Curriculum Vitae Franciska Dukel

Franciska Dukel began her musical career as pianist and accompanist. As a singer, she debuted in 1990 with a production of Monteverdi with the Combattimento Consort Amsterdam at the Holland Festival. Since then she has proven her vocal versatility working with well-established national and international orchestras, ensembles and conductors. In addition, she was principal subject teacher of singing at the Conservatory of Amsterdam in 2001-2005. She can be listened to on different CD’s, including cantatas of Buxtehude with the baroque orchestra Anima Eterna conducted by Jos van Immerseel (CCS 7895), the Edison winning Schulhoff CD of the Ebony Band conducted by Werner Herber (CCS 9997) and songs of Buyanovsky on Russian Music for Horn (WMM 500.036).

Franciska Dukel is regularly engaged by ensembles specialized in contemporary music, such as the New Ensemble conducted by Ed Spanjaard and the Ebony Band conducted by Werner Herber. With the German ensemble Musik Fabrik NRW she sang Voices of Hans Werner Henze, and she performed this work also in the Komische Oper Berlin in the presence of the composer. Last autumn she sang Messiaen’s Poèmes pour Mi several times in the context of the Messiaen-year 2008 (in de Doelen in Rotterdam).

In song recitals Franciska Dukel distinguishes herself with programmes that stand by their original theme and the choice often forgotten Dutch and German repertoire. For example: in March 2006 she performed in a memorial concert dedicated to the composer Joachim Schweppe in Berlin. With the New Sinfonietta Amsterdam she sang the orchestrated version (Theo Verbey) of Zonder Zon: a song cycle by Mussorgsky (Concertgebouw Amsterdam, 1995). She also sang this cycle with l’Orchestre de Chambre de Genève conducted by Lev Markiz.

Franciska Dukel also sang a variety of opera roles, both at Dutch Opera houses, the Holland Festival and the Vara Matinée. In 1996, her debut with the Nederlandse Opera in Elektra conducted by Hartmut Haenchen, followed by Parsifal conducted by Simon Rattle. Furthermore, she sang the world premiere of Een Ziel van Hout by Robert Heppener in the Holland Festival 1998, Carmen with Opera Zuid (2000) and Christmas Eve of Rimsky-Korsakov conducted by Valery Gergiev. In 2001 she performed the leading role in Creon of Huub Kerstens, in a production of the National Travel Opera (Nationale Reisopera). During the Potsdam Musik Festspiele 2005 she sang with great success virtuoso highlights from the operatic repertoire of the 18th century diva Luisa Todi.

In recent years, Franciska Dukel has developed her affinity with the singing of baroque music using historical instruments. In the Buxtehude Festival 2007 she sang solo cantatas and duets along with the counter tenor Michael Chance with the ensemble la Risonanza conducted by Fabio Bonnizoni.