson Messe in Cortina D’Ampezzo. Seit der Spielzeit 2022/23 ist er Mitglied des IOS am Opernhaus Zürich.

Maximilian Lawrie studierte am Magdalen College der University of Oxford und an der Royal Academy of Music in London. Dort war er als Tanzmeister in Ariadne auf Naxos, Interrogator 2 in Witch, als Rodolfo in La bohème, als Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi, als First Sailor in Dido and Aeneas, als Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, als Nemorino in L’elisir d’amore, als Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, in der Titelrolle von Werther und als Faust in Mefistofele zu hören. Zudem sang er Rodolfo an der Rogue Opera sowie Don José in Carmen an der Rogue Opera und der Cambridge University Opera Society. Seit der Spielzeit 2022/23 ist er Mitglied des Internationalen Opernstudios am Opernhaus Zürich und war hier als Kaufmann (Jakob Lenz) und Tom Snout (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) sowie in Il trovatore, La traviata, Salome, Roméo et Juliette und Die Zauberflöte zu sehen.

Maria Stella Maurizi began her studies at the Rossini Conservatory in Pesaro. She won first prize at both the 2020 International Competition “Young Musicians – Città di Treviso” and the 75th Competition for Young Opera Singers “European Community” at the Teatro Lirico Sperimentale di Spoleto. In 2021, she performed as Cio-Cio-San (Madama Butterfly) in Spoleto and Perugia; in 2022, she appeared in the European premiere of Philip Glass’s The Passion of Ramakrishna with the Budapest Festival Orchestra under Iván Fischer, sang Micaëla (Marius Constant’s Tragédie de Carmen) in Spoleto, and Donna Anna (Don Giovanni) in Spoleto and Perugia. That same year, she received the “Premio Nazionale delle Arti” from the Italian government. In 2023, she won prizes at the Concorso Lirico Internazionale “Anita Cerquetti” and the Concorso Lirico Internazionale Riccardo Zandonai. Since the 2023/24 season, she has been a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zürich Opera House, where she has performed, among other roles, as Helena (A Midsummer Night’s Dream).

Indyana Schneider, Mezzosopran, wuchs in Australien auf und studierte am Magdalen College der University of Oxford und an der Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien in Hannover. Sie war Mitglied der Akademie der Wiener Staatsoper, wo sie in Olga Neuwirths Orlando und im Semichor von Händels Ariodante auftrat. Auf einer Tournee mit der Kent Chamber Opera verkörperte sie die Carmen und am Theater für Niedersachsen die Mercédès (Carmen). 2021 war sie Finalistin beim Joan Sutherland und Richard Bonynge Bel Canto Award und gewann 2022 den 2. Preis beim Walter und Charlotte Hamel Opernwettbewerb in Hannover. In der Spielzeit 2022/23 sang sie die Rolle der Meg Page (Falstaff) in einer Produktion der Hochschule in Hannover, die Rolle des Komponisten (Cover) in der Garsington Opera-Produktion von Ariadne auf Naxos und die Rolle der Zita in Gianni Schicchi mit Sir Bryn Terfel in der Titelrolle und unter der Leitung von Domingo Hindoyan. Jüngst sang sie die 2. Dame in der Zauberflöte am Sydney Opera House. Seit der Spielzeit 2023/24 ist sie Mitglied des Internationalen Opernstudios am Opernhaus Zürich und sang hier seither in Iphigénie en Tauride, A Midsummer Night’s Dream und im jährlichen Opernstudio-Galakonzert.

The mezzo-soprano Dominika Stefańska studied in Łódź and was a member of the Warsaw Opera Academy. She was a finalist at the Ada Sari International Vocal Artistry Competition 2021. At the Łódź Opera, she performed the roles of Volpino ("Lo speziale") and Mrs. Reich ("The Merry Wives of Windsor"), as well as a nymph ("Rusalka") at the Poznań Opera. As a member of the International Opera Studio at the Zurich Opera House, she appeared, among others, as Hippolyta in "A Midsummer Night’s Dream", as well as in "Jim Knopf" and "Sweeney Todd". Starting from the 2026/27 season, Dominika Stefańska will become a permanent ensemble member at the Zurich Opera House.

