Maria Catrina - The Magical Soprano
Interests: music, classical music, mezzo soprano singer
He hails from Horezu and completed his studies at the National University of Music in Bucharest, specializing in classical singing under Prof. Iulian Baiasu, and in lied and oratorio under Prof. Pompeiu Harasteanu, with direction from Cristina Cotescu and Corina Brenciu between 1997 and 2002. In 1995, he was honored by signing the Book of Honor during the establishment of the Ion Dumitrescu Philharmonic in Ramnicu Valcea.
In 2003, he was awarded the First Prize at the inaugural National Festival of the Romanian Lied in Brasov. That same year, he began his tenure as a soloist at the Brasov Opera, a position he holds under the leadership of director Cristian Mihailescu. From 2004 to 2011, he served as an associate professor teaching singing and lied-oratorio at the Faculty of Music, Transilvania University in Brasov.
He earned his Doctorate in music from the same university (2016-2021), with guidance from Petruta-Maria Coroiu. On the stage of the Brasov Opera and during tours in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and France, he has successfully taken on roles such as Pamina, Antonia, Leila, Lucia di Lammermoor, Micaela, Gilda, Ines, and Magda de Civry, among others. His repertoire has also broadened to include operettas, musicals, and children's productions.
He has worked alongside conductors like David Crescenzi, Traian Ichim, and many others, and has partnered with pianists such as Sena Ducariu, Ana-Maria Negrea, and a host of esteemed musicians. Maria Catrina Petcu has performed in numerous concerts and recitals at prestigious venues including the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, the Roman Athenaeum, and across Europe.
Over his career spanning more than two decades, he has participated in workshops and courses on singing, vocal mastery, therapy, and pedagogy with renowned experts including Leontina Vaduva and Mariana Nicolesco. In recent years, he released several recordings: an album of Romanian carols with pianist Simona Patriche in December 2022, "Doina si Cantecul Romanesc" featuring guitarist Corneliu George-Voicescu and flutist Luminta Cucu in 2015, and "Spring Voices" with the Brasov Opera House orchestra and choir under Traian Ichim in 2011.
