Olivia Vermeulen

The Dutch mezzo-soprano Olivia Vermeulen has established herself internationally as a versatile soloist. She has particular passions for Classical and Baroque repertory, and is also well-known as an interpreter of contemporary music. She has appeared at the Ruhrtriennale and the Holland Festival in Philippe Manoury’s Kein Licht, performed at the Musikfest Berlin under Peter Eötvös, created the role of Saiko in the world premiere of Thomas Larcher’s Das Jagdgewehr at the Bregenz Festival and has given the world premiere of songs by Wolfgang Rihm at the Kissinger Sommer.

She has recently appeared on the concert platform with the Bach Collegium Japan under Masaaki Suzuki in Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s St Matthew Passion and Mozart’s Mass in C minor, and with the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra under Masato Suzuki in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Engagements in the 2023/24 season included Bach’s St Matthew Passion with the Residentie Orkest under Matthew Halls at the Vienna Konzerthaus, a tour with the B’Rock Orchestra under Andreas Küppers and concerts with Jordi Savall and Le Concert des Nations in Barcelona, Dresden and Paris.

Highlights of her opera career include her role debuts as Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) and Dorabella (Così fan tutte) with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra under René Jacobs. She made her house debut at the Paris Opéra as Abel in Scarlatti’s Il primo omicidio, and subsequently performed the same role at the Berlin State Opera. She made her debut at the Zurich Opera House as Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro), and returned to the Berlin State Opera as Fortuna in Vivaldi’s Il Giustino.

Olivia Vermeulen has worked with well-known conductors such as Frans Brüggen, Alessandro De Marchi, Reinhard Goebel, Daniel Harding, Philippe Herreweghe, Tomáš Netopil and Michael Schønwandt. She has performed at festivals such as the Munich Opera Festival, the Rheingau Music Festival, the Handel Festival in Halle and the Mozartwoche in Salzburg.

Her work is documented on numerous CDs. In 2020 she released her first solo album, Dirty Minds (Challenge Records). The Tokyo recording of Mozart’s Mass in C minor under Masaaki Suzuki in which she appears won a Gramophone Award.