Biography

Anja Van Engeland graduaded with highest distinction at the Belgian Lemmensinstituut (Leuven), where she was coached by Dina Grossberger.
Then she followed a postgraduate for singing and opera at the Antwerp Conservatoire and eventually was accepted as a member at the International Opera Academy. Anja Van Engeland followed masterclasses with Helmut Deutsch,  Robert Alderson, Mary Brennan, Suzanne Eken and Gemma Visser.
After having left the Flanders Opera Studio she was immediately offered to sing roles as : Sophie Scholl (Die Weisse Rose), Leïla (Les Pêcheurs de Perles), Elvira (I Puritani), First lady and Queen of the night (Zauberflöte), Mimi (Bohème), Elvire (La Muette de Portici), Aennchen (Freischütz) and Ophelia (Hamlet)
 
At Opéra de Wallonie (december 2010) she made succesfully her debut as Micaela (Carmen) at the side of José Cura and she appeared in octobre 2011 at “de Nederlandse Opera Amsterdam” as Magd 4 in Elektra. For the company Opera-Zuid (Maastricht/ The Netherlands) she sang (season 2009/2010) Alicia Ford (Falstaff) and Marguerite (Faust). Amongst her next new roles: Konstanze in Entführung aus dem Serail.
 
She started her career to  sing parts such as Clorinde (La Jolie parfumeuse), Giacinta (La Finta Semplice), Juliette (Romeo & Juliette), Amor (Orfeo ed Euridice) and Mme Silberklang (Der Schauspieldirektor).
At Flanders Opera Anja Van Engeland was engaged as Nicolette (L’amour des trois oranges), Laura (Louisa Miller), Berta (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), Queen of the night (Zauberflöte), the so called “Second Violin”  (in the contemporary opera Prova d’orchestra by Giorgio Battistelli) and in June 2006 she made her debut as Freia (Das Rheingold) In 2007 she sang Gerhilde (Walküre) and eventually she returned as the Female Chorus in Brittens The Rape of Lucretia (Dec 2008).

In the mean time she worked together with conductors such as Ivan Törzs, Francois Xavier Roth, Eric Lederhandler, Peter Robinson, Friedrich Pleyer, Patrick Fournillier, Per Otto Johanson, Ivan Anguelov, Balazs Kocsar, Elgar Howarth, Eivind Aadland, Ed Spanjaard, Eric Delson, Pierre Cao, Luca Pfaff, Theodor Guschlbauer, Hervé Niquet, Massimo Donadello and Marc Albrecht.
 
She was stage directed by Stephen Lawless, Guy Joosten, Emilio Sagi, Ivo Van Hove, Nicola Glück, Andrea Schwalbach, Frank Van Laecke and Carlos Wagner.

In concert Anja Van Engeland was offered to sing soprano parts in Der Tod Jesu, the Stabat Mater by Pergolesi, the Cantata 137 by J.S. Bach, In exitu Israel, Laetatus sum, Vivaldi’s Magnificat  and Antonio Caldara’s Te Deum.

With the Symphonic Orchestra of Flanders, led by David Angus, she created the Nursery Songs by the Belgian composer Piet Swerts. She frequently sang at Brussel’s Palais des Beaux-Arts a.o. in Mozart’s c minor Mass, Bruckner’s Mass 1, Haydn’s Creation, the Sea-Symphony (R.V. Williams), Requiem Verdi and Carmina Burana. After (November 2012) she appeared with the Belgian National Orchestra (led by Kwame Ryan) in Beethoven 9. She appeared in Symfonieorkest van Vlaanderen (led by Michel Tilkin) in a Rossini program and with Orkest der Lage Landen (led by Walter Proost) in Verdi Requiem. (feb.2013)
 
With the Philharmonic Orchestra of Luxemburg she recorded in 2009 Der Geiger von Echternach (by Lou KOSTER).

In 2017, 2018 and 2019 she performed the role of Margerita in the contemporary opera Fausto in de Munt (Brussels) with Frascati Symphonic.

Since 2015 she forms the duo TastiVoce with pianist Toon Spaepen.

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