Elizabeth Mandeno is a former Dame Malvina Major Emerging Artist with NZ Opera. She studied with Dennis O’Neill and Nuccia Focile at the Wales International Academy of Voice, where she earned an MA with Distinction in Advanced Vocal Technique. Elizabeth has performed as a soloist alongside Dame Felicity Lott and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, and in 2019 she won the Lockwood New Zealand Aria, sponsored by the Dame Malvina Major Foundation.
Notable opera and concert performances include Elisa: Il Re Pastore, Amina: La Sonnambula (Days Bay Opera), Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem (Christchurch City Choir/CSO), Handel’s Messiah (Auckland Choral, City Choir Dunedin/DSO, Christchurch City Choir/CSO), St Matthew Passion, Bach Magnificat, C.P.E. Bach Magnificat, Bach B Minor Mass (Bach Musica NZ), Schumann Requiem (Scholars Baroque Aotearoa, Bach Musica NZ), Bach A Major Mass (NZ Barok, Scholars Baroque Aotearoa), Vivaldi Gloria (Scholars Baroque Aotearoa/Opus Orchestra), Cleopatra: Giulio Cesare, Josabeth: Athalia (Handel Consort and Quire NZ), Haydn’s Creation (NZ Choral Federation, Edgecumbe Choir), Pierrot Lunaire (University of Auckland).
Elizabeth is grateful to the following people and organisations for their support: Dame Malvina Major Foundation, New Zealand Opera Trust, New Zealand Aria Trust, Dennis O’Neill Foundation, Opera Factory Trust, North Harbour AIMES Foundation, The New Zealand Opera School.
“Standing in for soprano Joanna Foote, soprano Elizabeth Mandeno had less than one week to prepare for her difficult solo part. A frequent soloist with Bach Musica NZ, Miss Mandeno once again demonstrated her superior standing as one of New Zealand’s leading sopranos – this with style, stamina and her beautiful, clear soprano-voice, which in its higher ranges appears to be limitless.” – C.P.E. Bach Magnificat, Bach Musica; reviewed by Rainer Buhmann, NZ Opera News, 22 June 2025
“Elizabeth Mandeno’s Quia respexit enthralled with the soprano’s unruffled clarity and admirable projection.” – C.P.E. Bach Magnificat, Bach Musica; reviewed by William Dart, NZ Herald, 25 June 2025
“Mozart’s Exultate Jubilate was an electrifying showcase for Elizabeth Mandeno’s stunning voice, which, together with her warm and engaging personality, held the audience spellbound throughout the four movements of this very popular work.” – Exsultate Jubilate, Edgecumbe Choir; reviewed by Catherine Smallberger, Whakatāne Beacon, 13 June 2025
“Soprano Elizabeth Mandeno returned to sing the solo parts of both works. Again, she impressed with her beautiful voice, thoughtful interpretation and seemingly boundless energy.” – Schumann Requiem and Mendelssohn Psalm 42, Scholars Baroque Aotearoa; reviewed by Susanne Whale, The Beacon, 15 September 2024
“Soprano Elizabeth Mandeno also delighted the audience with her beautiful voice and lovely embellishments in her arias, which showed off the soaring top of her range to perfection.” – The Creation, Edgecumbe Choir; reviewed by Friederike Andre, 7 September 2024
“Soprano Elizabeth Mandeno likewise has a powerful voice capable of hitting and holding the top notes. The solo ‘I know that my Redeemer liveth’ was a highlight. Beautifully modulated, this performance began gently and gradually rose to the jubilant conviction of ‘For now is Christ risen’.” – Messiah, Edgecumbe Choir; reviewed by Kirstine Moffat, 10 December 2023
“The soprano introduced the New Testament with the angels appearing to the shepherds and Mandeno’s clear rendition was a pleasure to hear.” – Messiah, City Choir Dunedin/DSO; reviewed by Gillian Vine, Otago Daily Times, 30 November 2023
“Elizabeth Mandeno’s soprano was a delight. Her voice is rich and soulful and in the higher ranges there appears to be no limit.” – Bach Magnificat, Bach Musica NZ; reviewed by Rainer Buhmann, 11 December 2022
“Elizabeth Mandeno was another bright star of the evening, as she delighted with her clean and assured soprano. In the well-known “Ich will dir mein Herze schenken” Miss Mandeno demonstrated remarkable tonal beauty and agility. Her collaboration with Flute and Oboe in “Er hat uns allen wohlgetan” and “Aus Liebe will mein Heiland sterben” was one of the evening’s highlights. Quite apart from being successfully involved in NZ Opera, Miss Mandeno could clearly present herself as one of New Zealand’s finest baroque specialists.” – St Matthew Passion, Bach Musica NZ; reviewed by Rainer Buhmann, 11 April 2021
“Amina, the sleepwalker of the title, was sung by a recent winner of the New Zealand Aria contest, Elizabeth Mandeno, exhibiting considerable presence and charm.” – La Sonnambula, Days Bay Opera; Opera Magazine May 2021