Cathy-Di Zhang

Recently returned Australian soprano, Cathy-Di Zhang, is an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, London where she completed her studies on full scholarship. She furthered her training on the Opera Works Programme at English National Opera, the Mozart Residency at Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, the Georg Solti Accademia di bel canto and the Verbier Academy.

Her 2021 season included two solo recitals for the Castlemaine State Festival, her company and role debut as Micaëla in Bizet’s Carmen for Opera Australia’s National Tour in a production by Matthew Barclay, and her debut for Pinchgut Opera as L’amour/La folie in their acclaimed production of Rameau’s Platée by Neil Armfield. She was also featured as part of the Young Stars of the Australian Opera at Sydney’s Woolworths Carols in the Domain.

Cathy-Di is extremely excited to start off her 2022 season singing Mimi for State Opera South Australia, which marks her debut with the company. In Winter, she will be returning on tour with Opera Australia as Rosina in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia in a production by Priscilla Jackman. She will then make her Victorian Opera debut in the main role of Zhu Ying Tai in Richard Mills ’new work“ The Butterfly Lovers”, directed by theatre maker Ivan Heng of Wild Rice Singapore, and to finish off the 2022 season, Cathy-Di is returning to City Recital Hall with Pinchgut Opera as Créuse in Charpentier’s Médée in a production by Justin Way.

Prior to the pandemic, Cathy-Di sang the role of Mädchen in K.Weill’s Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny in a new production by acclaimed director Ivo van Hove for Festival d’Aix-en-Provence under Esa-Pekka Salonen and subsequently for Dutch National Opera under Markus Stenz. Other opera credits include Mimi (La bohème) for Opera @ Stone in Berlin, Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte) for Kammeroper Schloss Rheinsberg, the title role of Massenet’s Cendrillon and Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi) for Royal Academy Opera in London, Nella (Gianni Schicchi) For Les Azuriales Opera in Nice and Gretel (Hansel and Gretel) and Lisa (La sonnambula) as a young artist for Pacific Opera in Sydney, Australia.

As a soloist in concert, Cathy-Di has performed with Ayrton Desimpelaere and the Orchestra of the Opéra de Liége – Wallonie, with Dane Lam and the Xi’an Symphony Orchestra and Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, with Arie van Beek and the Orchestre de Chambre de Genève and with Marius Stieghorst and the Orchestre Symphonique d’Orléans.

As an avid chamber musician, Cathy-Di has appeared throughout Italy in various festivals in trio and quartet (with violin, cello and piano).

Cathy-Di was the winner of the 2019 Grand Prix in the “Concours International d’Art Lyrique de Namur” in Belgium, the winner of the 2016 Audience Prize in the Les Azuriales International Singing Competition in France and winner of the 2015 Australian Opera and Auditions Committee’s Opera Award in Australia.

She also holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance and Accounting) with Distinction from the University of New South Wales, Australia.