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Malena Ernman

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Malena Ernman

Sara Magdalena Ernman (born 4 November 1970), known professionally as Malena Ernman, is a Swedish mezzo-soprano opera singer. Besides operas and operettas, she has also performed chansons, cabaret, jazz, and appeared in musicals. She is a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. Ernman represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with the song "La Voix", finishing in 21st place.

Ernman was born in Uppsala, Sweden, and spent her childhood and school years in Sandviken. She was educated at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, the Music Conservatory in Orléans, France, and the school of the Royal Swedish Opera.

In 1997, Ernman sang in the premiere of Ivar Hallström's 1897 opera Liten Karin in Vadstena; Opera magazine noted that "the mezzo Malena Ernman was very expressive as Princess Cecilia, King Erik XIV's sister". In 1998, her Rosina in The Barber of Seville at the Royal Opera in Stockholm was described as "displaying impressive technique" and "shaping the character with mocking good humour". The same year, she sang Kaja in the premiere of Sven-David Sandström's Staden under Leif Segerstam also at the Royal Opera in Stockholm, where one reviewer commented that "in vocal focus and expression, her full, rich voice is not that far behind Bartoli". In July 1999, Ernman sang the trouser role of Ziöberg in the premiere of Jonas Forssell's Trädgården (The Garden) at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre in Stockholm, conducted by Roy Goodman, the first new opera to be premiered at the theatre in modern times.

In Brussels in 2000, her Nerone in Handel's Agrippina, alongside Rosemary Joshua's Poppea and Anna Caterina Antonacci's Aggripina was described as "the most convincingly brattish young man imaginable".

In 2001, Ernman sang Sesto in Handel's Giulio Cesare at the Drottningholm Festival.[citation needed] She sang at the Glyndebourne Festival, in the Summer of 2002 as Nancy in Albert Herring and the next summer as Prince Orlovsky in Johann Strauss's Die Fledermaus, which was also performed at the BBC Proms that year.

In 2002/2003 Ernman appeared in Vienna as Diana in La Calisto. In 2003/2004 she sang the part of Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni at La Monnaie in Brussels and appeared at the Aix-en-Provence Festival as Lichas in Hercules by George Frideric Handel, with Les Arts Florissants under conductor William Christie, revived at the Paris Opera and at the Vienna Festival.

In the spring and summer of 2005, Ernman created the title role in Philippe Boesmans's Julie, appearing at la Monnaie, at the Vienna Festival, and in Aix-en-Provence. In 2006 she sang as Nerone in L'incoronazione di Poppea in Brussels and Berlin, then as Dido in Dido and Aeneas with William Christie at the Vienna Festival. She also sang in Agrippina at Oper Frankfurt.

In August 2006, Ernman made her debut at the Salzburg Festival as Annio in La clemenza di Tito under conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt. In 2007, her roles included Sesto in Giulio Cesare with René Jacobs in Vienna, Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro with Daniel Harding in Aix-en-Provence, and Nerone in L'incoronazione di Poppea in Amsterdam. In 2008 she sang Angelina in La Cenerentola with the Royal Swedish Opera and Dido and Aeneas with Christie and the Opéra-Comique in Paris. In 2009 she reprised Angelina in La Cenerentola with Oper Frankfurt and the Swedish Royal Opera, and Dido in Dido and Aeneas with Christie in Vienna and Amsterdam. In 2010, she sang the castrato role of Idamante in Idomeneo under Jérémie Rhorer at the Theatre de la Monnaie in Brussels, where her "feisty" portrayal of the prince was "as if to the gender born, her efforts rewarded by the inclusion of the usually cut aria 'No, la morte'. Vienna saw her in the title role of Serse by Handel in October 2011 at the Theater an der Wien, and the following season she sang Eduige in the Nicolas Harnoncourt-led production of Handel's Rodelinda at the same house, later released on DVD. Back in the city as Elena in La donna del lago in August 2012, she was "impressive... dealing with the vocal difficulties with aplomb and managing the extra dramatic demands made on her with genuine expressivity". She added Béatrice to her repertoire in 2013 in performances at Theater an der Wien of Berlioz's late opéra-comique. Also in 2013 she returned to the part of Aggripina at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, in a production by David McVicar conducted by Harry Bicket.

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