Svetla Vassileva appears on many of the world's leading operatic stages in a wide range of roles encompassing the repertoire of Puccini, Mozart, Donizetti, Leoncavallo, Verdi, among others, with conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Daniele Gatti, Vladimir Jurowski, Yuri Temirkanov, Gianandrea Noseda and Riccardo Muti.
A native of Bulgaria, she got international recognition for her portrayal of Nedda in I Pagliacci, at the Ravenna Festival and Covent Garden opposite Plácido Domingo. She also has filmed this role opposite Roberto Alagna on Deutsche Grammophon.
In Turin she appeared in the title role of Rusalka and recently as Liza in the new production of The Queen of Spades, both conducted by Gianandrea Noseda, with whom she has also recorded the title role of Rachmaninoff's Francesca da Rimini with the Bbc Philharmonic on the Chandos label.
Her recent engagements include Eugene Onegin in Cagliari, a new production of Otello at San Francisco Opera, Madama Butterfly at the Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago, Turandot at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and Manon Lescaut in Tokyo.