Concert: An evening of Art-songs & Operatic arias

On the occasion of the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the EU, the Pharos Arts Foundation, with the support of the Slovak Embassy and the Cyprus-Slovakia Business Association, presents a concert with two of Slovakia’s most celebrated opera singers – bass Stefan Kocan and soprano Bozena Ferancova. Stefan Kocan’s phenomenal artistry was evidenced from an early age and it has taken him, in leading roles, to the world’s greatest opera houses, including the Metropolitan Opera in New York, the Lyric Opera of Chicago and Milan’s La Scala. A Laureate of a number of international competitions, including the Antonín Dvořák International Singing Competition, Mozart’s Prague and Voci Verdiani, soprano Bozena Ferancova is a regular guest soloist at the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava, the State Opera in Prague and the Janáček National Theatre in Brno. For their concert in Cyprus, on Friday 2 December 2016 at The Shoe Factory, Nicosia / 8:30pm, the two singers will be accompanied on the piano by the renowned répétiteur Robert Pechanec in a programme of art-songs and operatic arias by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Händel, Dvořák, Boito, Puccini, Rossini & Gershwin, as well as song-cycles by the Slovak composers Mikuláš Schneider-Trnavsky and Eugen Suchoň.

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STEFAN KOCAN bass

“Gifted scene stealer with a voice that is a Tectonic Rumble” New York Magazine

While still in school, Stefan Kocan possessed a wide vocal range and stage presence beyond his years, therefore, he was engaged by the Bratislava Chamber Opera House to sing the complete roles of Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Dulcamara in Donizetti’s L'elisir d'amore and Malatesta in Donizetti’s Don Pasquale. He subsequently studied classical singing at the University of Music in Bratislava. After his graduation, he actively participated in a master-class by the legendary Russian Bass Yevgeny Nesterenko. Upon hearing him, Nesterenko was so impressed by his rare instrument that he called Stefan to study with him at the Conservatory of the City of Vienna. While still a student there, Stefan Kocan participated in the International Tchaikovsky Competition, where he won the Fourth Prize. Stefan is a Laureate of the Antonin Dvorak International Vocal Competition in Carlsbad, the Mikulas Schneider Trnavsky International competition, the Belvedere International Vocal Competition in Vienna, the Homage to Lucia Popp Competition in Bratislava.

Kocan made his professional debut in the Landestheater in Linz, Austria. Between 2002 and 2006, he sang leading roles such as Sarastro in Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Filippo in Verdi’s Don Carlos, Raimondo in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, Banco in Verdi’s Macbeth and Kecal in Smetana’s Bartered Bride, to name but a few. For his interpretation of the Grand Inquisitor in Verdi’s Don Carlos, in 2003, Stefan Kocan was awarded the Eberhard Waechter Prize for the Best Operatic Performance of the Year.

During his residency at the Landestheater, Stefan was heard by the Director of the Vienna State Opera, who was so impressed by his rare Basso Profondo voice and artistry, that he immediately engaged him as a guest artist at the Vienna State Opera. There, Stefan Kocan made his debut in Don Giovanni as Il Commendatore with Edita Gruberova as Donna Anna. From 2004 until 2010 he went on to perform a number of leading roles such as Banco in Macbeth and Raimondo in Lucia with Anna Netrebko. Stefan Kocan was simultaneously singing principal roles at The Vienna State Opera and the Theater Basel in Switzerland, solidifying his portrayals of Mephisto, Filippo, Osmin, and adding to his repertoire the role of Roi de Trefle in Prokofiev’s The love of three Oranges.

