Doris Soffel

Doris Soffel studied violin and singing in Munich after which she took up her first engagement in Zurich. Her international career began in 1983 as Sesto in Mozart's "La Clemenza di Tito" at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden. Her broad repertoire, spanning everything from bel canto to contemporary, has taken her to all of the world's large venues and concert stages. She has worked with Sergiu Celibidache, Carlo Maria Giulini, Herbert von Karajan, Zubin Mehta, Wolfgang Sawallisch and Christian Thielemann, and with directors such as Götz Friedrich, Harry Kupfer, Jean-Pierre Ponnelle, Robert Carsen, Robert Wilson and Stefan Herheim. She is famous for her interpretation of strong female characters in works by Wagner and Strauss: Kundry in "Parsifal", Ortrud in "Lohengrin" as well as Herodias in "Salome", Amme in "Die Frau ohne Schatten" and Klytämnestra in "Elektra". In Bayreuth she sang Waltraute with Pierre Boulez and Fricka with Georg Solti in the "Ring des Nibelungen". She also sang Fricka with Daniel Barenboim at La Scala in Milan and with Simon Rattle at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Doris Soffel has earned the title of Kammersängerin and is bearer of the Royal Swedish North Star Order. She appeared as Amme at the 2015 International May Festival, and in 2016 sang Fricka and Waltraute in Loriot's "Wagner's Ring an einem Abend.