Times of Malta catches up with tenor Nico Darmanin and soprano Elena Brazhnyk to find out more.

Nico Darmanin returns to the Manoel Theatre for a night filled with operatic arias together with soprano Elena Brazhnyk and accompanied on piano by conductor Adrian Kelly.

The trio will perform a selection of operatic arias in a programme that includes works by renowned composers Gioachino Rossini and Gaetano Donizetti among others.

Darmanin says his first foray into music was at the age of four when listening to a Mozart sonata. “This gave me goosebumps and filled me with emotion,” he says.

“Opera is the ultimate… it is the description of a character’s story written through music. It is the melting pot of all the performing art forms evoking every possible emotion.”

Speaking about the upcoming concert, the tenor said audiences can expect “fireworks, intensity and excitement”.

“We have chosen some of the best pieces from the hype of the Bel Canto period. Both Elena Brazhnyk and I have high lyric voices. With the help of Mro Adrian Kelly, we chose repertoire that would show off our ultimate best. Giving a variety of colours and pieces which will invigorate the senses.”

Elena Brazhnyk

Brazhnyk gave similar expectations, saying audiences “will hear beautiful music, enjoy live emotions and a good mood that will stay with people for a long time”.

Darmanin said that they opted to keep the programme “pure and very operatic in nature”.

“Both Elena and I chose things that we do best, and things that we also love the most. We also decided to put in some exciting numbers which will be debuted for the first time by both of us. The beautiful Manoel Theatre is the right place to explore these new roles and arias.”

Brazhnyk says the music industry changed a fair bit in the last decade, with appearance and advertising being of great importance now.

“With the development of technology, directors now have more opportunities to visualise their ideas, but unfortunately it happens that the productions live separately from the music. It would be good if feelings and emotions did not lose their value and uniqueness.”

An Evening of Operatic Arias is taking place at the Manoel Theatre on October 25 and 26. Tickets are available on the Manoel Theatre website.