In our series “How Dresden sounds”, young musicians talk about what Dresden means to their music.

Heute im Gespräch: die Sopranistin Anastasiya Taratorkina. When the young soprano Anastasiya Taratorkina is on stage, she has a very special sparkle in her eyes. Listening to her soulful and powerful vocals, it’s almost as if the Dresden resident is on a mission: to give you goose bumps. Most recently, she did so with great success at the 70th ARD Music Competition, one of the most prestigious international competitions for classical music, where she was awarded first prize for her musical performance. In this interview, she tells us which places in Dresden inspire her music and reveals her plans for the future.

Anastasiya, congratulations, you have just won the ARD Music Prize. What an achievement! Among other things, the jury praised the lightness and beauty of your vocal tones. What is important to you when you make music?

It’s not easy to put it into words, but: I try to fill every note and love, and to convey all the feelings I have inside me, no two characters are the same, every emotion is different, in every aria and in every song there is something special that I want to share with the audience. Of course, you also have to concentrate on your technique when singing, but that shouldn’t be visible to the audience. For me, it’s very important to show and let every viewer hear all the emotions and moods that a role experiences.

How should your musical journey continue?

An eventful academic year awaits me, at the end of which there will be a Master’s graduation concert. I’m really looking forward to that! I also sing concerts at and outside the university during the semester, including the concert of the Deutschlandstipendium scholarship holders, a GALA concert of our opera class, Bernstein’s “Mass” in the Frauenkirche, where I have wanted to sing ever since I was there for the first time! In December I am Juliette in “Die Tote Stadt by Korngold” at the Semperoper Dresden. Also planned are a tour with all ARD competition winners – including at the Mozartfest Würzburg and in Studio 2 of the Bavarian Radio – a concert with the Collegium Musicum Basel, a solo recital with arias and songs at the festival of the Sociedad Filarmónica de Vilagarcia and the Kuchtik in Dvořák’s Rusalka with the NDR Orchestra under Alan Gilbert in the Elbphilharmonie as part of the Hamburg Music Festival. After my studies I will take up a permanent engagement at a great theatre with many great roles. For the future, I hope to get nice roles at many beautiful theatres and festivals and to work there with renowned directors and conductors in order to constantly develop artistically. I would also like to sing concerts with such fantastic orchestras as the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Bavarian Radio Orchestra, which accompanied me so excellently at the ARD competition that I was able to concentrate completely on my singing. In short: I simply want to enjoy this great job to the full and for many, many years to come.

What actually drew you from Novosibirsk to Dresden?

After studying at the conservatory in Novosibirsk, I first lived in Germersheim, where many of my relatives live and where I also attended a German course. Then I went to Dresden because I wanted to study singing here. I’d never been to Dresden before, but I fell in love with the city when I saw photos on the internet. I like the peace and quiet and the “spirit” – I feel completely at home here!

Why is Dresden a good place for musicians and artists?

Dresden has a multifaceted musical life. There is a great university for music and many great cultural institutions here: Semperoper, Frauenkirche, Philharmonie, Staatsoperette, Kulturpalast and many, many choirs and ensembles with which you can make music. Here, every musician or artist can find an interesting project for themselves and develop their own style. Dresden offers a lot to introduce young people to classical music and theatre.

Which places and neighbourhoods in Dresden have influenced you the most?

My first port of call was the conservatory where I took my entrance exams. I was amazed at the beauty of both the old and the new university building. I was also very impressed by the Semper Opera House and Zwinger Square, because we don’t have places like that in Novosibirsk. And of the Frauenkirche. I enjoy the atmosphere and tranquillity of the Frauenkirche so much that I could spend hours there. My absolute dream was to sing in the Frauenkirche one day, and I’m delighted that this dream will come true in March 2022. That’s really cool!

Nina Sabo, series: “This is how Dresden sounds” in Dresden Magazin, 25 October 2021