Full Biography
Estonian soprano Mirjam Mesak is a current member of the Bayerische Staatsoper ensemble, where she has left an indelible impression in roles from Iolanta to Musetta. In September 2022, she portrayed the leading role in Axel Ranisch’s film “Orphea in Love” which premiered at the Bavarian State Opera – proving that the soprano possesses not only an “outstanding voice” (Crescendo) but is also a skilled actress. The film was subsequently released in cinemas throughout Europe.
In 2024/25 season Mirjam Mesak celebrates her house debut at the Semperoper in Dresden as Ännchen (Der Freischütz) and makes her role debut as Mimi (La bohème) at the Theatre Vanemuine in Estonia. With the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich, she sings Freia in a new production of Das Rheingold, Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel), Juliette (Die tote Stadt), and 1st Sprite (Rusalka), among other roles. Additionally, she sees her first performances at the Konzerthaus Berlin in New Year’s concerts of the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra under Vladimir Jurowski, appears as soloist in Symphony No. 2 (Mahler) with the Oldenburg State Orchestra conducted by Hendrik Vestmann, and joins the Prague Philharmonia and Rastislav Štúr in a Summer Gala concert.
Last season, Mirjam Mesak made her house debut at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo singing Tebaldo in a new production of Verdi’s Don Carlo staged by Davide Livermore and celebrated her eagerly awaited house debut at the Royal Danish Opera as Michal in Barrie Kosky’s production of Saul. As an ensemble member of the Bayerische Staatsoper, she debuted the role of Xenia (Boris Godunov), reprised the roles of Musetta in La bohème and Dama di Lady Macbeth in Macbeth. She was also seen in Shostakovich’s The Nose staged by Kirill Serebrennikov and led by Vladimir Jurowski and in Verdi’s Il trovatore under Antonino Fogliani.
On the concert stage, she debuted with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra as soprano soloist in Rachmaninov’s The Bells under the baton of Vasily Petrenko. She was heard as soprano soloist in Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra under maestro Neeme Järvi and gave two New Year’s concerts with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra led by Kaspar Mänd. Commemorating the 150th anniversary of Rudolf Tobias, she participated in a recording of his Oratorio “Joonas” with the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and Tallinn Chamber Orchestra under the baton of Tõnu Kaljuste. The recording was followed by a concert at the Tallinn Methodist Church.
Highlights of previous seasons include the role of Musetta in an all-star cast of La bohème conducted by Asher Fisch, streamed internationally by the Bayerische Staatsoper, where her portrayal was praised for its “beauty and elegance” (Opera Wire). Mesak debuted as Oscar in Johannes Erath’s production of Un ballo in maschera under Ivan Repušic, and also appeared as Juliette in Simon Stone’s landmark production of Die tote Stadt under Kirill Petrenko, since released on DVD. Her portrayal of Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta at the Cuvilliés Theater conducted by Alevtina Ioffe earned Mirjam unanimous critical acclaim for her ability to bring an “unbelievable amount of depth” to the character (Bachtrack) and can also be found on DVD. In her hometown of Tallinn, Mirjam made a critically acclaimed debut as Norina in Don Pasquale with the Estonian National Opera conducted by Arvo Volmer.
During her tenure in Munich’s Opernstudio, Mirjam made tremendous impressions not only as Iolanta, but also in the roles of Freia (Das Rheingold), Nella (Gianni Schicchi) conducted by Daniele Rustioni, and the Dew Fairy in Richard Jones’ Hänsel und Gretel under Patrick Lange.
Mirjam Mesak is a graduate of Guildhall School of Music & Drama (First Class Honours) where she studied under the tutelage of Prof. Rudolf Piernay. She has performed as a soloist in several of London’s renowned concert halls such as the Barbican Hall, Milton Court Concert Hall (including as part of the LSO’s ‘This is Rattle’ festival), and Wigmore Hall.
In 2019 she was awarded with the Bavarian Art Prize in the section Performing Arts (Bayerische Kunstförderpreis in Der Sparte Darstellende Kunst).
© CSAM, July 2024
