User:Michael Antonenko

Julia Lezhneva(born December 5, 1989) is a Russian opera singer, particularly specializing in baroque and bel canto repertoire. Julia Lezhneva was born in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (Sakhalin island, Far-East Region of Russia) in the family of geophysisists. She started to play the piano at the age of 5. At the age of 7 her family moved to Moscow where Julia continued studying piano at the Grechaninov Junior school of Music. At the age of 9 she began to sing in the choir performing sacred and baroque music. At the age of 12 she started to study professional vocal. In 2004 Julia entered the Academic Music College attached to the Moscow Conservatoire. In 2006 she won the Grand-Prix of the First Elena Obraztsova Competition for young vocalists. In 2007 Julia won the Grand-Prix prize at the 6th International Elena Obraztsova Competition for Opera Singers in Saint-Petersburg. In July 2008 she participated in the live recording of the Bach Mass in B-Minor with Marc Minkowski and Les Mucisiens du Louvre by Naive (soprano II part). In July and August 2008 Julia participated in Accademia Rossiniana and then in the Rossini Opera Festival, singing the Gala opening concert with Juan Diego Florez and Stabat Mater (the soprano part) with Alberto Zedda conducting. Besides, Julia gave recitals in the Great Hall of the St. Petersburg Philharmony (November 6, 2007), Musashino Cultural Centre (Tokio) as well as participated in concerts with Elena Obrrazstova in Kosice Opera Theatre (Slovakia) and in D. Hvorostovsky recital in Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatoire.