New York, NY (Top40 Charts / Anne Sofie Von Otter Official Website) Anne
Sofie von Otter is to receive the coveted Frankfurt
Music Prize for 2011. The versatile mezzo-soprano will be presented with the award and the � 15,000 prize money on the eve of Musikmesse. With it, the jury has not only acknowledged an outstanding voice, but also the artist's varied repertoire, which ranges from Baroque to jazz.
The prize will be presented on the eve of Musikmesse 2011, 5 April 2011, during the PRG LEA Awards ceremony in the Festhalle Frankfurt. The trustees of the Frankfurt Music Prize selected Anne Sofie von Otter for her extraordinary voice, her extremely varied, cross-genre repertoire and her bold interpretations.
The Frankfurt Music Prize is worth � 15,000 Euro and is sponsored by the Federal Association of German Musical Instrument Manufacturers (Bundesverband der Deutschen Musikinstrumenten-Hersteller e.V.) and Messe Frankfurt. The presentation of the Prize will be made by Petra Roth, Mayor of the City of Frankfurt am Main. The speech in honour of Anne Sofie von Otter will be given by Petra Roth. Musician Elvis Costello will also speak. After the awards ceremony, the prize winner will give a brief recital in the Festhalle.
Anne Sofie von Otter
Anne Sofie von Otter was born in Stockholm in 1955 and studied in Stockholm and at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. There she was taught singing by Vera Rozsa. Between 1983 -1985 she was a member of the Basel Opera ensemble and it was from there that she launched her international career.
Her position as a leading modern opera singer is due, inter alia, to her multi-faceted repertoire. Anne Sofie von Otter ranks among the world's foremost mezzo-sopranos and is much-admired for her versatility in operatic roles, her broad-ranging repertoire and the boldness of the vocal risks she takes in the songs she sings. She has appeared in a wide variety of roles in all major opera houses, including operas as different as the Rosenkavalier, Gluck's Orfeo, Carmen, Gotterdammerung and Tristan and Isolde. A long working relationship with James Levine is reflected by numerous appearances at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Anne Sofie von Otter also appears as a lied singer throughout the world and, accompanied by Bengt Forsberg, she is renowned for her idiosyncratic programmes that are frequently very challenging in vocal terms.
Anne Sofie von Otter has expanded the stylistic scope of her repertoire in recent years to embrace pop and jazz. For example, she joined forces with Elvis Costello to record a highly acclaimed CD of well-known pop songs entitled 'For the Stars'. Another indication of her love of pop music is 'I Let The Music Speak', an album of ABBA songs with ABBA member Benny Andersson playing the piano parts, which was released in 2006.
Her latest recording was made last autumn with legendary jazz pianist Brad Mehldau. With 'Love Songs', Anne Sofie von Otter began a new working relationship with the French Naive music label and has shown yet again how much she enjoys collaborating with extraordinary musicians from the most diverse musical genres.
Today, Anne Sofie von Otter can look back over a large repertoire of recordings that, ranging from Baroque pieces to 20th century music or folk songs, as well as from pop to jazz, includes over 60 CDs released by the Deutsche Grammophon label, many of which have been awarded a Grammy.
