Isabelle Cals

French soprano Isabelle Cals has an unusual background and career. Born into a musical family, great-granddaughter of the pianist and composer Jean Wiener, she briefly studied piano and viola as a child. She holds a Master’s degree in Chinese and an advanced degree in international relations. She started her professional life in a consulting and auditing firm while taking voice lessons in order to fulfill her actual lifelong dream of becoming an opera singer, which came true when she was admitted to the Paris Opera Centre de Formation Lyrique. She soon made a successful debut in a high mezzo repertoire : among other roles Giulietta (Hoffmann’s Tales), Béatrice (Béatrice et Benedict), Ascanio (Benvenuto Cellini), Ascagne (Les Troyens), Mélisande (Pelléas et Mélisande), Hélène (La Belle Hé