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The multi-faceted German coloratura soprano, who has been described as “the Meryl Streep of classical music” shows her vocal and dramatic range with this collection of arias from the 19th and 20th centuries “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them. It's impossible to know whether Diana Damrau was born great, but on the evidence of her latest Virgin Classics disc of Mozart concert and opera arias, she has — without question — achieved greatness; surely few contemporary lyric coloraturas could handle this program, which ranges from the sprightly to the sublime, with Damrau's firm technical command, unaffected mastery of characterization and beauty of tone ... More, please.” Thus was the response of the magazine of New York’s Metropolitan Opera Guild, Opera News, to German soprano Diana Damrau’s last Virgin Classics recital, Donna. In less effusive, though no less positive mode, the BBC Music Magazine’s critic stated that “I can’t remember when I last enjoyed a Mozart recital of this kind so much.” Among the accolades for Damrau’s first Virgin Classics recital, Arie di bravura by Salieri, Mozart and Righini was the highly prestigious Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik. After two Virgin Classics recitals of 18th-century repertoire, this new collection moves forward to the 19th and 20th centuries, with repertoire ranging from Rossini and Verdi to Stravinsky and Bernstein, from comedy to tragedy and covering four languages: German, Italian, French and English. It includes Zerbinetta’s marathon coloratura aria from Ariadne auf Naxos, one of the operas which spearheaded Damrau’s international career “Damrau has … strong opinions on the use of coloratura for dramatic effect,” wrote Opera News in an interview with the soprano. “Unlike some singers of previous generations, who were encouraged to cut back on the vocal garni by conductors who found the flourishes suspect, Damrau employs embellishments to emphasize the impact of language ….What's more, her Italian diction is superb, something that cannot always be said for Central and Eastern European artists. ‘Oh, I'm so glad to hear that,’ she says, ‘because I have a facility for languages, and I work very hard to communicate well.’ Whether Rosina [in Il barbiere di Siviglia] is expressing delight over Almaviva's furtive caress or anger over his imagined betrayal, Damrau deploys her clarity of speech to vivid effect; she points out that in ‘Una voce poco fa’,’ [featured on this recital] the word vipera is key — the girl knows full well she can be a viper. Later on, the bite she puts into the word traditore, for example, cuts to the quick.“ When Damrau performed Rosina at the Met, The New York Times wrote that: “the lovely German coloratura Diana Damrau was absolutely dazzling here. Interpolating extra-high roulades into the music, she brought her bright, clear and very sizable voice to the role, singing with impeccable accuracy and delightful impishness. This Rosina was no innocent. You immediately believed her when she explained in the touchstone aria ‘Una voce poca fa’ that though for the most part she is a docile and obedient thing, when crossed in love she becomes a viper.” Donizetti also appears in this recital, with an aria from Linda di Chamounix. Damrau took on the challenge of following Natalie Dessay as Lucia di Lammermoor at the Met. “Ms. Damrau dispatched the passage-work, trills and top notes with aplomb,” wrote the New York Times.” Her sound was warm, plush and clear ... That Ms. Damrau executed the Mad Scene’s spiraling vocal roulades so accurately and held sustained tones with such penetrating steadiness lent a quality of eerie control to Lucia’s madness. And her gleaming top notes filled the house.” Damrau’s status as an interpreter rather than as a mere virtuoso was further confirmed in the Guardian’s review of a song recital she gave at London’s Wigmore Hall in November 2008: “The German soprano Diana Damrau has become a cult figure of late. It is easy to see why. She is very much a diva, with all the intimations of greatness and excess the word implies. Her artistry is phenomenal yet paradoxical: you could perhaps describe her as the Meryl Streep of classical music, since she achieves a sense of total immersion in her material without ever quite letting you forget the powers of technique, intelligence and calculation that inform her singing.” Among Diana Damrau’s engagements for the 2009/10 season are a recital at La Scala, Milan (September 2009), Il barbiere di Siviglia in Vienna (September 2009), La fille du régiment in San Francisco (October 2009), Don Giovanni (Donna Anna) in Geneva (December 2009), a recital in Madrid (December 09), Manon in Vienna (January 2010), La fille du régiment at the New York Met (February2010) and Hamlet in Washington (May 2010). Conducting the Münchner Rundfunkorchester for this recital is Dan Ettinger, who was born in Israel in 1971. Also a pianist and baritone, he has held conducting posts at the New Israeli Opera, the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin. Since 2005-6 season Ettinger has been Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Israel Symphony Orchestra and in September 2009 he takes up the post of Music Director and Principal Conductor at the Nationaltheater Mannheim. He has conducted at the Los Angeles Opera, Washington National Opera, the Wiener Staatstoper and the New National Theater Tokyo. September 2009 sees him at the Metropolitan Opera New York for Le nozze di Figaro.