Polina Pastirchak was born in Budapest into a Hungarian family of artists with Russian roots. She began her international career with the first prize, the audience prize and three special prizes at the renowned Concours de Genève in 2009, which was followed by a special prize at the ARD music competition in 2012 and other important awards in Hungary. Since then she has been singing in many European opera houses and concert halls.
From season 17/18 Polina sang Mimi in BOHEME at the Graz Opera and at the St. Gallen Theater, Violetta at the Budapest State Opera, various concerts at the Palace of the Arts in Budapest, as well as her debut with Mahler VIII under Adam Fischer in the Tonhalle Düsseldorf. This was followed by Woglinde in Wagner’s RING, staged by Dieter Dorn at the Grand Théâtre in Geneva, her house debut as Violetta at the Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse, Shostakovich’s 14TH SYMPHONY with the Dresden Philharmonic including a CD recording for SONY, Donna Anna in DON GIOVANNI and Beethoven’s MISSA SOLEMNIS (incl. CD with Harmonia Mundi) both on tour through Asia and Europe under René Jacobs. In addition, she could be seen again at the Wagner Festival under Ádám Fischer in Budapest as Gutrune in GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG.
Most recently Polina Pastirchak sang Mimi at the Torre del Lago Festival, her role debuts as Mélisande in PELLÉAS ET MÉLISANDE in Budapest and Gänsemagd in a new production of Humperdinck’s DIE KÖNIGSKINDER (director: Frank Hilbrich) at the Graz Opera, as well as a tour with MISSA SOLEMNIS with the Freiburg Opera Baroque orchestra again under René Jacobs at the Enescu Festival in Bucharest, where she could also be heard under Lothar Zagrosek in Schönberg’s MOSES UND ARON, as well as other concerts with Bach’s CHRISTMAS ORATORIO and Beethoven’s NINTH SYMPHONY. Future assignments include her long-awaited role debut as Agathe in Weber’s DER FREISCHÜTZ again with René Jacobs on a European tour, as well as Mendelssohn’s PAULUS in Geneva and her role debut as Dorota in Weinberger’s opera SCHWANDA, DER DUDELSACKPFEIFFER at the Graz Opera, as well as repeated appearances at the Wagner Festival in Budapest under Maestro Adam Fischer and in the long run also her first ARABELLA, Elettra in IDOMENEO and Euridice (Gluck).
In 2016 the Hungarian state awarded her the Silver Cross of Merit. In June of the same year, the State Opera in Budapest named her the youngest female chamber singer in Hungary.
Polina Pastirchak sang Partenope at the Handel Festival in Karlsruhe under Michael Hofstetter as well as Woglinde and Gutrune in Wagner’s RING cycle at the Grand Théâtre de Genève (Dieter Dorn / Ingo Metzmacher). She is a regular guest at the Hungarian State Opera, where she sings among others Mimi, Nedda, Violetta, Micaela, Donna Anna, Desdemona and Countess/NOZZE. In addition, she sang the leading female role (Colombina) at the world premiere of György Selmeczi’s SPIRITISTI, Woglinde, 3rd Norn and Gutrune at the Wagner Festival in Budapest under Adam Fischer, and Vespina in Cavalli’s VEREMONDA at the 2016 Schwetzingen Festival with great success.
Only recently Polina was able to celebrate a triumphant success with her role debut as DAPHNE under Zoltán Kocsis at the podium of the Hungarian National Philharmonic in the Palace of the Arts in Budapest. The artist’s concert stages have so far been, for example: Radiotelevisione della Svizzera Italiana, the Grand Théâtre de Genève, the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, the Sinfonia Varsovia, the Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, the Menuhin Festival in Gstaad (where she is with Sabine Meyer and the Basel Chamber Orchestra under Andreas Spering were guests), the NDR Radiophilharmonie, the Budapest Festival Orchestra, the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, and the Orchester de la Suisse Romande. In 2016 Polina Pastirchak also sang Verdi`s REQUIEM at the Tiroler Landestheater, Mahler’s SYMPHONY NO. IV in Bozen, and Beethoven’s SYMPHONY NO. IX under Adam Fischer in Graz. In 2017 she sang Mahler’s SYMPHONY NO. II and other concerts with Mahler’s IV and Beethoven’s IX for the first time in Budapest.
Polina Pastirchak especially likes to dedicate her time to recitals. For example, she has already appeared at Radio France, the Budapest Spring Festival, the Marburg Concert Association and in the Tonhalle Zurich, always with Jan Philip Schulze on the piano, with whom she has been working regularly since 2010. Her first portrait album with songs by Richard Strauss, Schostakowitsch, Bartók and Kodály was released in 2010 on Ysaye Records. In 2014 SONY released Sabine Meyer’s solo album, on which Polina Pastirchak also interprets Mozart arias.