Stefan Kocan’s artistry has taken him to the world’s greatest opera houses such as the Metropolitan Opera in New York, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Milan’s La Scala, the Bavarian State Opera in Munich and the Teatro Municipal de Santiago in Chile. He made his US debut at the Metropolitan Opera in 2009, as Il Re in Verdi’s Aida, under the baton of Daniele Gatti. Soon, he made his debut at the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Banco in a new production of Macbeth, and subsequently the role of Ramfis in Aida. Engagements with the Los Angeles Philharmonic followed in 2013, with Stefan singing the role of Il Commendatore in a new staged production of Don Giovanni and then as Ramfis in a concert version of Aida at the Hollywood Bowl, both under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel. Since his debut, Stefan Kocan has returned to the MET every season to perform leading roles, and many of his performances have been broadcast live to much critical and audience acclaim. He made his debut at La Scala in 2011 as Masetto in the season opening production of Don Giovanni, featuring Anna Netrebko, Bryn Terfel and Peter Mattei, and he returned the following season to sing Banco in Macbeth under the baton of Valery Gergiev.

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BOZENA FERANCOVA soprano

Soprano Bozena Ferancova graduated from the Academy of Music in Bratislava where she studied wth Eva Blahová. She completed her studies at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena, Italy. She subsequently studied with Maestro Carlo Bergonzi in Bussetto – making her debut as Lauretta in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi at the Teatro Regio di Parma; and with Elena Obraztsova in Moscow and Badri Maisuradze in St. Petersburg.

Bozena Ferancova has been a prize winner in several international competitions, including, the First Prize in the Mikuláš Schneider-Trnavský Competition in Trnava, the Third Prize in the Antonín Dvořák International Singing Competition in Karlovy Vary, the First Prize in Mozart’s Prague as well as the Voci Verdiani in Bussetto.
In 1990, Ferancova became a soloist in the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava, where she sang many leading roles including Ilia in Mozart’s Idomeneo, Donna Elvira and Zerlina in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Nedda in Leoncavallo’s I pagliacci, Mimì in Puccini’s La bohème and Cio-Cio-San in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. Currently, she is a guest soloist in the SND, as well as the Janáček National Theatre in Brno and the State Opera in Prague. Amongst the highlights of her career was her performance in the title role of R. Strauss’ Electra in Peking and Shanghai.

Besides the operatic field, Bozena Ferancova is a dedicated concert and chamber musician and she has repeatedly collaborated orchestras such as the Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, the Virtuosi di Praga, and the Prague Symphony Orchestra, amongst others, and has appeared on stage all over the world.

Ferancova has received a PhD from the University of Arts in Bratislava, and since 2005, she has been teaching at the National Conservatory in Bratislava, and more recently, at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava.

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ROBERT PECHANEC piano

Robert Pechanec took piano classes from Anton Kallay and Darina Svarna at the Conservatory in Zilina. He continued his studies in the class of Daniel Buranovsky at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava. During his studies at the conservatory, he had begun to work with singers. He attended master-classes for singing with piano accompaniment under the supervision of Brigitte Fassbaender and Wolfram Rieger in 1990.

With a number of singers he won prizes in numerous competitions – International Mikulás Schneider-Trnavský Vocal Competition, the Belvedere Vocal Contest, the International Antonín Dvořák Singing Contest (he was twice lauded as best accompanist) and at the International Lucia Popp Vocal Contest.

As an accompanist he regularly collaborates with tenor Pavel Breslik (recitals at the Berlin State Opera, at the Theatre La Monnaie Brussels and the Opéra Nationale de Bordeaux), soprano Adriana Kucerova (recitals at Toulouse d' Été, at the Opéra Nationale de Bordeaux, the Salzburg Mozarteum and at the Grand Salon des Invalides in Paris) and bass Stefan Kocan (recitals at the Prague Spring Festival and at the Palais du Luxembourg in Paris).

Pechanec has appeared in Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland and Belgium. In addition, he has worked on several projects of the Frankfurt Opera and the Slovak National Theatre, and he was a répétiteur and musical director of diverse projects of the Wexford Festival Opera (Ireland) from 2000 to 2004. In May 2014 together with Pavol Breslik, he released a CD with songs of Mikulas Schneider-Trnavsky.

Since 1999, Robert Pechanec teaches at the Bratislava College of Music and Performing Arts.