The Donizetti Songs Vol 5&6 produced with support from Elena Baturina, awarded ICMA's Best Vocal Album of the Year 2026

LUGANO, Switzerland, March 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- March 18th, the awards ceremony and the gala concert for the International Classical Music Awards took place in Bamberg, Germany, featuring winners of this year's award panel.

ICMA is a highly prestigious, independent, and international honor recognizing artistic excellence in classical music recordings. The Donizetti Songs Vol 5&6 was awarded the Best Vocal Album of the Year, and the ICMA comment goes: 'Not just operas: Gaetano Donizetti's catalogue includes a remarkably rich selection of Italian and French songs for voice and piano.'

Earlier this year, the Donizetti Song Project was also given the Best Complete Edition Award by the OPER! Awards. In recognition of the project's importance, the category replaced the usual Best Opera Recording Award. The awarded album (Vols 5&6) was produced by Opera Rara with leadership support from Opera Rara Guardian, international philanthropist Elena Baturina

In his acceptance speech, Opera Rara's Chief Executive Henry Little said: "A Passion for the rediscovery of beautiful music lies at the heart of everything that Opera Rara does. The Donizetti Song Project has been a labour of love and it's wonderful to see Volumes 5 and 6 of the series — featuring our Artist Ambassador Ermonela Jaho and our Artistic Director Carlo Rizzi — recognised in this way… I extend our sincere thanks to Elena Baturina, the lead supporter of Volumes 5 and 6, whose generosity and belief in this project made these recordings possible."

The multi-year Donizetti Song Project will upon completion see the recording and performance of the composer's nearly 200 solo songs, discovered in a recent research by Roger Parker, Opera Rara's Repertoire Consultant and an internationally known expert on Donizetti; a great many of them completely unknown.

For Elena Baturina, this project is a way to commemorate her beloved late husband, Mr Yury Luzhkov; with two songs specifically dedicated to his memory. Elena Baturina is a philanthropist and business person whose international career has spanned a whole spectrum of industries. Elena has for many years 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. At the moment, her own philanthropic foundation BE OPEN is finalizing its annual SDGs-focused student competition. This year's edition calls for projects that support gender equality, encourage women's and girls' participation in innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship globally.

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.