Soloist
Mara Mastalir
Vienna-born soprano Mara Mastalir performed on major stages in her home city when she was still young, as a member of children's choirs and also in solo parts. She also played leading roles in spoken theatre, films and television productions. Her first opera part was that of Mrs. Sam in »Die Sintflut« (Britten).
In 2008, Mara Mastalir completed her solo singing studies with Manfred Equiluz at the Vienna Conservatory Private University, where she also studied song and oratorio with Carolyn Hague, Uta Schwabe and Birgid Steinberger and took part in the Opera School Study Programme under Michael Pinkerton. To supplement this, the young singer also attended masterclasses with Angelika Kirchschlager, Roman Trekel, Michael Schade, Marjana Lipovsek, Robert Holl and Elly Ameling.
Mara Mastalir has won a number of international competitions, including the Fidelio Competition (Vienna), Ferruccio Tagliavini (Deutschlandsberg / Austria), Oper Schloss Laubach (Germany), Kultursalon Hörbiger (Vienna) and Musica Juventutis (Vienna). In 2008, the soprano won the international Kammeroper Schloss Rheinsberg competition in Germany, where she performed as Jenny in »Die weiße Dame« (Boildieu). She was also a finalist in the international BRD-Musikzauber Recital Competition in Bayreuth.
In 2009, she sang the role of Sandrina in »La finta giardiniera« (Mozart) at the New National Theatre of Tokyo.The same year, Mara Mastalir made her début as Echo in »Ariadne auf Naxos« (Strauss) at the Vienna Volksoper, where she has been a permanent member of the ensemble since September 2009, playing roles to date such as Susanna in »Le nozze di Figaro« (Mozart), Pamina in »Die Zauberflöte« (Mozart), Clorinda in »La Cenerentola« (Rossini), Marzelline in »Fidelio« (Beethoven), Gretel in »Hänsel und Gretel« (Humperdinck), Laura in »Der Bettelstudent« (Millöcker), Annina in »Eine Nacht in Venedig« (Strauss) and Helene in »Ein Walzertraum« (Strauss).
In June 2011, Mara Mastalir made her début at the Wiener Festwochen, where she also appeared in 2013. At the Retz Festival, the singer was able to demonstrate her skill in the baroque repertoire as Ismene in »Orpheus in der Unterwelt« (Telemann) and as Abra in »Juditha triumphans« (Vivaldi). In January 2015, the soprano made her role début as Micaela in »Carmen« (Bizet) at the Vorarlberg State Theatre Bregenz to the acclaim of audiences and critics alike.
The soprano is also much in demand internationally as a concert performer, recitalist and oratorio singer. She has appeared several times in Vienna's Konzerthaus and in the Goldener Saal of the Musikverein in Vienna (in the soprano part in Beethoven's 9th Symphony, for example). In 2014, Mara Mastalir appeared as Hanne in Haydn's »Die Jahreszeiten« at the Haydn Festival in Eisenstadt. She also sang this role in 2017 in the Bregenzer Festspielhaus and in the Montforthaus in Feldkirch (Austria). Furthermore, she already has worked with such international greats such as Stefan Vladar, Omer Meir Wellber, Marco Arturo Marelli, Rolando Villazon, Luc Bondy and Philipp Stölzl.
