Izmir Festival > Program > TRIO LYRICAL
Monday, July 07, 2025 ● Celsus Library-Ephesus ● 21.00
TRIO LYRICAL
Sara Minieri, soprano
Lorenzo Martelli, tenor
Nicoletta Conti, piano
Associazione Leone Magiera
Artistic Direction: Maestro Leone Magiera
Program
W.Amadeus MOZART (1756-1791)
Don Giovanni “My treasure in the meantime”
Gaetano DONIZETTI (1797-1848)
Anna Bolena “Weep you…Lead me to the sweet”
Elixir of love “A furtive tear”
Giuseppe VERDI (1813-1901)
La Traviata “Farewell to the past”
“Paris, oh dear”
Gaetano DONIZETTI
Lucia di Lammermoor “Tombs of my ancestors“
GiuseppeVERDI
The Force of Destiny “My Peace God”
Rigoletto “Questo o Quella”
Masquerade Ball “Ecco l’orrido campo”
Francesco CILEA (1866-1950)
L’Arlesiana “It’s the usual story of the shepherd”
Giacomo PUCCINI (1858-1922)
La Bohème “O soave Fanciulla”
Sara Minieri, soprano
Sara Minieri was born in Asola (MN). She came to music at a very young age, and graduated in opera and piano from the Liceo Musicale Isabella D’Este in Mantua. In 2015, she made her debut as Nanetta in Giuseppe Verdi’s Falstaff at the Teatro Sociale in Mantua. The following year she played Lauretta in Giacomo Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi at Mantua’s Teatro Bibbiena.
Sara entered the Opera School of Bologna’s Municipal Theatre in 2019. She has won numerous awards, both national and international, and including the Youth Award at the 29th Pietro Boni International Competition of Rivalta sul Mincio, an Honorary Mention at the Musicamore Competition and 3rd prize at the 6th edition of the Voce D’Angelo 2024 Contest.
In 2023, she joined the Accademia Verdiana of the Teatro Regio of Parma, where she performed at numerous concerts and opera galas during the Festival Verdi 2024. Appointed by Parma Lirica, she won the scholarship with Katia Ricciarelli.
Sara Minieri was selected to take part in the High Improvement Course for Opera Singers at the Teatro Pavarotti-Freni in Modena, and in 2024 she debuted there as Nella in Gianni Schicchi.
In 2025, she will join the cast of La Bohème in the role of Mimì at the Teatro Regio of Parma.
Lorenzo Martelli, tenor
Lorenzo Martelli started studying singing at the age of 15 and graduated from the Opera Department at the “A. Casella” Conservatory in L’Aquila.
Martelli is a winner of numerous prizes, including 1st Prize and the Audience Award in January 2023 at the 74th AsLiCo Competition for Young Opera Singers, 9th International Opera Competition of Portofino’s Emerging Tenor Prize in July 2023 and 1st Prize as well as the Audience Award at the 3rd “Marmo all’Opera” Competition in Carrara.
Lorenzo attended the Advanced Academy of Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa and currently studies at the Accademia del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. He has also received further training from Donata D’Annunzio Lombardi.
In 2021, Lorenzo debuted as Nemorino in Donizetti’s “L’Elisir d’Amore” and Don Ramiro in Rossini’s “La Cenerentola” at various theaters - including the Auditorium della Conciliazione in Rome, Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, Teatro F. Vespasiano in Rieti, Teatro P. Spontini in Jesi, and the Teatro Rendano in Cosenza.
In January 2022, he was selected by Leone Magiera for the role of Don Ottavio in Mozart’s “Don Giovanni”, and made his debut in this role at the Ferrara Municipal Theater under the musical direction of Maestro Leone Magiera, directed by Maestro Daniel Smith. This performance was repeated in October at the Daegu Opera House in South Korea.
In December 2022, he debuted as the winner of the “Bottega Donizetti” at the Donizetti Opera Festival in Bergamo in the opera “L’Aio nell’imbarazzo” under the Artistic Direction of Francesco Micheli and the Musical Direction of Vincenzo Milletarì.
2023 also saw Martelli in numerous debuts, including W. A. Mozart’s “La Finta Semplice” at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and at the Teatro Goldoni in Florence under the direction of Maestro Theodor Guschbauer, and as Remendado in Bizet’s “Carmen” at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino under the direction of Maestro Zubin Mehta.
In July 2023, he gave his first performances as Basilio and Don Curzio in Mozart’s “Le Nozze di Figaro” at the Teatro Comunale di Ferrara under the Musical Direction of Leone Magiera.
In Siena in the same month, he performed the role of Fenton in Verdi’s “Falstaff” and the Duke of Mantua in Verdi’s “Rigoletto” ,in collaboration with La Chigiana and directed by Maestro Daniele Gatti.
In September 2023, he debuted as Tamino in “Die Zauberflöte”, conducted by Zubin Mehta in Mozart’s Coronation Mass for the opening of the Season at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and in this same theatre.
For OperaLombardia he performed his interpretation of the role of Monostatos in Como, Cremona, Brescia, and Pavia.
December 2023 saw him performing in the Petite messe solennelle at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.
