Not a random number, but a person and a singer
My first name is Manon. Were my parents perhaps inspired by Puccini’s opera Manon Lescaut? Would it be the reason why they chose that name for me? Indeed, they got inspired by French writer Marcel Pagnol and his romanesque novel Manon des sources.
My journey as a musician has been quite eclectic so far. I come from a sport and travel orientated family. We have always been involved in swimming, skiing, rock climbing, and hiking, and we travelled to many different countries such as Costa Rica, Namibia, Nepal, Egypt, just to mention a few.
My sister played the flute from a young age so it felt natural for me to go for the opposite size instrument by picking the harp! I switched, five years later, for bass drum in the local brass band of a Rugby team and ended up singing in a children’s choir in/at my hometown conservatoire. I fall for singing because of the challenge and the beauty of it. However, my main motivation in opera is the thrilling feeling when I share something on stage with an audience.
I graduated as a Bachelor student from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, UK. I was also one of the ten singers of Le Pole Lyrique d’Excellence in Lyon, FR, for the past four years. I sang roles such as Nedda in Pagliacci and Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni. I am currently getting ready for Sibelius Academy’s production where you will hear me sing some German Opera scenes before the winter break and Fiordiligi in Cosi fan Tutte in April 2020.
I am excited to start my journey at the Sibelius Academy. I chose to study in this institution because, from all the auditions I have done for the past years, I had a strong and positive feeling whilst auditioning at Sibelius Academy; the panel treated me as a person, an artist, a future professional. The vocal department teaching staff valued me as a whole. I felt special and not considered as a number. I have also always been attracted by the operatic activity of the Northern countries. So here I am, it’s all very exciting!
Text: Manon Gleizes
Opera behind the scenes
In this blog, the Sibelius Academy opera master students write about their experiences before the opera premieres. The texts have been initiated in Liisamaija Hautsalo’s course in which the students are challenged to present the opera background, composers, their own role character and even interview people involved in the opera productions.
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