Anita Rachvelishvili facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Anita Rachvelishvili ანიტა რაჭველიშვილი
Rachvelishvili in 2019
Background information
Born	(1984-06-28) 28 June 1984 (age 40) Tbilisi, Georgia
Genres	Classical music, Jazz, Crossover music
Occupation(s)	Mezzo-soprano

Anita Rachvelishvili (Georgian: ანიტა რაჭველიშვილი) was born in 1984 in Tbilisi, Georgia. She is a famous Georgian opera singer, known as a mezzo-soprano. This means she sings with a lower female voice.

Anita is especially famous for singing in operas by Verdi. A famous conductor named Riccardo Muti said in 2018 that she is the best Verdi mezzo-soprano in the world. She is also very well known for her role as Carmen in Bizet's opera Carmen. Opera News magazine has described her as a powerful and unique performer on stage.

Early in her career, Anita became the youngest singer ever to open a season at La Scala, a very famous opera house in Italy. By late 2018, she was considered one of the top singers in her field. An American music critic, Alex Ross, even said that opera houses should let her do whatever she wants because artists of her talent are why opera exists.

Early life

Anita Rachvelishvili grew up in Tbilisi, which was then part of the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic. Her mother was a folk dancer and ballet dancer. Her father was a composer and played bass guitar. Both of her parents also sang.

Young Anita grew up during a tough time after the Soviet Union broke apart. There were many challenges, like "no electricity, no water, no food, nothing." She speaks Georgian, English, and several other languages very well.

As a girl, she learned to play the piano. For a while, she attended the Mukhran Machavariani School. Her first musical interests were rock bands like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Whitesnake. Later, she enjoyed singing popular music by artists like Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. Her voice was so good that her friends and family encouraged her to try opera singing. She began studying opera when she was 16 years old.

Training and career

Anita Rachvelishvili passed her audition and began training as a singer at the Tbilisi State Conservatoire. Her teacher was Manana Egadze. She received financial help from the president's office in Georgia, led by Mikheil Saakashvili.

While still a student, she performed for the first time at the Georgian National Opera Theater. She played the role of Maddalena in the opera Rigoletto. In 2007, she won the Paata Burchuladze Prize.

She continued her studies at a special academy for young singers at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Italy. Her family went into debt to help her get this amazing opportunity. Her big break came when Daniel Barenboim, the music director of La Scala at the time, chose her. He picked her to sing the main role in a new production of Carmen at the theater.

This performance of Carmen in 2009, with tenor Jonas Kaufmann as Don José, was shown on TV around the world. This made Anita Rachvelishvili famous internationally. She said this opportunity was "unbelievable and a fabulous challenge for me, something which changed a lot in my life."

People praised her strong voice and impressive stage presence. Her role as Carmen became very popular. Rachvelishvili has performed Carmen at many top opera houses. These include The Royal Opera in London, the Canadian Opera Company, and the Metropolitan Opera in New York.

She is highly respected in her home country. A Georgian newspaper, The Financial, said that her look and talent make her the best Bizet’s Carmen ever. Her wedding in 2016 was even streamed online by the director of the Georgian Philharmonic Orchestra.

Anita wants to share Georgian music with the world. She hopes to sing Georgian opera in Europe or America someday. She often performs charity concerts on Georgian television. Her performances sometimes include jazz or folk songs. She cares deeply about her home country and wants Georgia to be successful.

She has also performed other important roles at leading opera houses. These include Orfeo in Orfeo ed Euridice, Dalila in Samson and Delilah, Dulcinée in Don Quichotte, and Končakovna in Prince Igor.

In 2016, Rachvelishvili played Amneris in highly praised performances of Aida at the Paris Opera. She performed the same role at the Metropolitan Opera in 2018. A New York Times review called her performance "stupendous." It especially noted her singing alongside the star Anna Netrebko. The review said they sang powerfully as they challenged each other. Yet, they also showed the deep feelings of the women they played.

Recorded works

Anita Rachvelishvili has appeared in DVDs of Orfeo ed Euridice and Prince Igor. You can also watch her in streaming videos of Prince Igor, Carmen, Aida, and Adriana Lecouvreur on Met Opera on Demand. She also sang on an album by an Italian progressive rock band called Profusion.

Albums

Images for kids

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  Rachvelishvili in 2019

See also

In Spanish: Anita Rachvelishvili para niños