The Festival Verdi continues its annual festival this week with the composer’s early masterpiece “Ernani.” It is known for its challenging roles and in many ways needs four of the greatest singers in the world to do it justice. The Verdi Festival has brought in a solid cast including the prominent star Eleonora Buratto, who is set to make her role debut Elvira.

Italian soprano Buratto began her career singing many of the lighter lyric roles in the repertoire including Musetta in “La Boheme,” Nanetta in “Falstaff,” Adina in “L’Elisir d’Amore,” and Norina in “Don Pasquale.” In 2016 she began to change her repertoire adding full lyric roles as Mimì in “La Boheme,” Liù in “Turandot” and Elettra in “Idomeneo.”

She has also transitioned into some of Verdi’s heavier roles including the Requiem, Alice Ford in “Falstaff,” Amelia in “Simon Boccanegra” and most recently “Luisa Miller” for which critics raved stating  “she continues to display an attractive voice, singing with gusto and expressiveness.” They added, “her control of the coloratura is absolute, performing clean cadenzas and perfect staccato notes; but above all, she possesses a mesmerizing ability to lighten the sound to accommodate to the demands of the role.”

Buratto also previewed many Verdi works at a gala at the Arena di Verona dedicated to the composer including “Il Trovatore,” “Un Ballo in Maschera,” and “Don Carlo.”  With Verdi becoming one of the soprano’s signature composers, Elvira will be another step as the soprano moves into some of his heavier works.

For those not in Parma to see the soprano debut the role, the festival will stream the performance. This season the soprano will also make her role debut as Desdemona in “Otello” and is set to bring her acclaimed Mimì to the Teatro San Carlo di Napoli.

Recordings 

For those not familiar with Buratto’s voice, she has a DVD of “Idomeneo” from the Teatro Real, “Falstaff” from the Salzburg Festival, and “I due Figaro” from the Teatro alla Scala.

Here she is performing from “Un Ballo in Maschera.”

Here she is performing the finale to “La Donna del Lago.”

And here she is as “Luisa Miller.”