Libretti of Russian Operas

Volume II

By Dr. Ksenia Leletkina

Continuing the great legacy of the late Nico Castel, this much anticipated second volume of Libretti of Russian Opera includes six operas from the nineteenth and early twentieth century Russian canon, finished with IPA transcriptions, word-for-word translation, and accompanied by a new pronunciation and IPA guide and the basic rules of Russian Lyric Diction. This volume is part of a larger project which will encompass the publication of libretti for all of the Russian operas of the 19^th and 20^th centuries in order to afford both academic and professional opera institutions the ability to expand their repertoire offerings.

The volume contains: The Tsar’s Bride (Rimsky-Korsakov); The Demon (Rubinstein); The Snow Maiden (Rimsky-Korsakov); The Maid of Orleans (Tchaikovsky); Iolanta (Tchaikovsky); Francesca da Rimini (Rachmaninoff).

About the author:

Russian born pianist Ksenia Leletkina enjoys a vigorous career as a sought-after vocal coach, pianist, and Russian specialist with over a decade’s experience in the field of Russian Lyric Diction. She is on faculty at the Julliard School of Music and on staff at the Metropolitan Opera and Palm Beach Opera. In addition to the current volume of opera libretti, she has also published the Anthology of Russian Songs for Leyerle Publications. Dr. Leletkina earned her doctoral degree from the Eastman School of Music in accompanying and chamber music, and her master’s degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, double majoring in piano performance and collaborative piano.