Kathryn Lewek - Mozart: MAGIC FLUTE, O zittre nicht & Der hölle rache, Barcelona 2022, High Fs

THE SONGBIRD: Kathryn Lewek was born in Connecticut in 1983. She studied at the Eastman School of Music and privately with Diana Soviero and Marilyn Horne. Lewek has sung Mozart's Queen of the Night with more than 25 opera companies in over 300 performances -- in Munich, Berlin, Houston, Chicago, Madrid, Aix-en-Provence, Leipzig, and Copenhagen to name a few. Her first Queen at The Met was her debut in 2013, and she has sung it there 44 times over eight seasons to date. Other roles include Konstanze, Zerbinetta, Lucia, Rosina, Violetta, Handel's Ginevra, Offenbach's Eurydice, and the heroines in "Tales of Hoffmann." This performance was conducted by Gustavo Dudamel.

THE MUSIC: "The Magic Flute" ("Die Zauberflöte") K.620 premiered on September 30, 1791 in Vienna, just two months before Mozart's death. It was a success right out of the gate and has consistently been one of the most popular and produced operas in the world. The iconic role of the Queen of the Night was composed specifically for Josepha Hofer, Mozart's sister-in-law and a vocal virtuosa. It's a short role with only two arias and one ensemble, but the extreme vocal demands of the music have made it a defining role in the coloratura soprano repertoire. The Queen's first aria "O zittre nicht, mein lieber Sohn" introduces the character as empathetic and righteous; it concludes with swift, commanding, complex coloratura figures culminating in one short High F. The second aria is the well known "Der hölle rache kocht in meinem Herzen" where the character's extreme rage is uniquely expressed in the music, including a sequence of furious staccato figures topped with four High Fs.