Sarah Aristidou

{{Infobox person

| name = Sarah Aristidou

| image =

| image_upright =

| caption =

| birth_date = {{Birth year and age|1991}}

| birth_place = Paris, France

| other_names = Sarah Mzali-Aristidou

| education = {{ubl | Maîtrise de Radio France | Sorbonne | Conservatoire à rayonnement régional de Paris | Universität der Künste Berlin | University of Music and Performing Arts Munich}}

| occupation = Operatic soprano

| organization =

| website = {{url|https://www.sarah-aristidou.com/}}

| awards = {{ubl| Belmont Prize }}

}}

Sarah Aristidou, or Sarah Mzali-Aristidou (born 1991{{cite web | title=Belmont-Preis für Sopranistin Sarah Aristidou | website=Deutschlandfunk Kultur | date=28 June 2022 | url=https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/belmont-preis-fuer-sopranistin-sarah-aristidou-100.html | language=de | access-date=22 September 2022}}) is a French operatic soprano who has performed internationally. She is interested in contemporary music and has appeared in world premieres. Composers such as Aribert Reimann and Jörg Widmann have written music for her.

Life and career

Born in Paris, Aristidou began her musical training as a member of the Maîtrise de Radio France. She studied musicology at the Sorbonne and graduated in music theory at the {{ill|Conservatoire à rayonnement régional de Paris|de||fr}} in 2011. Beginning in 2010, she studied singing at the Universität der Künste Berlin, and from 2014 at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich.{{cite web | title=Sarah Aristidou | website=Gärtnerplatztheater | url=https://www.gaertnerplatztheater.de/en/personen/sarah-aristidou.html | access-date=22 September 2022}} She received her master's degree at the Bayerische Theaterakademie August Everding.{{cite web | title=Sarah Aristidou | website=Heidelberger Frühling 2021 | date=28 August 2014 | url=https://www.heidelberger-fruehling.de/heidelberger-fruehling/programm/kuenstler/?id=37434/ | language=de | access-date=22 September 2022}}

Aristidou appeared in world premieres of contemporary music by composers such as Wolfgang Rihm, Jörg Widmann and Manfred Trojahn.{{cite web | title=Manfred Trojahn – Les dentelles de Montmirail | website=Euterpe Management | date=27 February 2017 | url=https://euterpe-management.de/2017/02/27/manfred-trojahn-les-dentelles-de-montmirail/ | language=de | access-date=22 September 2022}} Aribert Reimann composed Cinq Fragments français de Rainer Maria Rilke especially for her voice, and she premiered it in 2015 at the Liederwerkstatt of the Kissinger Sommer festival.{{cite web |last=Ahnert |first=Thomas | title=Die "LiederWerkstatt" des Kissinger Sommers ist immer für Überraschungen gut | website=nmz | date=8 July 2015 | url=https://www.nmz.de/kritik/oper-konzert/die-liederwerkstatt-des-kissinger-sommers-ist-immer-fuer-ueberraschungen-gut | language=de | access-date=29 December 2023}}{{cite web | title=Cinq fragments français de Rainer Maria Rilke | website=Schott Music | url=https://www.schott-music.com/de/cinq-fragments-francais-de-rainer-maria-rilke-noc334222.html | language=de | access-date=22 September 2022}}

She has worked with conductors such as Daniel Barenboim, Trevor Pinnock and Simon Rattle, and with orchestras including the Berliner Philharmoniker, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and the Gürzenich Orchestra. She was a member of the international opera studio of the Berlin State Opera from 2017 to 2019. In the 2020/21 season, she appeared at the State Opera as Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, and performed at the Heidelberger Frühling and the Salzburg Festival.{{cite web | title=Sarah Aristidou | website=Berlin State Opera | url=https://www.staatsoper-berlin.de/de/kuenstler/sarah-aristidou.1503/ | language=de | access-date=22 September 2022}}{{cite web | title=Sarah Aristidou | website=Salzburger Festspiele | url=https://www.salzburgerfestspiele.at/en/a/sarah-aristidou | access-date=22 September 2022}}

