Irantzu Bartolomé
She was born in Biscay, in the Basque Country, where she obtained her Intermediate Degree in Piano and her Higher-level Degree in Singing from the San Sebastian Higher Conservatory of Music. She began her studies at the Conservatory of Vienna in 1996. She received master classes from Alfredo Kraus, Victoria de los Ángeles, Josefina Arregui, Julia Hamari and Eva Randovà.
She has performed in many concerts throughout Spain, the Canary Islands, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Italy. She has collaborated with the A.B.A.O. (Bilbao Friends of the Opera association) in several operas, such as Verdi’s Don Carlo, and Richard Strauss’s Elektra and Der Rosenkavalier.
She has sung many roles, such as Micaela in the opera Carmen at the 8th Ibiza Opera Festival, Norina in Don Pasquale, Gilda in Rigoletto and Violetta in La Traviata. These she performed to great public and critical acclaim with the National Orchestra of Odessa, Ukraine on a tour of several Spanish theatres, including the Auditorium in Cuenca, the Arriaga Theatre in Bilbao and the Theatre of Béjar. She has also performed in many zarzuelas and concerts of chamber music.
Irantzu currently lives in Ibiza, combining her work as a soloist with that of a teacher of singing in the Ciudad de Ibiza Choir and in the municipal schools of the Municipal Board of Music of Ibiza and of Can Blau in San Agustí. In September she will make her debut as Nedda in the opera Pagliacci by R. Leoncavallo at the Opera of Fuerteventura. She will also bring this year to a close by performing at the 2019 Nights of the Museum of Ethnography in Santa Eulària des Riu.
How I found Ibiza…
Ibiza is a global benchmark. I had heard people talking about Ibiza, its people and its magic, and I always wanted to visit, but in the end, time and destiny decided I should fall in love with a man from Ibiza, and I discovered the island with him.
Some of its myriad facets…
Ibiza is an island of contrasts, and there are many Ibizas: the Ibiza by the sea, inland Ibiza, Ibiza in the wintertime, the cosmopolitan and frenetic Ibiza of the summertime, luxurious Ibiza, the Ibiza of the simple things, and I like them all. They all exist here in a very small and beautiful space that allows me to enjoy an unparalleled offer of shops, gastronomy, fun, beaches, woods, walks, all in one and the same unique place in the Mediterranean.
A luxury on the island…
The weather, the sea, the woods and the nature of the people, it all adds up to a quality of life that you’ll be hard pressed to find elsewhere. It is an island that allows you to start your day working and to end it by watching the sun set over a beach, or sipping a glass of wine in the old town, or enjoying a quiet dinner in any of the restaurants in the island’s interior, or if you’d rather, enjoying its night life. It has it all! It even has an international airport that keeps me connected to the rest of the world at any time.
My favourite moment…
Without a doubt, the arrival of spring is my favourite time of the year, the awakening of the island, nature in its most beautiful state, the smell of the woods, the soft breeze wafting in from the sea, its light, and at the same time its energy, that winter energy that intensifies when spring arrives to turn the island into a magical place that makes thousands of people visit us each year.
One of my favourite places: strolling by the sea, at dusk, in Talamanca, Ses Salines, or a walk with my partner and our dogs inland, along the lanes of Benimusa or Es Pla de Corona in Santa Agnès.
A memory when I’m far away…
The feeling of open spaces, its nature, its smells and the tomatoes, the oranges and the watermelons that drive me crazy.
The magic of Ibiza…
Its positive energy and its spirit of freedom; the people seem so happy.
What I tell my friends…
I invite you to come to the island and discover it for yourselves; there is an Ibiza for everyone, for each moment and for each time of life. We love having guests, in winter and in summer — and often it’s they who show Ibiza to us through their experiences and emotions. Ibiza always surprises us, even though we live here.