Biography

Swedish soprano Matilda Sterby’s current and forthcoming engagements include Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte for Malmö Opera, Micaëla in Carmen & Ellen Orford in Britten’s Peter Grimes for Gothenburg Opera, and Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro and Magda in La Rondine for Volksoper Wien.

Recent appearances include her definitive breakthrough in Sweden as Marenka in Smetana’s The Bartered Bride for Gothenburg Opera,  Donna Anna in Don Giovanni for Malmö Opera, Micaëla in Bizet's Carmen, and Mimi in Puccini's La Boheme for Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Amanda in Lars Johan Werle’s Tintomara for Läckö Slott Opera, La Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro for Hannover Staatsoper and Stadttheater Klagenfurt, and Fiordiligi Cosi fan tutte for Gothenburg Opera.

She has also recently sung Larsson’s Förklädd Gud at Stockholm Concert House with the Royal Swedish Philharmonic Orchestra, and Strauss’ Vier Letzte Lieder with Orkester Filialen in Stockholm.

Matilda is the First Prize winner of the 2024 Wilhelm Stenhammar International Music Competition, and the winner of the 2024 Birgit Nilsson Stipendium.

In 2019 Matilda Sterby made her critically acclaimed debut as La Contessa in Le Nozze di Figaro at Läckö Slott. Other past engagements include Donna Anna in Don Giovanni for Dala-Floda Opera Festival, Frasquita in Carmen for Östgötamusiken and Emmy Perth in Marschner’s Der Vampyr for Läckö Slott.

In December 2022 Naxos released a CD of Matilda singing modern art songs by Swedish contemporary composer Hans Gefors, accompanied by pianist Mårten Landström.

She has appeared in concert in, amongst others, Monteverdi’s Vespers with the Eric Ericsson Chamber Choir at Stockholm Concert House, Beethoven's 9th Symphony with VÄGUS and Simon Phipps at Gothenburg Concert House, Donna Anna Don Giovanni as her examination performance at Wermland Opera, and Frasquita in Östgötamusikens concert production of Carmen.

Matilda Sterby graduated from the University College of Opera in Stockholm in 2019 under the tutelage of American baritone Robert Hyman. Matilda also attended the soloist programme at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo and at the Oslo Opera Academy, as a student of prof. Barbro Marklund.

Matilda is the recipient of the 2024 Birgit Nilsson Stipendium, and has also won scholarships from the Swedish Wagner Society and the Swedish Royal Academy of Music. In 2016 Matilda won the opportunity to perform as a soloist with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra in De Unges Konsert /The Young’s Concert, conducted by Kristiina Poska in Grieg Concert Hall, Norway. Among the young soloists in the concert she was also awarded the Audience’s Prize. 

In February 2022 Matilda was the First Prize winner of the 2022 Hjördis Schymberg Award in Sweden. The Jury’s motivation reads:
“For her beautiful lyric soprano voice, her clear musicality and her exciting stage presence, Matilda Sterby wins First Prize."

Reviews

The soprano Matilda Sterby… a voice as of the noblest crystal, clear but transparent to the emotions. What power and modulation ability she displays. There were moments when time held its breath as if in deference to her singing.
- Bo Borg, NLT 2022-07-13

Finally, Matilda Sterby gives the evening it’s innermost, most deeply human glow. Her Countess Rosina expresses in two arias everything that can be sung about longing and disappointment, about life and death.
- Michael Cerha, The Standard, Wien 2021-11-16

The big surprise was Matilda Sterby as The Countess. The premiere at Läckö was her professional debut and she offered up an incredibly good interpretation of the role, with a resonant, almost limitless soprano, and strong acting with a big stage personality. It wouldn't surprise me if she speeds all the way to the top.
— Skånska Dagbladet

Sterby’s entrance in the 2nd Act with Porgi amor qualche ristoro is so emotionally and vocally perfectly measured that anything else than a glittering future for this young soprano is unthinkable.
— Capriccio, July 2019

Artist Manager:
Stephen Svanholm
+46 738 777 631
stephen@svanholmartists.com