Nikolina Hrkać
Nikolina Hrkać is born in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, on January 8th 1998. She graduated from the Public Gymnasium and the Music High School in Široki Brijeg. Currently she is apsolvent year student at The Music Academy in Zagreb with professor Martina Zadro.
She participated at Brixen Classics Festival 2022, where she was chosen to perform the part of Ännchen in C. M. von Weber’s Der Freischütz (concert 17.06.2022.), alongside established artists: Michael Volle, Christopher Ventris and Gabriela Scherer, conducted by maestro Daniel Geiss. In March this year she graduated from Music Academy in Zagreb singing the part of Angelo from G. F. Händel’s oratorio La resurrezione in Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall in Zagreb, conducted by maestro Gabor Hollerung. From March 2023 she is a recipient of a Young Artist Scholarship of Croatian National Theater in Zagreb. Recently, she made her debut at Croatian National Theater in Zagreb as La voce (G. Puccini’s La rondine), Čobanče (J. Gotovac: Ero the Jocker) and Berta (G. Rossini: Il Barbiere di Siviglia). She has won two prizes at the International Singing Competition of the Chamber Opera Rheinsberg Castle 2023. Also, her professional engagements until now include performance of J. S. Bach’s cantata “Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen” with Croatian Baroque Ensemble (Croatian Music Institute) in March 2021; concert „Magna Mater Austriae“ (in January 2022 as a soloist with Croatian Baroque Ensemble singing the pieces by Johan Joseph Fux; concerts in Finland in July 2022 with Croatian Baroque Ensemble performing the early music pieces by Ferrari, Melani and
Caldara; Korkyra Baroque Festival at Korčula in September 2022 with Croatian Baroque Ensemble (J. S. Bach: Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen). She was awarded the Dean’s Award for her academic success in 2020/2021 and The Rector’s Award for her academic success in 2021/2022. As a finalist of the 2017 Lions Grand Prix Competition in Rijeka, Nikolina won The Musical Youth Award. She is the 1st Prize winner in the first category of the 2018 International Singing Competition Lav Mirski in Osijek.
Nikolina participated in the Music Academy project G. Mahler: Des Knaben Wunderhorn (as a co production of the University in Zagreb and the University in Bern) directed by Mathias
Behrends and also in the newly written operetta Priležnici by Linda Uran performing the main part: Violetta Valéry at the Theater Komedija in Zagreb; both projects were awarded with the Rector’s Award of the University in Zagreb. In April last year she embodied the role of Bastienne in W. A. Mozart’s early opera Bastien and Bastienne at The Croatian National Theatre in Varaždin, directed by Ozren Prohić, and in May 2021 she performed as The Fairy in Jules Massenet’s opera Cendrillon at Music Academy in Zagreb. Her recent concerts include Academic Cycle Virtuoso: The Pictures of Romanticism and Impressionism, concert dedicated to composer Bruno Bjelinski, concert „I. pl. Zajc: Alla staggion dei Fiori”, and the project “Hommage a Kurt Weill”. Also, she sang the part of Noemie in the annual Academic opera project: J. Massent: Cendrillon in March 2020. In September 2020 she sang at 50th Varaždin Baroque Evenings and in March 2021 at Croatian Music Institute J. S. Bach’s kantate “Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen” with Croatian Baroque Ensemble. Also, in March 2021, she participated as a soloist in the performance of Bach’s Markus Passion, at Music Academy in Zagreb, conducted by maestro Hansjörg Albrecht. In November 2021 she sang the role of the pig Squealer in Croatian contemporary opera Animal Farm written by Igor Kuljerić at Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall. In January 2022 she participated at concert „Magna Mater Austriae“ as a soloist with Croatian Baroque Ensemble singing the pieces by Johan Joseph Fux.
She participated in the Masterclass Russian Seasons at Saint Petersburg 2021 and in Exzellenz Labor 2022 at Weikersheim. Also, she worked with renowned artists such as Hedwig Fassbender, Rene Massis, Fausto Nardi, Enrico Maria Cacciari, Krešimir Stražanac, Dunja Vejzović, Katia Borissova, Anton Saris, Herve Niquet, Rita Sussovsky, Cornelius Witthoeft, Theresa Plut, Brigitte Stradiot, etc.
The latest engagements include Korkyra Baroque Festival at Korčula in September 2022 with Croatian Baroque Ensemble (J. S. Bach: Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen), Varaždin Baroque Evenings 2022 (G. P. Telemann: Zürne nur, du alte Schlange) and a concert with Zagreb Soloists in January 2023 (G. F. Händel: Da tempeste).