Recordings

Aristidou's debut CD appeared in 2021, titled Æther, with works by Edgar Varèse, Francis Poulenc, Leo Delibes, Ambroise Thomas, Jörg Widmann, Claude Debussy, Igor Strawinsky, Thomas Adès, George Frideric Handel and Udo Zimmermann, with pianist Daniel Barenboim, flutist Emmanuel Pahud, guitarist Christian Rivet, the Chor der Klangverwaltung and Orchester des Wandels conducted by Thomas Guggeis.{{cite news |first=Bettina |last=Jech | title=Sweet Spot mit Sopranistin Sarah Aristidou: Höchste Töne, eisige Temperaturen und das fünfte Element | publisher=BR | date=9 November 2021 | url=https://www.br-klassik.de/themen/sweetspot/sarah-aristidou-sopranistin-album-aether-island-orchester-des-wandels-daniel-barenboim100.html | language=de | access-date=22 September 2022}}{{cite news | last=Kesting | first=Jürgen | title=Moderner Gesang: Atmen, Kichern, Lippenplopps | website=FAZ.NET | date=3 February 2022 | url=https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/moderner-gesang-sarah-aristidou-und-ihre-cd-ther-17773522.html | language=de |url-access=subscription | access-date=22 September 2022}} Widmann's Labyrinth V was written for the singer, and the wordless piece contains "ululations, sobs, jazz inflections and wild laughter", according to a reviewer from Gramophone.{{cite web | last = Ashley | first = Tim | title=Sarah Aristidou: Æther | website=Gramophone | url=https://www.gramophone.co.uk/reviews/review?slug=sarah-aristidou-ther | access-date=22 September 2022}}{{citation | last1=Verlaine | first1=Paul | last2=Mitusov | first2=Stepan Nikolaevič | last3=Sauer | first3=Martin | last4=Aristidou | first4=Sarah | last5=Barenboim | first5=Daniel | last6=Rivet | first6=Christian | last7=Pahud | first7=Emmanuel | last8=Guggeis | first8=Thomas | last9=Varèse | first9=Edgard | last10=Stravinsky | first10=Igor | title=Æther Sarah Aristidou, (Sopran) | publisher=Alpha | publication-place=[Brussels] | year=2021 | oclc=1398658745}}

Her second album Enigma has been released in 2023, with works by Andreas Tsiartas, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Franz Schubert, Olivier Messiaen, Hugo Wolf, Maurice Ravel, and Jörg Widmann.{{citation | last1=Aristidou | first1=Sarah |last2=Gerzenberg |first2=Daniel |last3=Widmann |first3=Jörg | title=Enigma | publisher=Alpha Productions | publication-place=London | year=2023 | oclc=1412478557 | language=zxx | page=}}

=Other recordings=

{{citation | last1=Larcher | first1=Thomas | last2=Aristidou | first2=Sarah | last3=Weilerstein | first3=Alisa | last4=Pilsan | first4=Aaron | last5=Juhart | first5=Luka | last6=Schuldt | first6=Clemens | last7=Schuen | first7=Andrè | last8=Heide | first8=Daniel | author9=Münchner Kammerorchester | title=The living mountain | publisher=ECM Records | publication-place=München | year=2023 | oclc=1413289906}}

Aristidou also released an EP in 2021, title S'Agapo, with Cypriot folksongs arranged by Kaan Bulak and remixed by DJs Ricardo Villalobos and Ale Hop.{{cite web | title=S'Agapo, by Sarah Aristidou & Kaan Bulak, Ricardo Villalobos, Ale Hop | website=Feral Note | date=28 December 2021 | url=https://feralnote.bandcamp.com/album/sagapo | access-date=29 December 2023}}

=Videos=

{{citation | last1=Larcher | first1=Thomas | last2=Gösweiner | first2=Friederike | last3=Boder | first3=Michael | last4=Markovics | first4=Karl | last5=Breisach | first5=Felix | last6=Aristidou | first6=Sarah | last7=Vermeulen | first7=Olivia | last8=Tritschler | first8=Robin | last9=Schuen | first9=Andrè | last10=Peri | first10=Giulia | author11=Ensemble Modern | author12=Schola Heidelberg | title=Das Jagdgewehr = The hunting gun | publisher=C Major Entertainment GmbH | publication-place=Berlin | year=2020 | oclc=1226371356 | language=de}}

Awards

2021 Luitpold Prize{{cite web | title=Sarah Aristidou | website=HarrisonParrott | date=10 January 2020 | url=https://www.harrisonparrott.com/artists/sarah-aristidou | access-date=22 September 2022}}
2022 Belmont Prize