AIDA GARIFULLINA soprano

I travel a lot at the moment and so on flights I like to listen to the operas

I’m learning. My favourite opera is Prokofiev’s War and Peace, in a performance conducted by Valery Gergiev. Two years ago Gergiev asked me to sing Natasha Rostova in a new production of this opera at the Mariinsky Theatre. I was so happy and fell in love with this music, especially Natasha’s arioso and the famous moment when Prince Andrei and Natasha dance together for the first time.

I love the DVD of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro from 1976, with baritone Hermann Prey and sopranos Mirella Freni and Kiri Te Kanawa, conducted by

Karl Böhm with the Vienna Philharmonic. I’ve watched this opera movie so many times and I still think it’s one of the best ever. Freni is amazing as Susanna – both as a singer and actress – and Te Kanawa sings ‘Dove sono’ wonderfully, with a magnificent pianissimo. I love this opera and Susanna was the first role in my career.

I love to buy new CDS and vinyl. I listen to operatic singers most of the time, like Cecilia Bartoli, Maria Callas, Joan Sutherland and Lily Pons, but also singers including Arethra Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra. I especially love Sinatra’s Christmas album from 1987, the year I was born. Some singers I only listen to when I need to learn something from them, while other singers I can listen to the whole day on repeat. Sinatra’s voice is so light and relaxing.

Four months ago something special happened in my life that changed so many things. I gave birth to my daughter Olivia and now I play lullabies to her to get to sleep, and also wonderful pieces like JS Bach’s Air on the G string from Orchestral Suite

No. 3 in D. And also I play her one of my favourite pieces: Debussy’s Clair de Lune. She enjoys listening

to classical music more than any other genre, which makes me really happy. Aida Garifullina’s new album Aida (Decca Classics) is out now and will be reviewed next month