Elīna Garanča (born September 16, 1976) is a Latvian mezzo-soprano who studied at the Latvian Academy of Music under Sergej Martinov before continuing training in Vienna and the United States, including with Virginia Zeani. She began her professional career at the Meiningen Court Theatre in Germany in 1998 and won the Mirjam Helin Singing Competition in Helsinki in 1999. Her international breakthrough came at the 2003 Salzburg Festival in Mozart’s La clemenza di Tito, and she made her Metropolitan Opera debut in 2008 as Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia. She is especially celebrated for the title role in Bizet’s Carmen, which she has performed at the Met and other major houses.

Garanča is one of the leading mezzo-sopranos of her generation, honored with the Echo Klassik ‘Singer of the Year’ award three times and the title of Austrian Kammersängerin, known for technical mastery across Mozart, bel canto, and Romantic repertoire.

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elīna_Garanča