Hata, Shigeko

Soprano singer. She began her studies in Japan and won the 1st Prize at the French Song Competition in Osaka (1998). She later studied with Peggy Bouveret at the Conservatoire National Supérieur in Paris (2001–5). Acclaimed for performances in the title role of Mozart’s Zaïde at the Rouen Opera in 2006, she is now regularly invited by the major French orchestras and music theatres. As a soloist she performed with the Ensemble intercontemporain for the world premiere of Jonathan Harvey’s Scene for an Opera in 2006. In 2007, she won the Nadia et Lili Boulanger Prize in the voice and piano duo category (with Karolos Zouganelis). In 2009 she won the Duo Prize in the International French Song Competition in Toulouse (with Michael Guido). She recorded a recital of German Lieder and French songs (Wolf, Brahms, Caplet, Poulenc). Since 2009 she performs with the Magnifica brass quintet.

With the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra she participated in the Japanese premiere of the Six mélodies for soprano and orchestra by Heinz Holliger to texts by Christian Morgenstern. She also premiered Ondřej Adámek’s Imademo and Karakuri. She sang the part of Carmen in Peter Eötvös’s Le Balcon. She also performs roles in classical and romantic operas, including the title role in Puccini’s Madame Butterfly and Pamina in Mozart’s The Magic Flute.