Soprano Eva-Lotta Ohlsson performs at The 2009 Jenny Lind concert in Washington, D.C.

Posted by Susanna at 2:24 PM, Jun 24, 2009 (Comments)

Category: Events

Swedish soprano Eva-Lotta Ohlsson and Danish pianist Linda Dahl Laursen after the concert

The 2009 Jenny Lind Concert - named after the singer Jenny Lind, "The Swedish Nightingale" - was held Tuesday evening in Anna Lindh Hall at the House of Sweden in Washington, D.C.
Swedish soprano Eva-Lotta Ohlsson and Danish pianist Linda Dahl Laursen performed works by E. Grieg, W. Stenhammar, A Dvorák, W.A. Mozart, and C. Gounod among others. Ohlsson's vocal performance was particularly impressive when she sang "Song to the Moon" from Rusalka's aria from "Rusalka" by A. Dvorák and "Je veux vivre" from Julia's aria from "Romeo and Juliet" by C. Gounod. She also excelled with pieces by V. Bellini and R. Strauss. Pianist Linda Dahl Laursen accompanied her and was outstanding with her solo presentations of Scherzo op. 39 and Nocture op. 27 no. 2 by F. Chopin.

The soprano Eva-Lotta Ohlsson is from Skövde, Sweden. She was awarded the 2009 Jenny Lind Scholarship for a performance characterized by reviewers for its vocal beauty of sound and expansion, combined with mature artistry. Eva-Lotta's early interest in music led her to study dance and theater. Eventually she focused on classical music, and she is now completing her final year at the Opera College in Gothenburg. She is also under a one-year contract with the Gothenburg Opera, where she has already performed Barbarina in Mozart's "Marriage of Figaro" with great success. She is currently an understudy for the roles of Adéle in Strauss' "Die Fledermus," Musetta in Puccini's "La Bohème," and Cleopatra in Handel's "Julius Caesar." Later this spring she will perform in "Romeo and Juliet." After the concert she mentioned that her dream role is to play Violetta in "La Traviata."

Danish pianist Linda Dahl Laursen, who was raised in the small town of Struer, Denmark, is the recipient of the 2009 Otto Goldschmidt Scholarship. After completing her studies at the Music Conservatory in Århus, she continued her studies at the Music College in Malmö, Sweden.
She has received a number of awards from such prestigious institutions as the Royal Swedish Academy of Music and the Ljunggrenska Competition in Gothenburg. Additionally, she has performed extensively as a soloist and member of chamber ensembles throughout Scandinavia.

The Jenny Lind concert was arranged by The Embassy of Sweden in Washington, D.C. and Swedish Women's Educational Association (SWEA) of Washington, D.C. SWEA served food and refreshments at a reception following the concert.

Gunilla Ekberg and Christian Ekberg