Eva Blahová

Eva Blahová, mezzo-soprano and pedagogue, who also has an outreach abroad. Her artistic activity in the field of performance has always been complemented by her pedagogical work, and over time other activities have been added, no less important from today's point of view – organizational and jury work.

As a performer, she has given solo performances not only at home, but also in most European countries, Asian countries, the United States and Canada. Her recordings have been released on the Opus and Supraphon labels, and her repertoire has included a significant representation of contemporary Slovak composers, whose works she has often premiered. In 1981 she attended master classes in Salzburg under Erich Werb and in 1986 master classes in Siena under Daniel Ferro.

As a renowned teacher of vocal interpretation, Professor Eva Blahová has educated a number of successful singers working at home and abroad, including Magdaléna Kožená, Piotr Beczała, Gustáv Beláček, Peter Berger, Michal Lehotský, Božena Ferancová, Marián Vojtko, Katarína Kramolišová, Lada Biriukov, Renata Pokupič, Yoko Oba, Sonja Runje, Ján Vaculík, Katarína Kurucová, Thomas Weinhappel and many others. After 1989, she also began to work as a visiting professor abroad, e.g. at the University of Turku in Finland, at the Academy of Music in Krakow and for several years she was a member of the Academy of the European Mozart Foundation. She has students almost all over the world.

She has been a member of juries of international singing competitions in many countries (Czech Republic, Poland, Canada, USA, Russia, Italy, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria ...). In 1994 she took over the management of the Mikulas Schneider-Trnavsky International Singing Competition in Trnava as its president (until 2010). Prof. Blahová is still the soul of this event, having contributed in no small measure to its revival after several years. In Slovakia, she also initiated the Lucie Popp International Singing Competition.

She has also travelled literally all over the world as co-organiser and lecturer of masterclasses (Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Holland, Canada, Croatia, France, Italy, Portugal, Japan, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Switzerland, Belgium, USA, Turkey, Armenia, Georgia, Australia and China). She has worked as a voice consultant at the Norske Opera House in Oslo (2005 – 2008) and for some time at the National Theatre in Prague.

Prof. Blahová's artistic profile is complemented by a number of other activities that have enriched the musical scene at home and abroad. She was the head of the artistic ensemble of the Janáček Opera at the National Theatre Brno (2011 – 2015), since 2014 she has been the patron of the Janáček Festival in Luhačovice. Since 1995 she has been President of the Slovak-Canadian Music Fund, a member of the committees of several music festivals such as Bratislava Music Festival, Allegretto in Žilina, a member of the board of the National Theatre in Prague (2005 – 2013) and a member of the dramaturgical board of the Prague Spring Festival (2003 – 2009), founder of the Prague Opera Stars of Tomorrow festival at the Miro Gallery, co-founder of the Days of Europe festival in Bratislava (1997 – 2003), as well as a member of the nomination committee of the Trebbia International Arts Award (since 2007). In 2010 she gave a lecture Music education in Slovak at the World Forum in Cambridge. She cooperates with the Help Foundation in Bratislava and the Olga Havlová Foundation.

Prof. Blahová has received several social awards and state honours.