christina Aloneftis“Young Greek-Cypriot Australian Soprano Lirico, Christiana Aloneftis “has an exceptionally warm, expressive soprano voice….She performs with poise and graceful, nuanced phrasing” – Joyce DiDonato (The Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall). Currently based in Germany, she completed a BMus and a DipLang (Adv. Italian) at The University of Melbourne in 2012. In addition, she holds a Master of Interpreting and Translation degree from Monash University (AUS). Supported by an Acclaim Italian Opera Ambassadorial Scholarship, Christiana relocated to Europe where she made her Italian debut at Fondazione Pergolesi-Spontini in the role of Agata (Il Flaminio – Pergolesi). The same programme granted her the opportunity to complete an intensive Bel-Canto course at the Accademia Teatro alla Scala, Milan. Since her time abroad, Christiana has participated in masterclasses and lessons with the following important figures: Luciana Serra, Lella Cuberli, Biancamaria Casoni, John Apeitos, Aris Christofellis and Julius Kalmar. In August 2015, she made her German debut in the role of Barbarina (The Marriage of Figaro) for The Lyric Opera Studio Weimar and also her Cypriot orchestral debut performing Mozart arias and duets with The Cyprus National Symphony Orchestra for their masterclass series. The young soprano has appeared as a soloist and interviewee in Apollon International Magazine, 3MBS Fine Music Melbourne, SBS Radio Greek/Italian and 3ZZZ Radio Melbourne and Rete Italia in promotion of opera competition finals, achievements and concerts as well as in the press for Neos Kosmos, Il Globo, The Melbourne Observer and in Germany. Past awards include winner of the Cyprus Vocal Scholarship Competition (2014), finalist in the Australian Music Foundation Awards (AMF) at Wigmore Hall, London (2013) and the Encouragement Award as the youngest finalist in the Acclaim Italian Opera Fellowship Awards held at Iwaki Auditorium, ABC Studios, Melbourne (2012). As an undergraduate student at The University of Melbourne, Christiana was awarded the Lin Martin Global Mobility Scholarship & The Melbourne Languages Mobility Scholarship (Italian) for study abroad program excellence.  Christiana studied privately in Germany supported by a Major Mike Walsh Fellowship (2015). This led to exciting engagements in 2016 including her triple operatic European debut of the following roles: Musetta (La Bohéme), Zerlina (Don Giovanni) and Susanna (The Marriage of Figaro) at The 2016 Connecticut Lyric Opera – Greve Opera Academy & Festival, Italy and The 2016 European Music Academy Teplice with The North Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Czech Republic. The young sopranois currently studying her Diplôme Supérieur d’Art Lyrique at the leading Parisian Conservatoire, L’École Normale de Musique de Paris “Alfred Cortot” (ENMP) on full scholarship, under the guidance of reknowned singer and pedagogue ,Madame Mireille Alcantara. She recently competed in the 2017 Australian Opera Awards Finals as the youngest finalist at The Australian Chamber Orchestra Studios in Sydney. Ms. Aloneftis is excited to make her US debut singing the soprano solo in Bach’s ‘Liebster Jesu, mein Verlangen’ BWV 32 with The Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra.”