Opera Rara continues its most ambitious project with support from Elena Baturina

LONDON, Jan. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Elena Baturina has become a supporter of Opera Rara's Donizetti Song Project, one of the most ambitious projects by Opera Rara. Over the next three years, Opera Rara intends to record eight new albums of Donizetti's solo songs performed by illustrious singers.

The Donizetti Song Project will see the recording and performance of nearly 200 songs by Gaetano Donizetti following their restoration. Many of the songs are unknown and have not been performed since the 19th century. The albums will be distributed by Warner Classics, and all the songs will be performed in concerts at top London stages. This project will also see the publication of Donizetti's songs by Ricordi Publishers in Milan which will enable future artists to learn and perform them.

With support from Elena Baturina, Opera Rara will produce a double-disc Donizetti Songs recording and arrange their performing by Ermonela Jaho, internationally acclaimed soprano and Opera Rara's Artist Ambassador, at Wigmore Hall in May 2024. Ermonela Jaho will be accompanied by Opera Rara's Artistic Director Carlo Rizzi, one of the world's foremost operatic conductors. The programme will include songs by Donizetti, Bellini, Verdi, Gounod and Viardot. Ermonela Jaho's recital discs will be available worldwide in 2025.

For Elena Baturina, this project is a way to commemorate her beloved late husband, Mr. Yury Luzhkov; one of the songs on the recording will be specifically dedicated to his memory.

Elena Baturina is an international philanthropist and business person whose international career has spanned a whole spectrum of industries, from manufacturing to hospitality. Elena is a self-made woman who has built her formidable business empire from scratch. For many years Elena Baturina has been involved in charities that prioritise people and their ideas - in London alone, she has been involved in the charity work by Maggie's Centres and the Mayor's Fund for London.

Opera Rara is an opera company, recording label and a live operatic archaeologist that searches for neglected operatic masterpieces and restores them for contemporary audiences to enjoy. The company's projects have been recognised through major international opera awards. Opera Rara's catalogue comprises over 100 titles, including more than 60 complete opera recordings, which has led to a fundamental revaluation of the reputation of composers such as Donizetti, Pacini, Offenbach and Mercadante, changing the way they are perceived internationally.