Polish-born soprano Aleksandra Kurzak began her musical education at the age of 7, playing violin and piano. She studied voice at the conservatories of Wroclaw and Hamburg. She made her professional opera debut at the age of 21 at the Wroclaw State Opera as Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro. Her mother and teacher Jolanta Żmurko performed the role of Countess. Kurzak is a laureate of singing competitions in Warsaw, Barcelona, Helsinki and Canton.
Between 2001 and 2007 Kurzak was a member of the ensemble of the Hamburg State Opera, where she sang numerous roles: Queen of the Night, Blonde, Susanna, Servilia, Marzelline (Fidelio), Nanetta (Falstaff), Ännchen (Der Freischütz), Gilda, Adèle, Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel), Maid (Powder her Face), Musetta, Cleopatra, Fiorilla (Il Turco in Italia), Marie (La Fille du Régiment)
In 2005 Kurzak made her debut at The Metropolitan Opera in the role of Olympia in Les Contes d’Hoffmann. In the same year she debuted at the Royal Opera House-Covent Garden as Aspasia in Mitridate, Re di Ponto. The artist returned to the Met, singing Blonde in Entführung aus dem Serail and Gilda in Rigoletto. Since her first London appearance, Kurzak has returned regularly to the Royal Opera House, where she has performed roles of Norina (Don Pasquale), Adina (L’elisir d’amore), Susanna and most recently of Matilde (Matilde di Shabran), achieving a real triumph on this stage.
Most recently, in February 2010 Kurzak made her debut at the Teatro alla Scala in the role of Gilda.
Kurzak has appeared as well at the German State Opera Unter den Linden in Berlin (Queen of the Night), Teatro Regio in Parma and Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse (Gilda), Bavarian State Opera in Munich (Cleopatra, Adele, Rosina, Fiorilla), Vienna State Opera (Rosina), Teatro Massimo in Palermo (Norina), Teatro Massimo di Bellini in Catania (concert with arias by Bellini), Lyric Opera House in Chicago (Blonde), Salzburg Festival (concert arias by Mozart and Ännchen), Mozart Festival in A Coruña as well as at the Welsh National Opera in Cardiff (Aspasia) and at the Theater an der Wien (Donna Anna and Amenaide), Finnish National Opera (Gilda). She appeared with Essen Philharmoniker, the Hamburger Symphoniker, the Hamburger Philharmoniker, the NDR Orchestra and with Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.
Kurzak has collaborated with many well known conductors including Ivor Bolton, Bruno Campanella, James Conlon, Sir Andrew Davis, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Riccardo Frizza, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Richard Hickox,, Nicola Luisotti, Sir Charles Mackerras, Ingo Metzmacher, Carlo Rizzi, Ralf Weikert, and Simone Young.
In the 2009/2010 season Kurzak will appear as Donna Fiorilla at the ROH Covent Garden, Violetta at the National Opera in Warsaw, Donna Anna in Teatro La Fenice in Venezia and at the Salzburg Festival, as well as with Stabat Mater by Karol Szymanowski in Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and with Carmina Burana in Napoli with orchestra of Teatro alla Scala.
