ABOUT
Maayan Licht, male soprano
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Winner of the “Best Newcomer” award at the prestigious International Oper! Awards 2025, Licht is recognised as one of the most exciting emerging voices in opera today. In March 2026, he will make his debut at Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, singing the role of Ra in the world premiere of Requiem by Meriç Artaç.
Alongside his stage career, he has become a social media phenomenon, with hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram and TikTok and millions of views worldwide, bringing classical singing to new audiences across the globe. Known as “the modern-day Farinelli,” Licht is celebrated for performing roles almost no one else can sing today, combining dazzling vocal virtuosity with emotional depth.
The year 2024 was a breakthrough year for Maayan Licht. He was marked as a rising star for the role of Achilles in Porpora’s Ifigenia in Aulide conducted by Christophe Rousset and directed by Max Emanuel Cenčić, and the title role in the world premiere of Ľubica Čekovská’s Here I Am, Orlando, nominated for the International Opera Awards. He also received outstanding reviews for his portrayal of the title role in Handel’s Xerxes, a role he later reprised at Staatstheater Oldenburg.
In 2025, Licht has shone alongside Julia Lezhneva in the main role of Alcidoro in J.C. Bach’s Amor Vincitore at the SWR Festival Schwetzingen and on tour, and as Cherubino in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro at Oper Dortmund, which premiered in September 2025. He also enjoyed great success performing a solo recital with Ottavio Dantone and his orchestra, Accademia Bizantina, at the Monteverdi Festival Cremona.
Discovered by his Israeli teacher Vita Gurevich, Licht completed his Early Music vocal studies at the Conservatory of Amsterdam under Xenia Meijer, graduating with distinction in 2021. He has since received numerous awards, including the Grand Prize at the Vienna International Music Competition, the jury and audience prizes at the Grachtenfestival Competition in 2020 with his duo “Duo Zeffiretti”.
His operatic roles include Achille in Porpora’s Ifigenia in Aulide (Bayreuth Baroque Opera Festival, 2024), Xerxes in Handel’s Xerxes (Landestheater Detmold, 2023), Amore in Martin y Soler’s L’arbore di Diana (Wiener Kammeroper, 2022), the title role in Vinci’s Alessandro nell’Indie, the title-role in Giacomelli’s Scipione in Cartagine nuova (Teatro Farnese, Parma, 2023), Iris (cover) in Handel’s Semele (Glyndebourne, 2023), Orlando in the world premiere of Ľubica Čekovská’s Here I Am, Orlando (Janáček Theatre, Brno, 2024) and Aquilio in Graun’s Adriano in Siria (Philharmonie Essen).
Furthermore, Licht performed Erodiade La Figlia in Stradella’s San Giovanni Battista (Bayreuth Baroque, 2022), the title-role (cover) in Rossini’s Sigismondo, Libanio in Porpora’s Siface (Teatr Słowackiego in Kraków, 2020 & 2022), Amore in Gluck’s Orfeo (Haarlem, 2019), Danceny in Dangerous Liaisons by Vivaldi and Moretto (The Netherlands & TBOS Switzerland).
His concert repertoire includes soprano solos in Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s Mass in B Minor, the St. John and Matthew Passions, as well as the role of Didymus in Handel’s Theodora. He has performed with esteemed groups such as the Bach Society and Les Talens Lyriques. Maayan Licht has made his debut at prestigious venues including the Concertgebouw, Theater an der Wien an Margravial Opera House.
Additionally, Licht merges techno and opera music with his group “Technopera” at an exceptional level. Technopera has performed at distinguished venues like the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the renowned music festival “Down the Rabbit Hole” in the Netherlands.
Upcoming highlights include the role of Laertes in Gasparini’s Ambleto (Theater an der Wien, 2025), Cherubino in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro (Janáček Theatre, Brno, 2025), the title role in Handel’s Serse at the Staatstheater Oldenburg, Carmen in Bizet’s Carmen (The Concertgebouw & De Parade Festival, Amsterdam & Utrecht, 2025).
The young male soprano performs concerts in Liederhalle Stuttgart, Amsterdam, Valencia, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Ignalina, Abu Ghosh, Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht, Feuchtwangen, Arosa, and Konstanz.
