THE FLORIDA ORCHESTRA | 2018-2019 41
The Oregonian praises
soprano Katrina
Galka for her recent
performances of Adina
in L’elisir d’amore,
exclaiming that she
“looked like a young
Glenn Close, projecting
power over
Nemorino as she
thrilled with fine coloratura
filigree and
pure high notes.”
This season, she
makes her Wiener Staatsoper debut as Fritzi in the
world premiere of Staud’s Die Weiden. She makes
company debuts with both New Orleans Opera and
Opera San Jose in returns to Blondchen in Die Entführung
aus dem Serail, the Seiji Ozawa Music Academy
as a guest artist for Frasquita in Carmen, and
Odyssey Opera as Aithra in Die ägyptische Helena.
Last season, she returned to Portland Opera to debut
the role of Gilda in Rigoletto. She also returned
to Arizona Opera as Cunegonde in Candide, Rosina
in Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Woglinde in Das Rheingold.
She joined the Las Vegas Philharmonic for
Handel’s Messiah. Over the summer, she joined On
Site Opera as Serpetta in La finta giardiniera at the
Caramoor International Music Festival.
She recently sang Blondchen in Die Entführung aus
dem Serail with Atlanta Opera and Atalanta in Xerxes
at the Glimmerglass Festival. She is a former resident
artist of Portland Opera, where she sang Adina
in L’elisir d’amore, Johanna in Sweeney Todd, Elvira
in L’italiana in Algeri, Papagena in Die Zauberflöte,
and Frasquita in Carmen. She joined the Rhode Island
Civic Chorale for the Angel in Respighi’s Laude
to the Nativity and Handel’s Messiah. She holds
a master’s of music degree from Boston University
and bachelor’s of music degree from Southern
Methodist University, from which she graduated
summa cum laude.
This season, Matthew
Grills makes
house debuts with
both Opera San Jose
singing his first performances
of Belmonte
in Die Entführung
aus dem Serail
and New Orleans
Opera in a return to
his beloved characterization
of Pedrillo
in the same opera.
He returns to the Bayerische Staatsoper to reprise
Kedril in From the House of the Dead and Portland
Opera for the company’s “Big Night” concert. In
addition, he joins Dallas Opera for a debut as the
Dance Master in Manon Lescaut.
On the concert stage, he sings Orff’s Carmina Burana
with the Houston Symphony and Puccini’s Messa
di Gloria and excerpts of L’elisir d’amore with Das
Musikkollegium Wintherthur. Future engagements
include bel canto role debuts with Berkshire Opera
Festival and a return to Seattle Opera. Last season,
he made his Seattle Opera debut as Almaviva in Il
barbiere di Siviglia and returned to the Bayerische
Staatsoper for a number of roles in his final season
as a member of the company’s ensemble.
Other recent performances include Pedrillo in Die
Entführung aus dem Serail with Atlanta Opera; David,
Jeremiah, and the Voice of God in Weill’s The
Road of Promise with Kristjan Järvi conducting the
MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra at the Kurt
Weill Festival in Dessau; and Fenton in Falstaff with
Wolf Trap Opera.
Grills is the unprecedented winner of both grand
prize in Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions
and first prize in the Lotte Lenya Competition
in the same year, 2012. He holds a master’s of music
degree from the Eastman School of Music, and he
earned his bachelor’s of music degree from the Boston
Conservatory.
KATRINA GALKA
Soprano
MATTHEW GRILLS
Tenor