Hungarian-born Livia Budai has established herself as one of the foremost mezzosopranos in the world. After receiving multiple international singing awards, she joined the Budapest State Opera, where she performed for four years following her graduation with honors from the prestigious Franz Liszt Academy of Music. In 1977, Budai began her tenure with the German Music Theater in Gelsenkirchen and made a notable debut at Covent Garden the same year, portraying Azucena alongside legendary tenor Carlo Bergonzi. The subsequent year, she took on the role of Eboli in San Francisco.
Between 1980 and 1990, Budai showcased the full spectrum of the dramatic mezzo-soprano repertoire with the Bavarian State Opera in Munich. During this period, she also appeared at the Vienna State Opera in the role of Eboli and participated in a new production of the original French version of Don Carlos at Covent Garden. Her performances spanned numerous opera houses across Europe, including roles in Madrid (Elisabeth in Maria Stuarda with Montserrat Caballé), Florence (Giulietta and Maddalena), Barcelona (Eboli and Laura), Hamburg (Azucena, Eboli, and Amneris), Monte Carlo (Carmen), Berlin (Laura opposite Plácido Domingo, Amneris, Azucena, Venus, and Carmen with Dmitri Hvorostovsky), Bologna (Brangaene, Preziosilla, and Bartók’s Judith), and Rome (Bartók’s Judith).
In 1985, Budai portrayed Judith in the Radio France production of Bartók’s “Bluebeard’s Castle” and subsequently appeared as Ada in Berio’s “La Vera Storia” at the Grand Opera de Paris, a role she reprised in Florence and during a concert at the Holland Music Festival in Amsterdam in 1986. She also debuted as Delilah in Antwerp, later repeating the role in West Palm Beach (1984), Liège (1986), and Bonn (1990).
Her more recent engagements included Amneris in Nice (1987) and the Arena di Verona (1988), as well as performances in Bonn (1989), Budapest (1990), and Berlin (1986). She took on Azucena in Budapest (1988) and Essen (1991, in a new production), Fricka in Turin (1987 and 1988), Cassandre in Marseilles (1989), Carmen in the Arena de Nîmes (1989) and Marseilles (1989), and Fenena in Orange (1989).
Budai made her debut at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels in 1979 as Eboli and has since returned to perform various roles, including Azucena, Brangaene, Mrs. Quickly (1987), Kundry (1989), Ortrud (1990), Fricka and Waltraute (1991, in a new Ring production), Herodias (1992), and Ulrica (1992). Her North American appearances include performances as Azucena in Toronto (1984), Amneris (1986), and at the Metropolitan Opera in New York (1987, alongside Pavarotti and Sutherland), as well as Azucena in New Jersey State Opera (1988), Michigan State Opera (1988), Ulrica in Edmonton (1990), and La Princesse de Bouillon in Montreal (1990).
Budai's more recent engagements featured Venus in Hamburg (1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994), Marfa in Dimitrij in Munich (1992), Klytamnestra in Antwerp (1992), Amneris in Hamburg (1993 and 1994), and Klytamnestra in Frankfurt (1994). Her performances continued with Frugola in Il Tabarro in Brussels (1995), Eboli in Antwerp (1995), Ulrica in Brussels (1995), Herodias in Brussels (1995), Zaide in Brussels and Paris (1996), Venus in Nagoya and Tokyo (1996), Klytamnestra in Dortmund (1996), and Carmen in Hungary (Summer Festival, 1996). Budai's extensive repertoire also includes Klytamnestra in Dortmund (1997), Frugola in Brussels (1998), Abuela in Brussels (1998), Venus in Palermo (1998), Azucena in Budapest (1999), and Ortrud in Düsseldorf (1999), along with appearances in Monte Carlo in Oedipus Rex (2000) and further performances in Brussels and Antwerp as Azucena and Amneris (2001).
In June 1989, Budai released her first solo album featuring arias by Verdi, Gluck, and Ponchielli under the Hungaroton label, followed by a recording of La Gioconda with Marton, Lamberti, Milnes, and Ramey, conducted by Patanè, released in November 1989. Other notable recordings include Mahler's Symphony No. 8 with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra (Denon label), Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana with the Munich Radio Orchestra (Eurodisc), Charpentier's Te Deum with the Budapest Symphony Orchestra (Hungaroton), Vivaldi's Stabat Mater with the Liszt Ferenc Chamber Orchestra (Hungaroton), Schumann's Lieder op. 69/91 and Motets op. 39 (Hungaroton), Schumann's Requiem für Mignon with the Budapest Symphony Orchestra (Hungaroton), and Dittersdorf's Ester with the Liszt Ferenc Chamber Orchestra (Hungaroton).
Her television appearances include broadcasts from Belgium (BRTV) featuring Don Carlo (1981), Il Trovatore (1984), and Tristan and Isolde (1985); from Holland (Icebreaker, 1983); from France (Marseilles FR-3) with Rusalka (1982); from Finland with Don Carlo (1985); and performances of Falstaff from Aix-en-Provence (1989) and Nabucco from Orange (FR3, 1989). Livia Budai is celebrated not only for her exceptional voice but also for the vitality she brings to her characters. She is equally at home in concert settings, having performed in major cities such as London, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Budapest, Brussels, Montreal, Toronto, and Vienna.
