Okka von der Damerau has established herself as one of the leading mezzo-sopranos of her generation. Whether in roles by Richard Wagner, Giuseppe Verdi or in the songs of Gustav Mahler or Arnold Schönberg: with her powerful, nuanced mezzo-soprano and her clear, natural diction, the Hamburg-born singer senses the authentic tone in every character, which connects her with her audience.

In addition to various opera engagements, most notably new productions of Rheingold and Walküre under the direction of Christian Thielemann at La Scala in Milan, in which she takes on the role of Fricka, as well as Ježibaba (Rusalka) at the Liceu in Barcelona and at the Munich Opera Festival, she will also be part of some interesting concert projects again in the 2024/25 season. For example, she will sing the role of Waldtaube in Arnold Schönberg’s Gurrelieder at La Scala under the baton of Riccardo Chailly, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 under the baton of Aziz Shokhakimov in Turin and Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 with the Concertgebouw Orchestra as part of the Mahler Festival in Amsterdam (musical director: Klaus Mäkelä).

Okka von der Damerau was a troupe member of the Bavarian State Opera for many years, where she was celebrated as Waltraute (Götterdämmerung), Erda (Rheingold, Siegfried) and Charlotte (Die Soldaten / Alois Zimmermann) under Kirill Petrenko, but also as Azucena (Il Trovatore).

From Munich, her international career took off. After her debut in 2015, she last appeared on stage at La Scala in Milan in the summer of 2023 in a new production of Rusalka directed by Emma Dante. In addition, she can regularly been seen at most important international opera stages, such as the Opéra national de Paris, the Vienna State Opera, the Teatro di San Carlo Naples, the Teatro Real in Madrid, the Semperoper Dresden and at the Bayreuth Festival.

Okka von der Damerau has made a number of highly acclaimed role debuts in the recent past. Her repertoire has been expanded by two interesting roles: Brünnhilde (Walküre), which she sang for the first time at the Stuttgart State Opera under the musical direction of Cornelius Meister, and Ariadne (title role), which she debuted with overwhelming success at the Bavarian State Opera. She also made a very successful debut at the Bavarian State Opera in the role of Venus (Tannhäuser).

Another important role in her vast repertoire is Brangäne (Tristan und Isolde), which she debuted in 2017 – acclaimed by audiences and press alike – under Simone Young at the Bavarian State Opera. In a new production, she was on stage again with this role in Munich in 2021, this time under the musical direction of Kirill Petrenko. Gustavo Dudamel conducted her performances as Brangäne at the Paris Opera and semi-staged performances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra.

Besides her various opera engagements, also concert are an important component of her artistic work. Okka von der Damerau works with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Berlin Philharmonic, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Berlin Staatskapelle and the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. In 2018, the mezzo-soprano made her Cleveland Orchestra debut as Brangäne under Franz Welser-Möst.

Other important concert engagements have taken her to the Concertgebouw Amsterdam with Lili Boulanger’s Psalm CXXX under Edward Gardner and to the Salzburg Festival with Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder under the baton of Daniel Barenboim. In 2024, she was invited by the Tokyo Spring Festival to sing Buckner’s Mass No. 3 there. Her extensive concert repertoire also includes Mahler’s Rückertlieder and Das Lied von der Erde as well as Verdi’s Messa da requiem.

Okka von der Damerau is also passionately dedicated to lieder singing. In her current recital programme, which she last performed – enthusiastically received by the audience – as part of the Tokyo Spring Festival 2024, she interprets songs by Johannes Brahms, Gustav Mahler, Alban Berg and Richard Wagner’s Wesendoncklieder. Her 2017 recording of Frank Martin’s song cycle Die Weise von Liebe und Tod with Cornet Christoph Rilke with the Philharmonia Zürich under Fabio Luisi was highly acclaimed.

At the International Singing Competition for Wagnerian Voices in Venice, Okka von der Damerau was awarded the Special Jury Prize in 2006. In 2013 she received the Festival Prize of the Munich Opera Festival.