About
Maayan Licht, male soprano
Winner of the “Best Newcomer” award at the prestigious International Oper! Awards 2025, Licht is recognised as one of the most exciting emerging voices in opera today. In March 2026, he will make his debut at Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, singing the role of Ra in the world premiere of Requiem by Meriç Artaç.
Alongside his stage career, he has become a social media phenomenon, with hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram and TikTok and millions of views worldwide, bringing classical singing to new audiences across the globe. Known as “the modern-day Farinelli,” Licht is celebrated for performing roles almost no one else can sing today, combining dazzling vocal virtuosity with emotional depth.
The year 2024 was a breakthrough year for Maayan Licht. He was marked as a rising star for the role of Achilles in Porpora’s Ifigenia in Aulide conducted by Christophe Rousset and directed by Max Emanuel Cenčić, and the title role in the world premiere of Ľubica Čekovská’s Here I Am, Orlando, nominated for the International Opera Awards. He also received outstanding reviews for his portrayal of the title role in Handel’s Xerxes, a role he later reprised at Staatstheater Oldenburg.
In 2025, Licht has shone alongside Julia Lezhneva in the main role of Alcidoro in J.C. Bach’s Amor Vincitore at the SWR Festival Schwetzingen and on tour, and as Cherubino in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro at Oper Dortmund, which premiered in September 2025. He also enjoyed great success performing a solo recital with Ottavio Dantone and his orchestra, Accademia Bizantina, at the Monteverdi Festival Cremona.
Discovered by his Israeli teacher Vita Gurevich, Licht completed his Early Music vocal studies at the Conservatory of Amsterdam under Xenia Meijer, graduating with distinction in 2021. He has since received numerous awards, including the Grand Prize at the Vienna International Music Competition, the jury and audience prizes at the Grachtenfestival Competition in 2020 with his duo “Duo Zeffiretti”.
His operatic roles include Achille in Porpora’s Ifigenia in Aulide (Bayreuth Baroque Opera Festival, 2024), Xerxes in Handel’s Xerxes (Landestheater Detmold, 2023), Amore in Martin y Soler’s L’arbore di Diana (Wiener Kammeroper, 2022), the title role in Vinci’s Alessandro nell’Indie, the title role in Giacomelli’s Scipione in Cartagine nuova (Teatro Farnese, Parma, 2023), Iris (cover) in Handel’s Semele (Glyndebourne, 2023), Orlando in the world premiere of Ľubica Čekovská’s Here I Am, Orlando (Janáček Theatre, Brno, 2024) and Aquilio in Graun’s Adriano in Siria (Philharmonie Essen).
Furthermore, Licht performed Erodiade La Figlia in Stradella’s San Giovanni Battista (Bayreuth Baroque, 2022), the title-role (cover) in Rossini’s Sigismondo, Libanio in Porpora’s Siface (TeatrSłowackiego in Kraków, 2020 & 2022), Amore in Gluck’s Orfeo (Haarlem, 2019), Danceny in Dangerous Liaisons by Vivaldi and Moretto (The Netherlands & TBOS Switzerland).
His concert repertoire includes soprano solos in Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s Mass in B Minor, the St. John and Matthew Passions, as well as the role of Didymus in Handel’s Theodora. He has performed with esteemed groups such as the Bach Society and Opera2Day. Maayan Licht has made his debut at prestigious venues including the Concertgebouw, Theater an der Wien and Margravial Opera House.
Additionally, Licht merges techno and opera music with his group “Technopera” at an exceptional level. Technopera has performed at distinguished venues like the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the renowned music festival “Down the Rabbit Hole” in the Netherlands.
Upcoming highlights include the role of Laertes in Gasparini’s Ambleto (Theater an der Wien, 2025), Cherubino in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro (Janáček Theatre, Brno, 2025), the title role in Handel’s Serse at the Staatstheater Oldenburg, Carmen in Bizet’s Carmen (The Concerrtgebouw & De Parade Festival, Amsterdam & Utrecht, 2025).
The young male soprano performs concerts in Liederhalle Stuttgart, Amsterdam, Valencia, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Ignalina, Abu Ghosh, Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht, Feuchtwangen, Arosa, and Konstanz.