BIOGRAPHY
Latvian soprano Margarita Vilsone's guest appearances include opera houses and concert halls throughout Europe. Critics and audiences are bowled over by her expressive interpretation and the rich, warm timbre of her voice.
During the current season, Margarita Vilsone makes her role debut as Judith (Bartók, Bluebeard’s Castle)
and performs the part with the Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz under Michael Francis, the Jenaer Philharmonie under
Marcus Merkel, and at the Theatre Krefeld and Mönchengladbach. In the world premiere of Judith Kerr’s opera Chronoplan, she performs the
role of the journalist at the Theatre Mainz.
In concert, Margarita Vilsone can be heard with, among other works, Verdi’s Missa da Requiem, Leoš Janáček’s Glagolitic Mas/s
and R. Strauss’s Vier letzte Lieder under the baton of Constantin Trinks.
In the next season, she will make her debut as Lady Macbeth in Giuseppe Verdi’s Macbeth.
Margarita Vilsone has made acclaimed role debuts in recent seasons as Ariadne and Chrysothemis
(R. Strauss‘ Ariadne auf Naxos, Teatro Verdi Trieste, and Elektra, Theater Münster and Mainfranken Theater Würzburg),
as Tosca in Puccini's opera of the same name (Stadttheater Gießen), as Elektra (Krenek, Das Leben des Orest, Theater Münster),
as well as the role of Marta in Mieczysław Weinberg's
The Passenger (Staatstheater Mainz) and as Aunt Lydia in the German premiere of Poul Ruders’ The Handmaid's Tale at
Theater Freiburg.
Further important role debuts in the past seasons included Amalia in Verdi's I Masnadieri at the Volksoper Wien, which she
also performed in a concert version at the Nationaltheater Mannheim in 2024, at the Latvijas Nacionālā Opera in Riga Marguerite
in Charles Gounod's Faust, Anna in Giacomo Puccini's Le Villi, Clara in Gershwin's
Porgy and Bess (Cesis Mākslas Festivāls) and Rosalinde in J. Strauß' Fledermaus. She sang the role
of Rosalinde also at the Schlossoper Haldenstein, as well as at the Staatstheater Nürnberg where she also made her debuts in the
roles of Micaëla (Carmen), Mimi (La Bohème) and Donna Anna (Don Giovanni). Other Mozart roles
include Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni, Junge Oper Schloss Weikersheim) and 1. Dame in Die Zauberflöte.
"... a youthful and expressive soprano with a beautiful and radiant stage presence." Bayerische Staatszeitung
At the Staatstheater Nürnberg, Margarita Vilsone also appeared for the first time in Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen: In Walküre, she performed Ortlinde and in Götterdämmerung Dritte Norn and Woglinde. She also performed Lisa in Lehár's Das Land des Lächelns at the Stadttheater Klagenfurt and the Anhaltisches Theater Dessau. At the Volkstheater Rostock, Margarita Vilsone had guest appearances in the new production of Janáček's The Cunning Little Vixen, directed by Vera Nemirova.
Concerts have taken Margarita Vilsone to Great Britain, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Estonia, Switzerland,
Austria and Germany.
Margarita Vilsone also gave her celebrated debut with the Tonhalle-Orchester in 2023 at the Tonhalle Zurich with Giuseppe
Verdi's Messa da Requiem.
Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 4 marked the beginning of her collaboration
with the Liepāja Symphony Orchestra in 2014.
Other concert performances included appearances with the Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz,
Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, the Staatsphilharmonie Nürnberg,
Norddeutsche Philharmonie, Neubrandenburger Philharmonie, Jena Philharmonie, Philharmonisches Orchester Cottbus,
Kärntner Sinfonieorchester and the Westböhmisches Sinfonieorchester.
"... the unearthly beautiful soprano passages by Margarita Vilsone ..." Verdi, Missa da Requiem, Münstersche Zeitung
Margarita Vilsone's concert repertoire includes Symphony No. 9 and Missa solemnis by Ludwig van Beethoven, Messa da Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi, Mahler's Symphony No. 2 & No. 4, J. S. Bach's Weihnachtsoratorium, Antonín Dvořák's Stabat mater, Mozart's Requiem, Honegger's König David, Kristaps Cukur's To be my own silence (world premiere) and Richard Strauss' Vier letzte Lieder.
On the concert and opera stage, Margarita Vilsone has worked with conductors such as Marcus Bosch, Enrico Calesso, Nicholas Carter, Alfred Eschwé, Michael Francis, Gábor Káli, Atvars Lakstīgala, Marcus Merkel, Alexander Merzyn, Andris Poga, Gintaras Rinkevičius, Roberto Rizzi Brignoli, David Roblou, Guido Johannes Rumstadt, Giedrė Šlekytė, Ektoras Tartanis, Sebastian Tewinkel, Constantin Trinks and Bruno Weil.
Margarita Vilsone's large Lied repertoire ranges from Romantic to contemporary music. Among others, she gave recitals at the Festival Liepāja Summer, at the Voices festival and also in the context of the exhibition Hitler.Macht.Oper at the Dokumentationszentrum Nürnberg with Lieder by banned composers.
"Standing ovations, well deserved." Der Opernfreund
The soprano was member of the International Opera Studio of the Staatstheater Nürnberg,
received the DAAD Prize, is winner of the international singing contest Accademia Belcanto and finalist of the
international singing contest Riccardo Zandonai.
She is a scholarship holder of both the Richard Wagner Society and the Oscar and Vera Ritter Foundation,
and was awarded the Deutschlandstipendium.
Margarita Vilsone began her vocal studies at the Hochschule für Künste Bremen and graduated from the Hochschule für Musik Nürnberg with Prof Jan Hammar. She attended master classes with Helmut Deutsch, Robert Holl, Christa Ludwig, Angelika Kirchschlager, Hedwig Fassbender, Krisztina Laki, Maris Skuja and Mya Besselink and is continuing her studies with Dale Fundling.
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