Larisa Diadkova

Mezzo-soprano

• People's Artist of Russia
• Honoured Artist of Russia (1996)
• Prize-winner at the All-Russian Glinka Vocalists' Competition (2nd prize, Moscow, 1984)
• Recipient of the Golden Sofit, St Petersburg's premier theatrical prize (1998)
• Recipient of the Casta Diva Russian opera prize (2001)
• Recipient of the Baltika prize (2000)
• Awarded the Order of Friendship of Peoples (2010)

Larisa Diadkova was born in Zelenodolsk (Tatarstan). She graduated from the Leningrad State Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatoire in 1978 (class of Professor Levando-Timanova).
Mariinsky Theatre soloist since 1978.

Repertoire at the Mariinsky Theatre includes:
Vanya (Ivan Susanin)
Ratmir (Ruslan and Lyudmila)
Marfa (Khovanshchina)
Konchakovna (Prince Igor)
Olga (Eugene Onegin)
Lyubov (Mazepa)
Polina, Countess (The Queen of Spades)
Nezhata (Sadko)
Alkonost (The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden Fevronia)
Kashcheyevna (Kashchei the Immortal)
Mother Superior (The Fiery Angel)
Duenna (Betrothal in a Monastery)
Korobochka (Dead souls)
Azucena (Il trovatore)
Amneris (Aida)
Mistress Quickly (Falstaff)
Page (Lohengrin)
Fricka (Das Rheingold)
Waltraute (Götterdämmerung)
Herodias (Salome).

Repertoire also includes: Marina Mnishek (Boris Godunov), Jezibaba (Rusalka), The Princess (Suor Angelica), the mezzo-soprano parts in Bach's cantatas, Pergolesi's Stabat mater, Mozart's Requiem, Dvorak's Stabat mater, Verdi's Requiem, Mahler's 2nd and 3rd Symphonies, Tchaikovsky's cantata Moscow, Scriabin's 1st Symphony, Prokofiev's cantata Alexander Nevsky, and vocal cycles by Mahler, Wagner and Shostakovich.

Larisa Diadkova has appeared in the world's best-known opera houses, including the Wiener Staatsoper (Vienna), L'Opera de la Bastille (Paris), Arena di Verona (Rome), the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden (London), La Scala (Milan), the Lyric Opera of Chicago. She has also taken part in international music festivals in Salzburg, Bregenz and Glyndebourne.

Since 1996 Larisa Diadkova has been a guest soloist at the Metropolitan Opera (New York), where she has performed the roles of Azucena (Il trovatore), Amneris (Aida), Ulrica (Un ballo in maschera), Marfa (Khovanshchina), Herodias (Salome) and Fricke (Die Walküre).

Has performed in concert with many renowned orchestras, such as the New York, Philadelphia, Chicago and Cleveland Symphony Orchestras, the Berliner Philharmoniker and the New York Philharmonic. She has worked with such conductors as Valery Gergiev, Mstislav Rostropovich, Yury Temirkanov, Claudio Abbado, Riccardo Muti, Zubin Mehta, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Antonio Pappano and James Conlon.

Larisa Diadkova's discography includes recordings of Ruslan and Lyudmila, Boris Godunov, Sadko, Kashchei the Immortal, Mazepa, Iolanthe, The Fiery Angel, Betrothal in a Monastery and A Love for Three Oranges (all Mariinsky Theatre productions, recorded by Philips Classics and NHK), Mazepa (Deutsche Grammophon), Il Trovatore (EMI, 2002), Falstaff (DGG, 2001) and Rusalka (TDK, 2002). She has also recorded Mahler's Third Symphony (conducted by Eno de Var, 1996), Brahms's Two Spiritual Songs (Op. 91) for mezzo-soprano, viola and piano (conducted by Yury Bashmet), Brahms's songs (BMG, 1996), Borodin's songs (Chandos, 1993), and Shostakovich's cycle From Jewish Folk Poetry (RCA, 1995).

Larisa Diadkova’s phenomenally powerful and expressive mezzo-soprano voice has been called unique, heartfelt and powerful. The great magnificence of her voice acts on the auditorium like an electric shock.

Izvestiya


The mezzo-soprano Larissa Diadkova, who has performed Fricka at the Met, again proved terrifying in the role, singing with abandon, power and smoky colorings.

The New York Times