Born in Utah, Lani Poulson’s career has been predominantly based in Europe. A freelance singer since 1984, she has had a close association with three major houses: Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels, Semperoper in Dresden and Staatsoper Stuttgart.
With La Monnaie she sung many performances both in Brussels and on tour, in roles such as Countess Geschwitz, Octavian and Ramiro (La finta giardiniera). At the Semperoper she sang the roles of Sextus and Octavian for six seasons. In Stuttgart she was able to demonstrate another aspect of her art, her exceptional gifts as an interpreter of contemporary opera: as the Mother in Nono’s Al gran sole carico d’amore; in the world premiere productions of Sciarrino’s Perseo ed Andromeda, Rihm’s Das Schweigen der Sirenen and Breitscheid’s Im Spiegel wohnen. Moreover she has sung many performances of roles from her standard repertoire as a guest in Stuttgart (Lady Begbick and 2nd Norn, for instance).
Other major opera houses where Lani Poulson has appeared include those in: Munich, Berlin, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Mannheim; Amsterdam, Madrid, Barcelona, Drottningholm, Lisbon, Budapest, Tel Aviv, Strasbourg, Verona, Trieste, Montpellier, Graz and Antwerp. In some of these, too, she has sung in major 20th and 21st century operas, for instance Zimmermann’s Die Soldaten and the leading role in Vivier’s Kopernikus at the Nederlandse Opera in Amsterdam. Among her most recent engagements were new productions of Parsifal (Blumenmädchen) in Valencia with Lorin Maazel, and Lady Macbeth of Mzensk (Sonietka) at the Opéra Bastille, Paris with Mariss Jansons. In July 2012, at the Malta Festival in Poznan, she sang the role of Elizabeth Costello in the world premiere of Nicholas Lens’ Opera Slow Man.
Her concert engagements reflect the same balance between new and old music. Her 20th century repertoire includes concert performances of Die Jakobsleiter and Der ferne Klang in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam; Grisey’s L’icône paradoxale in Vienna, Paris, Freiburg, Amsterdam, Berlin, Düsseldorf and Brussels; and Szymanowski’s Stabat Mater in Berlin.
Alban Berg – Lulu – Gräfin Geschwitz
Théatre Royal de la Monnaie Bruxelles
Andreas Breitscheid – Im Spiegel wohnen – Die Sängerin
Forum Neues Musiktheater, Staatstheater Stuttgart
Erich Wolfgang Korngold – Die tote Stadt – Brigitta
De Nederlandse Opera Amsterdam, Gran Teatre del Liceu Barcelona
Nicholas Lens – Slow Man – Elizabeth Costello
Malta Festival Poznan
Pietro Mascagni – Cavalleria Rusticana – Mamma Lucia
Staatstheater Stuttgart
Giacomo Meyerbeer – Le Prophète – Fidés
Städtische Bühnen Münster
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Die Zauberflöte – Dritte Dame
Teatro Giuseppe Verdi Trieste
Claudio Monteverdi – L’incoronazione di Poppea – Ottavia
Wolf Trap Opera, Virginia, USA; Utah Opera, USA
Luigi Nono – Al gran sole carico d’amore – La madre
Staatstheater Stuttgart
Jacques Offenbach – Les contes d’Hoffmann – La voix de la mère
Denver Opera, Teatro Real Madrid
Rolf Riehm – Das Schweigen der Sirenen – Mezzosoprano
Staatstheater Stuttgart
Salvatore Sciarrino – Perseo ed Andromeda – Andromeda
Staatstheater Stuttgart
Dmitri Shostakovitch – Ledi Makbet mzenskogo ujesda – Sonyetka
De Nederlandse Opera Amsterdam, Opéra national de Paris, Teatro Real Madrid
Franz Schreker – Der ferne Klang – Frau Graumann, die Kellnerin
Radio Filharmonisch Orkest Holland, Concertgebouw Amsterdam
Richard Strauss – Capriccio – Clairon
L‘opéra du Rhin Strasbourg
Richard Strauss – Elektra – Erste Magd
Gran Teatre del Liceu Barcelona
Richard Strauss – Salome – Herodias
Oper Graz, Teatro filarmonico Verona
Claude Vivier – Kopernikus – Agni
