The Foundation's scholarship holder, Marigona Qerkezi, the soprano who is conquering the world opera stages

Pristina, August 1, 2023 –

Marigona Qerkezi is a distinguished soprano born and raised in Zagreb. She graduated from the Academy of Arts of Pristina in flute and singing.

Marigona was a scholarship holder of the "Behgjet Pacolli" Foundation, at Staffordshire University in Great Britain, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in Business Management.  

She says that the scholarship gave her a great push, help, peace of mind, so that she didn't have to work two or three times to secure the funds to cover the cost of her studies.

"It has been greatly facilitated and supported by the foundation, for which I am grateful. It is also an important philanthropic initiative for all young people, and it makes a difference as a hand that gives you help is a hand that I must keep in mind every time", says Marigona.

At the age of 6, Qerkezi gave her first performance in Ljubljana. She has participated in many international festivals. Qerkezi has performed in Slovenia, Italy, Great Britain, Holland, Croatia, Germany, Albania, Switzerland, Turkey, Montenegro, Spain, Oman, Japan and the USA.

Qerkezi is the winner of numerous prizes in international opera competitions, including: the first prize in the Leyla Gencer opera competition and the special prize from the Accademia Teatro alla Scala, the prize of
seen at the international competition "Magda Olivero", winner in the debut category at the 66th International Competition for Young Opera Singers of Europe AsLiCo, special prize "Best under 25" at the Portofino International Opera Competition.

Her profile is included in the book "Il Soprano Rossiniano" among the outstanding Rossini interpreters and she played in the documentary "Dante in Musica" on the occasion of the promotion of Italian culture and language in the world by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy. Qerkezi made her professional operatic debut at a very young age as Königin der Nacht in Die Zauberflöte (AsLiCo Opera Domani) on tour at the Royal Opera House in Muscat in Oman and as La Contessa d'Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro at the Theater National Opera in Tirana.

She immediately began a successful career, performing as Lucia di Lammermoor at the Teatro Lirico in Cagliari and at the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari, where she then returned to perform as Rosalindein Die Fledermaus, Adina in L'Elisir d'amore, Madama Cortese in Il. viaggio a Reims for the Lombardy Opera (where he also played the solo flute role), at the Rossini Opera Festival and at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona; Rigoletto (Gilda) at Teatro Lirico in Cagliari; Don Giovanni (Donna Anna) at the New National Theater in Tokyo; Guillaume Tell (Mathilde), Il Trovatore (Leonora) and Der Messias (Handel/Mozart) for Opera Lombardia, Il Trovatore (Leonora) and Erste Dame (Die Zauberflöte) at the National Theater in Zagreb; Lucia di Lammermoor at Teatro Verdi di Pisa and Teatro Kiel.

Qerkezi has collaborated with conductors such as Beltrami, Bonato, Boncompagni, Finzi, Goldstein, Güttler, Kabaretti, Lacombe, Montanari, Brusa, Morandi, Pirolli, Pitrenas, Rolli, Sagripanti, Dinić, Spotti, Axelrod and directors Bernard Defloin, Garattini, Krief, Maestrini, Martone, Horakova, Sagi, Vizioli, Znaniecki. Among her recent engagements are Ernani (Elvira) and Verdi's Messa da Requiem at Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, Giovanna d'Arco at St. Galler Festspiele, Il Trovatore at the Verdi Festival in Parma. Her next engagements will be the debut of Anna Bolena at the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet in Vilnius, Ernani at Ópera de Oviedo, I due Foscari (Lucrezia Contarini) at Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova and Mimi (La Bohème) at Teatro Lirico . from Cagliari.