Flavia Stricker, soprano, is from Brazil and studied at the Lübeck University of Music. She performed Fiordiligi ("Così fan tutte") at the Hamburg University of Music and Theatre and Galathée (Franz von Suppé’s "Die schöne Galathée") at the Lübeck University of Music. In 2023 she won, in addition to the second prize at the Concorso Lirico Internazionale di Portofino, a sponsorship award from the Kulturstiftung Insel Mainau. Since the 2023/24 season she has been a member of the International Opera Studio at Zurich Opera House, where she has appeared, among others, as Madama Cortese ("Il viaggio a Reims"), Kate Pinkerton ("Madama Butterfly"), Contessa di Ceprano ("Rigoletto"), the Widow in Mendelssohn’s "Elias", and in Stravinsky’s "Les Noces". At the Théâtre de La Monnaie in Brussels she sang in Rossini’s "Petite Messe solennelle", and with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra in 2025 she performed as Rosalinde ("Die Fledermaus").

Samson Setu, Bariton, begann seine Ausbildung in Neuseeland, wo er Mitglied des Dame Kiri Te Kanawa Programme for Young Singers war, und studierte am Royal College of Music in London. Ab 2020 war er Mitglied im Lindeman Young Artist Program der Metropolitan Opera New York, wo er in Don Carlo einen der Flämischen Deputierten sang. Er war Finalist bei der Dame Malvina Major Aria Competition und der IFAC Handa Australia Singing Competition. An der New Zealand Opera war er in Gilbert and Sullivans Trial By Jury als Usher zu hören. Seit der Spielzeit 2023/24 ist er Mitglied des Internationalen Opernstudios am Opernhaus Zürich.

Christopher Willoughby, Tenor, studierte an der Royal Holloway, University of London und an der Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien. Er war Finalist bei der Marilyn Horne Song Competition 2022 und zählt zu den Gewinnern der Charles Wood International Song Competition 2021. Im Rahmen des Atelier Lyrique beim Verbier Festival sang er 2023 Tom Rakewell in Strawinskys The Rake's Progress sowie den Narren in Bergs Wozzeck. Seit der Spielzeit 2023/24 ist er Mitglied des Internationalen Opernstudios am Opernhaus Zürich.

Quentin Mourier, Pianist, studierte Klavier am Conservatoire Royal de Bruxelles sowie Dirigieren am Conservatoire Royal de Mons und war Mitglied der International Opera Academy Gent. Erfahrungen sammelte er bisher u.a. als Korrepetitor und Assistenzdirigent von Luc Steels Fausto am Théâtre Royal de La Monnaie in Bruxelles, als Chorkorrepetitor bei Meyerbeers Les Hugenots, ebenfalls am La Monnaie, sowie als Korrepetitor bei Verdis Ernani an der Oper Antwerpen. Seit der Spielzeit 2023/24 ist er Mitglied im Internationalen Opernstudio am Opernhaus Zürich.

Lidiia Vodyk, Pianistin, wurde in Kiew geboren und studierte dort an der Nationalen Musikakademie der Ukraine. Während ihres Studiums war sie Teilnehmerin und später Assistentin bei den Meisterkursen «Music in the Alps» in Bad Gastein. Als Solistin sowie als Begleiterin ist sie Preisträgerin mehrerer Wettbewerbe. Ab 2016 arbeitete sie an der Oper Kiew als Korrepetitorin sowie Konzertbegleiterin und war 2021/22 auch an der Nationalen Philharmonie der Ukraine engagiert. Ihr bisheriges Opernschaffen umfasst musikalische Einstudierungen von u.a. La bohème, Don Carlo, La traviata, Le nozze di Figaro, Così fan tutte, Viva la mamma oder Il viaggio a Reims. 2022 besuchte sie einen Meisterkurs für Opernkorrepetition beim «exzellenz labor oper» in Weikersheim. Neben ihrer Arbeit mit Instrumentalist:innen und Sänger:innen wie Christiane Karg tritt sie auch als Solistin mit Orchestern aus der Ukraine, Deutschland, Polen, Österreich oder der Schweiz auf. Seit der Spielzeit 2023/24 ist sie Mitglied im Internationalen Opernstudio am Opernhaus Zürich.