Bio
The Italian soprano Sofia Celenza is a versatile artist, praised for her “vocal poise” and for “shining dramatically” in performance (Opera Today).
Born in Milan, Sofia left Italy at the age of sixteen, moving first to Paris and later to London. Originally trained as a violinist, she began her vocal studies in Paris in 2013. In 2019 she graduated from Trinity Laban Conservatoire with First-Class Honours and subsequently moved to Rome to study with Maestro Romualdo Savastano at the A.R.T. Musica di Roma Academy. She is currently pursuing advanced studies at the Young Artists Studio of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia under the tutelage of Sara Mingardo, following training at the Accademia Chigiana in 2024.She has taken part in masterclasses with renowned international artists including Renata Scotto, Lisette Oropesa, Ramon Vargas, Barbara Hannigan, Carmela Remigio, Ernesto Palacio, and Paolo Bordogna, and has also performed in concert and masterclass settings with the Royal Opera House Jette Parker Young Artists.
Her operatic roles include the lead in the contemporary Serbian-language opera Svadba at the Queen’s House in London, Amphitrite (The Tempest), Belinda (A Christmas Carol by Thea Musgrave), Maria (West Side Story), Second Woman (Dido and Aeneas), Damigella (L’incoronazione di Poppea), and Anna (Nabucco). As a concert soloist, she has performed Händel’s Dixit Dominus, Brahms’s Ein Deutsches Requiem, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Mozart’s concert aria Ch’io mi scordi di te, and other works with ensembles including Roma 3 Orchestra, Orchestra Olimpia, the Indiana Symphony Orchestra, and the Brandenburg Symphonia.
Passionate about chamber music, Sofia performs with guitarist Aurora Orsini in the Estra Duo, with whom she regularly appears in concert and has received both national and international recognition. In 2022 they won second prize at the International Chamber Competition “Giulio Rospigliosi” and the “Emerging Artist” prize at the AEMC International Chamber Music Competition. In 2025 the Estra Duo released their debut album Songs of the Land with Da Vinci Publishing, a collection of traditional songs written or arranged by classical composers. Other chamber projects include lieder recitals with pianist Simone Rugani and a recording of Norwegian songs for Vatican Radio with pianist Giulia Loperfido and violinist Gloria Santarelli.
An active choral singer, Sofia has performed with internationally acclaimed ensembles such as the Philharmonia Chorus of London and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, as well as smaller groups including the Old Royal Naval College Chapel Choir in London and the Vatican’s Cappella Liberiana. She has appeared in major European venues including the Royal Albert Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Elbphilharmonie, Palau de la Música (Valencia), Nouveau Siècle (Lille), and Auditorium Parco della Musica, working with conductors such as Charles Dutoit, Jeffrey Tate, Vasily Petrenko, Vladimir Jurowski, Daniel Harding, and Alexander Bloch. In 2024 Sofia founded the Innominati Ensemble, a vocal chamber group of five singers dedicated to Renaissance, 20th-century, and contemporary repertoire. The ensemble is active in concert life in Rome and is developing a growing presence on the city’s musical scene.
