On 31 January 2021, two popular soloists of the Opera, Mária Farkasréti and Géza Gábor presented their favourite arias on the Sándor Hevesi Stage of the Eiffel Art Studios. Their programme including pieces by Mozart, Beethoven, Verdi and Wagner was streamec from 8:00 p.m. on Facebook and Origo.hu.
Following her music studies, soprano Mária Farkasréti joined the Opera Chorus in 1988, and became a demi-soloist in 1990. In 1992, she made her debut in Debrecen in the title role of Tosca, she then went on to sing solo in Szeged. She returned to the Hungarian State Opera in 1999 as Senta in Der Fliegende Holläder and made regular guest appearances in the Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal, Germany and Austria. Illness then interrupted her career for several years, but after recovering she made a comeback in 2005 in the role of Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni). She is a regular soloist of opera productions, she is equally convincing in dramatic as well as comic roles. Her repertoire ranges from baroque oratorios through popular operas to contemporary pieces.
Géza Gábor started off by studying piano, later he gained admission to the solo voice course at the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music in 1991, where he graduated with honours in 1996 after studying under programme heads Zsolt Bende and Dénes Gulyás. He continued his studies in the opera department, earning his degree in 1998 under the guidance of Ádám Medveczky and Balázs Kovalik. He made his debut at the Hungarian State Opera in smaller roles the same year. He returned there in 2009, and in the past decade he has become an invaluable member of the company. He is a regular guest of festivals in Hungary and abroad and also appears in musicals. His repertoire includes all major bass roles, and he is a renowned oratorio singer as well. In 1997, the Association of Hungarian Composers awarded him the Artisjus Award for the popularisation of contemporary music.
Artistic directors of the performance: Katalin Lázár and Orsolya Magyar
Hosted by Szilveszter Ókovács
Pianist: Kálmán Szennai
Programme:
Rossini: Il barbiere di Siviglia – Berta's aria from Act 2 ("Il vechiotto cerca moglie") – Mária Farkasréti
Nicolai: Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor – Falstaff's drinking song ("Már bölcsőben") – Géza Gábor
Mozart: Così fan tutte – Despina's aria ("Minden csitri lány kell, hogy tudja") – Mária Farkasréti
Mozart: Die Zauberflöte – Sarastro's aria in E major from Act 2 ("In diesen heil'gen Hallen") – Géza Gábor
Mozart: Piano Sonata in B-flat Major (K 570) – II. Adagio – Kálmán Szennai
Wagner: Der fliegende Holländer – Senta's ballad ("Johohoe… Traft ihr das Schiff") – Mária Farkasréti
Verdi: Simon Boccanegra – Fiesco's aria from Prologue ("Il lacerato spirito") – Géza Gábor
Beethoven: Fidelio – Leonora and Rocco' duet from Act 2 ("Nur hurtig fort, nur frisch gegraben") – Mária Farkasréti and Géza Gábor
The performance can be viewed HERE.
Photo by Péter Rákossy