De Nederlandse Opera Amsterdam, Holland Festival
Richard Wagner – Götterdämmerung – 2. Norn
Staatstheater Stuttgart, Teatro Real Madrid
Richard Wagner – Die Walküre – Fricka (studied)
Richard Wagner – Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg – Magdalena
Fundaçao de São Carlos Lisboa
Richard Wagner – Parsifal – 3. Blumenmädchen (2. Gruppe), 2. Knappe
Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia Valencia, Radio Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Richard Wagner – Parsifal – Kundry (studied)
Kurt Weill – Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny – Witwe Begbick
Staatstheater Stuttgart
Bernd Alois Zimmermann – Die Soldaten – Charlotte
De Nederlandse Opera Amsterdam
Johann Sebastian Bach – Matthäus Passion – Alt
Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Norway
Johann Sebastian Bach – h-moll Messe – 2. Sopran
Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Johann Sebastian Bach – Magnificat – Alt
Orchestra Sinfonica di Torino della RAI; Hannoversch Münden; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Ludwig van Beethoven – Messe in C-Dur – Alt
Nortdeutsches Rundfunkorchester Hamburg
Ludwig van Beethoven – IX. Symphonie – Alt
Berliner Sinfonie Orchester, Konzerthaus Berlin; Limburgs Symphonie Orkest; Utah Symphony Orchestra
Ludwig van Beethoven – Missa Solemnis – Alt
Limburgs Symphonie Orkest
Ludwig van Beethoven – Choral Fantasie – Alt
Limburgs Symphonie Orkest
Hector Berlioz – Les nuits d’été – “Le spectre de la rose,” Sur les lagunes,” “L’île inconnue”
Konzerthaus Freiburg, SWR Sinfonieorchester
Hector Berlioz – Vokalwerke mit Orchester – “La captive,” “La belle voyageuse,” Sara, la baigneuse”
SWR Sinfonieorchester, Freiburg; Concertgebouw Amsterdam; Bruxelles; Düsseldorf; Konzerthaus Berlin
Pierre Boulez – Le visage nuptial
SWR Freiburg Baden-Baden
Marc-Antoine Charpentier – Stabat Mater – Alt
Orchestra Sinfonica di Torino della RAI
Antonín Dvorák – Requiem – Alt
MDR Orchester Leipzig
Edward Elgar – The Music Makers
Nederlands Haendelvereniging, Amsterdam
Gérard Grisey – L’icône paradoxale – Mezzosoprano
Festival Internationale des Musiques d’Aujourd’hui, Strasbourg; Frankfurter Museumsgesellschaft, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Reggio nell’Emilia; SWR Sinfonieorchester, Konzerthaus Freiburg; Radio Symphonieorchester Wien, Wien Modern; Concertgebouw Amsterdam; Bruxelles; Düsseldorf; Konzerthaus Berlin; Radio France Paris
Georg Friedrich Händel – Messiah – Alt
Handel Oratorio Society, Rock Island, Illinois; Utah Oratorio Society, Utah Symphony, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Haydn – Nelson Messe – Alt
Berliner Sinfonie Orchester, Konzerthaus Berlin; Stuttgart
Gustav Mahler – Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen
University of Utah Orchestra, Brabants Orkest Holland
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Missa Soemnis – Alt
Orchestra Sinfonica di Torino della RAI, Assisi
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Requiem – Alt
Norddeutsches Rundfunkorchester Hamburg
Pergolesi – Stabat Mater – Alt
Église de St.Louis en l’île, Paris
Arnold Schönberg – Jakobsleiter – Der Sterbende
Radio Filharmonisch Orkest Holland, Concertgebouw Amsterdam
Arnorld Schönberg – Pierrot Lunaire
Villa Musica, Neustadt an der Weinstraße; Internationale Hugo-Wolf Gesellschaft, Stuttgart; Klangwerkstatt Weimar; Nova Chamber Music Series, Salt Lake City, Utah
Karol Szymanowski – Stabat Mater – Alt
Berliner Sinfonie Orchester, Konzerthaus Berlin
Jan van Vlijmen – Monumentum
Radio Filharmonisch Orkest Holland, Concertgebouw Amsterdam; Muzikcentrum Utrecht
Antonio Vivaldi – Gloria – Alt
Église de St. Louis en l’île, Paris; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