Lorenzo was a great success in 2024 as Ernesto in Donizetti’s “Don Pasquale”, directed by Daniele Gatti. At the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino he also debuted as Pang in the historic Turandot of 1997, performing this role in April 2024 under the direction of Maestro Zubin Mehta.
Hehas toured extensively giving concerts, both nationally and internationally, - such as the long tour of South Africa (Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban and Pretoria) in collaboration with MMF, and for the occasion of the Italian Republic Day, as well as in Canada for the wide community of Italians.
Lorenzo has also performed in front of both the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella and for the late Santo Padre Papa Francesco.
Nicoletta Conti, piano
Born in Bologna, Nicoletta Conti studied piano, composition and conducting at the Conservatorio Giuseppe Verdi in Milan and the Conservatorio di Musica G.B. Martini in Bologna. Ms. Conti graduated from the University of Bologna in Musical Aesthetics at DAMS (disciplines of art, music and drama), and Musicology from Bologna University’s Faculty of Literature and Philosophy.
Ms. Conti continued her studies in conducting with Franco Ferrara (Siena), Leopold Hager (Salzburg), Leonard Bernstein, Seiji Ozawa and Kurt Masur (Tanglewood). Winner of numerous prizes, including First Prize from Musica da Camera “Città di Stresa”, and Third Prize at the Nicolai Malko competition for Orchestra Conductors (Copenhagen). From these, Nicoletta began her career as a conductor in Italy and abroad, dedicating herself both to the operatic and symphonic repertoire.
Following the conductor’s course held by Leonard Bernstein at l’Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, she was chosen by Maestro Bernstein to be his assistant conductor and to make her debut with the Orchestra dell’Accademia di Santa Cecilia. At the Capitol, Ms. Conti received the prestigious Minerva Prize for the arts, the first Italian musician to receive it. In 2006 she was awarded the honour of “Cavaliere della Repubblica Italiana” by the President of the Republic Carlo Azeglio Ciampi. She has since collaborated with major festivals and theatres, including Covent Garden, the Teatro Comunale in Florence, Teatro Comunale in Bologna, Rossini Opera Festival, and the Festival of the Itria Valley. She combines her operatic work with a concert career, and has appeared alongside Luciano Pavarotti, Renato Bruson, Leo Nucci, and Daniela Dessì.
Orchestras she has conducted include: Orchestra Arturo Toscanini, Orchestra of the Arena di Verona, the Tanglewood Music Festival Orchestra, Orchestra Regionale Toscana, the Kiushu Symphony Orchestra, the Hungarian Symphonic Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica Città di Ferrara, Orchestra da Camera di Bologna, Orchestra “I Filarmonici di Bologna”, Orchestra Filarmonica di Torino, Rishon Le Tzion Orchestra, Orchestra “I Pomeriggi Musicali di Milano”, and the Stuttgarter Filarmoniker.
Ms. Conti has conducted Gazzaniga’s Don Giovanni at the Teatro Regio di Torino, two contemporary operas in their premièeres performances at the Festival Mozart di Rovereto and Nabucco and Madama Butterfly at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna, and in the Beppe De Tomasi production at Teatro di Ascoli Piceno and Teatro di Fano.
In August 2000 she assisted Maestro Antonio Pappano in London in the recording of the CD and film of Tosca with the Covent Garden Orchestra. Maestro Conti received great acclaim when she conducted Madama Butterfly at Montepulciano’s International Festival. In August 2001 Maestro Conti assisted Maestro Pappano with the London Symphony Orchestra for the recording of Il Trovatore and most recently she has conducted a concert in Lisbon with Angela Gheorghiu.
Ms. Conti conducted the Royal Philarmonic Orchestra in the double bill of I Pagliacci and Suor Angelica for Opera Holland Park, and also in a production of La Belle Helène for the theatres of Pisa, Lucca and Livorno. She has conducted Il Trovatore, La Traviata and some Gala Concerts in Tokyo with the Tokyo Philarmonic. Most recently she has worked with the Orchestra of Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, the Israel Symphony Orchestra of Rishon LeZion, the Haydn Orchestra in Bolzano, the Verdi Orchestra in Milan, as well as a production of “La Tragédie de Carmen” under the direction of Franco Ripa di Meana. In 2009 Nicoletta Conti conducted the annual concert for the European Parliament.
Ms. Conti regularly conducts in Japan and lectures about music at the Italian Institute of Culture in Tokyo. She recently conducted Lucia di Lammermoor for Opera Sai Company in Tokyo.
In July 2016 Ms. Conti organized the "International Masterclass for young Artists Fiorenza Cossotto", attended by opera singers chosen from various countries of the world (China, the USA, Bulgaria, and the UK). The Masterclass was sponsored by the Municipality of Bologna and received great acclaim with the final concert in the foyer of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna.
Ms. Conti recently conducted a production of Rigoletto at Varna Festival. Next March she will conduct some concerts in Kuala Lumpur with the Kuala Lumpur City Opera and will hold a masterclass at the Putra University. Next May Ms. Conti will be conducting a concert in Tokyo and next October will be conducting the Orchestra of the Toscanini Foundation in Parma.
