In 2021-22, Taiwan-born soprano Li Keng enjoyed great success in the role of Amelia in “Un ballo in maschera” at the Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen under the baton of Paolo Carignani and with the Verdi Requiem with the Sonderjylland Symphony Orchestra under Johannes Wildner in Denmark.
Future engagements include Elisabetta in Verdi’s “Don Carlo” in Taiwan under Wen-pin Chien and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.
In the 2021-21 season she also sang Violetta Valery in “La Traviata” and the soprano part in Mendelssohn’s “Elijah” in Kaoshiung/Taiwan. Li Keng made her very successful Germany debut in the role of Mimi in “La bohème” at the Wuppertal Opera under Julia Jones. Engagements for her role debut as Elvira in Verdi’s “Ernani” at the Lithuanian State Opera in Vilnius, concerts with the Verdi Requiem in Indonesia, Brahms “Ein deutsches Requiem” in Taipei and Cio-Cio San in Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” at the Royal Danish Opera fell victim to the Corona crisis.
In previous years Li Keng sang the role of Donna Elvira in Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” at the Zibo Grand Theatre in China, Amelia in Verdi’s “Un ballo in maschera” in Orvieto, Italy, “Aida” in the northern Italian city of Garlasco, Cio Cio San at the National Opera of Bucharest, Romania, as well as at the theatres in Besostria and Pavia. Her operatic repertoire also includes Mozart’s Countess Almaviva in “Le Nozze di Figaro”, which she sang in Formello, Rome. During her studies in Rome, the young soprano also sang the role of Leonora in Verdi’s “Il trovatore” at the Greco Theatre in Rome, Leonore in Beethoven’s “Fidelio” at the Santa Cecilia Conservatory.
Li Keng was successful in numerous singing competitions: in 2018 she was First Prize Winner of the International Dvořak Competition in Karlovy Vary and the International Singing Competition Ningbo in China, in 2016 she won the Third Prize of the 54th International Singing Competition “Voci Verdiane” City of Busseto, in 2015 she won the First Prize of the 31st International Opera Competition Valsesia music in Italy and the International Opera Competition Jakub Pustina in the Czech Republic and the International Opera Competition Benvenuto Franci in Italy. In 2013 she won an engagement at the Concours Marcello Giordani in Sicily, Italy. Prior to that, she won the Taiwan Chi-Mei Art Prize twice, and the second prize at the Mondial Chinese Vocalist Concours in Taipei in 2008.
Li Keng also established herself as a concert singer, singing Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony at the Bellini Theatre under the baton of Xu Zhong and on tour with the Sinfonica Abruzzese, Verdi Requiem at the National Concert Hall in Taipei, among others, where she also gave a recital in 2017.
Born in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Li Keng first studied in her home country and then received the Taiwan Chi-Mei Arts Scholarship. She then completed her Master’s degree at the Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome, where she now lives.
03/2022
