Lydia Caruana made her debut as Musetta in Puccini’s La Bohéme at the Manoel Theatre, Valletta in 1995. Her warm-timbered and versatile voice together with her outstanding stage presence garnered both popular and critical acclaim. She has since appeared in opera productions in Arezzo and Valdarno, Italy and in Malta singing the roles of Norma in Don Pasquale, Angelica in Suor Angelica, Therese in Jeannot et Cohn, Graziella in I Martin, Rosalinde in Die Fliedermaus and Elvira in Don Giovanni. In 2003, the international opera magazine Operweht described her as ‘an impressive interpretative singer on the brink of an international career’.
Caruana’s concert appearance includes performances all over Europe and North America. She has performed in Scotland for the Edinburgh International Arts Festival, in Geneva for the United Nations, in Toronto and in Washington, DC for Embassy Series, in Vienna at Palais Ferstel, and in Ireland as part of the Cork European City of Culture 2005 events. In January 2005, she toured Germany with the Wiener Johann Strauss Philharmonie Orchestra of Belarus under the baton of Vyacheslav Vouch, gracing halls such as Hamburg’s Musikhalle and Essen’s Philharmonic Saal. In May 2005 she returned to Germany to perform in the Das Neue Europa Festival where she sang at the Festsaal Theatre in Igolstadt together with the Georgisches Kammer Orchestra directed by Markus Pschner.
In Malta, Caruana has performed on several occasions with the National Orchestra under the batons of Michael Laus and Joseph Vella, including the memorable SPAK Puccini Gala Night. On the occasion of Malta’s accession into the European Union, she performed in concert with the Austrian Wiener Kiang Ensemble. For Malta International Airport she has given various concerts at the Manoel Theatre accompanied by the Austrian Imperial Ensemble and the soloists of the Vienna Chamber Orchestra. Besides the concert platform, she is an active recitalist and is often invited to sing on occasions of international conferences such as the Commonwealth Games Federation General Assembly, the European Banking and Finance Conference, the European Five Plus Five Ministerial Conference, and the European Court of Auditors Conference.
Caruana has always been admired for her ‘special’ stage presence and personality which flank her vocal qualities. In a concert for the Accademia di Scienza e Cultura, she was described by the world-famous tenor Giuseppe di Stefano as ‘un gioiello Maltese’. She has a predilection for Verdi, Puccini, Mozart, and Donizetti but also sings Handel and Bizet. She also possesses a wide recital repertoire ranging from baroque to classical and from romantic to contemporary. She has also lately developed a strong feeling for Mediterranean music, particularly Camilleri. Caruana owes her vocal and technical mastery to the renowned Maltese soprano Antoinette Miggiani.
Lydia Caruana is married to Robert Caruana and they have two children, Jonathan and Deborah.