On 29 January 2021, the renowned opera singer couple Gyöngyi Lukács and Alexandru Agache showcased their iconic roles on the Sándor Hevesi Stage of the Eiffel Art Studios. Their recital was streamed from 8:00 p.m. on Facebook and Origo.hu.
Soprano Gyöngyi Lukács pursued her musical studies at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, studying piano, music composition and voice. She was 20 years old when she made her debut at the Hungarian State Opera as Leonora in Verdi's Il trovatore, and she later also received numerous leading roles that she would become the youngest artist in the Opera's history to sing. Her first international appearance was in Basel, where the audience greeted her Tosca with great enthusiasm, and it was in this role that audiences of Deutsche Oper Berlin, Los Angeles, San Francisco and the New York Metropolitan got to know her. She is a regular guest at further renowned opera stages, her debut at Milan's La Scala as Leonora in La forza del destino met with resounding success in a production conducted by Riccardo Muti. The core of her repertoire is made up from Verdi heroines, but she regularly performs other dramatic soprano roles. She was awarded the Kossuth Prize in 2008, the Hungarian State Opera name her Eternal Member in 2014.
Baritone Alexandru Agache was born in Cluj-Napoca, studied at the local Academy of Music, and made his debut in the role of Sharpless in Madama Butterfly in 1979. After winning first prize at the Lucca singing competition, he sang Don Giovanni in Livorno in 1983. He debuted at Covent Garden as Renato in Un ballo in maschera in 1988, and has been a regular guest of leading opera houses all over the world. His repertoire includes all major baritone roles by Verdi, he made his 1999 Metropolitan Opera debut in Simon Boccanegra, for instance. The audience of the Hungarian State Opera first saw him as Georges Germont in La traviata in 1985. He has been a regular soloist of the Opera since 2009, where his achievements were awarded by the Gusztáv Oláh Commemorative Plaque.
Artistic directors of the performance: Katalin Kovács and Orsolya Magyar
Hosted by Melitta Gyüdi
Pianist: Kálmán Szennai
Programme:
Verdi: Nabucco – Nabucco's aria from Act 4 ("Dio di Guida, perdono") – Alexandru Agache
Verdi: Aida – Aida's aria from Act 1 ("Ritorna vincitor") – Gyöngyi Lukács
Verdi: Don Carlo – Posa's death ("Son io mio Carlo") – Alexandru Agache
Puccini: La bohème – Mimì's aria from Act 1 ("Mi chiamano Mimì") – Gyöngyi Lukács
Verdi: Il trovatore – Luna's aria from Act 2 ("Il balen del suo sorriso") – Alexandru Agache
Mascagni: Cavalleria rusticana – Santuzza's aria ("Voi lo sapete o mamma") – Gyöngyi Lukács
Chopin: Nocturne in F Minor, Op. 55, No. 1 – Kálmán Szennai
Verdi: Nabucco – Nabucco and Abigél's duet from Act 3 ("Donna chi sei") – Gyöngyi Lukács and Alexandru Agache
The performance can be viewed HERE.
Photo by Péter Rákossy