Profile
Soprano's brilliant performance carrieseButterfly'
-"Midland Daily News"
MOT's 'Butterfly' is an icon made flesh and sorrow
-"The Detroit News"
For a long time, Mihoko Kinoshita has been praised for her title role in Madama Butterfly. In her reviews, her performance has frequently been commented on as being both fine and bold. Her voice has been acknowledged as rich and incomparably controlled; moreover, she has wonderful acting skills which are the reason why she enjoys the reputation of the greatest "Cio-Cio-San", whose character shows most variety of emotions.
Her reliable techniques of singing and acting have created a fabulous performance of Verdi's Requiem in 2007. According to Verdi, each of the Requiem solo parts requires beauty of sound and vocal skills. In addition, the singer's passion with strength is revealed on the stage (Rivers, "Spokesman Review "). Travis Rivers, who is an author of "Spokesman Review", wrote, "Kinoshita provided more of them in the final Libera me which took her soprano into her highest range with a quiet leap up to a high B-flat and then a sustained high C. The work ends with the soprano invading alto territory in a chant-like repeated note at a barely audible degree of softness", and he got goose-bumps.
She has been highly acclaimed in the United States as well as in Japan. In 2007, she was awarded first prize of the Licia Albanese Puccini Foundation Competition and caused a sensation in their winner's concert at Lincoln Center. Her "One Fine Day" (Un bel di vedremo) fascinated not only her audience but also the other winners.
She had her Baltimore Opera debut, in May 2008, as Madama Butterfly, following her debut with the Midland Symphony Orchestra in the same role. She also made her Detroit Opera debut at Michigan Opera Theater (MOT) in November. She fulfilled the title role on opening night conducted by Edoardo Muller. In all of the performances, her brilliant talent showed her full range of the Butterfly character, and won her much approval from critics and the public. Even now, audiences seldom have the chance to see such a talented Japanese singer, who can perform the title role as brilliantly. Her spectacular "Cio-Cio-San" has impressed many.
In December, she was invited Puccini 150th Anniversary Gala Concert by Di Capo Opera and sang"Love Duet"in Madama Butterfly with Raul Melo at Lincoln Center.
She has recognized as major interpreter of the role of"Cio-Cio-San"in Madama Butterfly, having sung the role at the Santa Margherita Opera Festival in Italy (2002), Belgrade Opera (2003), Sofia National Opera (2004), Tokyo Bunkakaikan of Nikikai Opera Theater (2004, 2006), the Kanagawa Philharmonic (2004) and the Sofia summer Festival (2006).
She debuted Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni under Seiji Ozawa in Tokyo in 2002 and later seasons appeared as Mimi in La Boheme conducted by Roberto Rizzi Brignoli at the Tokyo Bunkakaikan, Amelia in Un Ballo in Maschera conducted by Onjrei Renardo at the Tokyo Nikikai Opera Theater, Leonora in Il Trovatore with the Verdi project in Saitama, and Giorgetta in Il Tabarro at the New National Theatre Tokyo.
On the stage, she has been seen in recital at the Medoc Music Festival in Bordeaux, Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra and in the United States with the Spokane Symphony. She sang a Gala Concert with the Toscanini Philharmonic Orchestra by Lorin Maazel and the Verdi Requiem with the Kanagawa Philharmonic. She has also performed Beethoven's Ninth Symphony soprano solo on more than 30 stages.
In 2008, she returned to Japan to sing the Britten War Requiem before debuting in London at Wigmore Hall in the Georg Solti Anniversary Concert. She performed Violetta in La Traviata at the New National Theatre Tokyo. In November, she sang in her own recital as Desdemona in Otello (excerpts).
In 2009 season, she appeared New Year Opera Palace Gala at the New National Theatre Tokyo and will perform Michaela in Carmen and Liu in Turandot.
Mihoko Kinoshita was born in Kagoshima, Japan. She completed both her Bachelor and Master's Degree at the Musashino Academy of Music.
In 2001, she began studying abroad in Italy with Rotary International Friendly Scholarship, the Recruit Scholarship and Rome music foundation Scholarship. She has been awarded numerous prizes, such as first place in the Santa Margherita International Opera Competition and Bevagna International Opera Competition, as second place in Verdian voice International Competition in Busseto and Riccardo Zandonai International Opera Competition.
She was also awarded New Nippon Steal Award-Fresh artist award (2006), and Idemitsu Music Award (2007), one of the country's highest awards in the field of arts.
She will make her Canada debut as "Cio-Cio-San" at Vancouver in 2010.
She resides in New York. January 2009
