cultural activities
23
finnish cultural foundation
annual report 2013–2014
in this ensemble.
Rather than singing the great operatic
roles, Kateryna prefers to adventure into
early and contemporary music, and Lied.
“I wanted to take part in the Mirjam
Helin Competition when I discovered it
allows great freedom of repertoire.”
Personal growth stories are what
interest Kateryna in planning her concerts,
and her choice of competition repertoire
reflected a desire to tell about different
women. The singer’s artistic choices carry
a lot of weight in a Lieder recital.
“The challenge is what appeals to me
in Lied: the singer has a lot of responsi-
bility, and correspondingly it brings a lot
of pleasure. You have to make the audi-
ence resonate with the music. If you can
manage to do this, it’s a magnificent expe-
rience for everyone.”
The audience at the Mirjam Helin
Competition was a great source of energy
for Kateryna Kasper.
“Quite frankly, I was surprised how
closely the audience followed the compe-
tition from the beginning right through to
the end. I’d like to say a big thank you to the
warm audience; a reception such as this
is a tremendous gift for an artist. Genuine
contact with an eager audience is surely
the biggest prize I won here.”
A singing competition is, says Kateryna
Kasper, a good opportunity to learn more
about oneself and to practise handling
stress. She praises the encouraging atmos-
phere at the Mirjam Helin Competition,
and when Russian interpreter
Daniel
Shaul
, whom she has got to know here in
Helsinki, happens to walk past, she breaks
off to give him a big hug by way of saying
goodbye. She also enjoyed the invaluable
support of her accompanist,
Tiffany Butt
,
and her cellist husband, who was with her
in Helsinki.
“Being here on my own would have
been hard, even though I’ve met so many
lovely people.”
The world awaits the victorious
soprano, but right now she has but a single
dream: peace for Ukraine.
“I’d like to do some oratorios again soon.
They are like a prayer for the world.”
Kateryna Kasper dreamt of becoming an actress, but as a singer, she can also act and keep discovering new aspects of herself.
