Leyla Gencer to be commemorated at concert

ISTANBUL

Soprano Leyla Gencer will be commemorated on the 11th anniversary of her passing by the Istanbul State Opera and Ballet (IDOB) with gala concerts on May 10 at the Kadıköy Süreyya Opera and on May 14 at the Zorlu PSM in Istanbul.

Known as “La Diva Turca,” “La Gencer,” and “La Regina” in Western countries, Gencer was one of the greatest sopranos of the 20th century, who spent most of her career in Italy. She was known for having one of the most passionate voices in the history of opera.

She performed in theaters around the world and alongside some of the greatest Italian maestros, including Vittorio Gui, Tullio Serafin and Gianandrea Gavazzeni.

She also performed at Teatro alla Scala for over 50 years, and became an artistic director of the academy in 1982, where she taught opera artists until her death in May 2008.

In the concert, work by Mozart, Giuseppe Verdi, Jules Massenet, Georges Bizet and Giacomo Puccini will be performed by the IDOB Orchestra. Soloists Suat Arıkan, Perihan Artan, Hakan Aysev, Evren Ekşi, Murat Güney, Nesrin Gönüldağ, Efe Kışlalı, Bülent Külekçi, Oleksandr Samoylenko, Cengiz Sayın, Hale Soner and Nazlı Deniz Süren will be on the stage. The orchestra will be conducted by Zdravko Lazarov.