Lumina Samuel Mariño

• George Frideric Handel (1685 - 1759): Rinaldo, HWV 7:
• 1 Handel: Rinaldo, HWV 7: Lascia ch'io pianga 04:21
• Franz Schubert (1797 - 1828): Ave Maria, D. 839:
• 2 Schubert: Ave Maria, D. 839 (Arr. Hazell for Voice & Orchestra) 04:10
• Marguerite Angele Monnot (1903 - 1961): Hymne à l'amour:
• 3 Monnot: Hymne à l'amour 04:08
• Antonín Dvořák (1841 - 1904): Rusalka, Op. 114, B. 203, Act I:
• 4 Dvořák: Rusalka, Op. 114, B. 203, Act I: Song to the Moon 05:51
• Franz Liszt (1811 - 1886): Oh! quand je dors, S. 282:
• 5 Liszt: Oh! quand je dors, S. 282 (2nd Version) 04:21
• Giulio Caccini (1551 - 1618):Amarilli, mia bella:
• 6 Caccini: Amarilli, mia bella 02:49
• Charles Gounod (1818 - 1893): Ave Maria, G 89a (After J.S. Bach: Prelude in C Major, BWV 846):
• 7 Gounod: Ave Maria, G 89a (After J.S. Bach: Prelude in C Major, BWV 846) [Arr. Hazell for Voice & Orchestra) 03:05
• Reynaldo Hahn (1874 - 1947): À Chloris:
• 8 Hahn: À Chloris 02:57
• George Frideric Handel: Serse, HWV 40:
• 9 Handel: Serse, HWV 40: Ombra mai fu "Largo" 02:55
• Joseph Canteloube (1879 - 1957): Chants d'Auvergne, Vol. 1:
• 10 Canteloube: Chants d'Auvergne, Vol. 1: Bäilèro 05:22
• Richard Strauss (1864 - 1949): 4 Lieder, Op. 27:
• 11 Strauss: 4 Lieder, Op. 27: No. 4, Morgen! 03:35
• Traditional: The Last Rose of Summer:
• 12 Traditional: The Last Rose of Summer 04:01
• Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873 - 1943): 14 Romances, Op. 34: No. 14, Vocalise:
• 13 Rachmaninoff: 14 Romances, Op. 34: No. 14, Vocalise (Arr. Braden for Voice & String Orchestra) 05:07
• Total Runtime 52:42

Info for Lumina

Decca Classics announces Lumina, the new album from Venezuelan male soprano Samuel Mariño, to be released on 25 July 2025.

One of only a handful of male sopranos in the world today, Mariño is known for his natural high voice and gender-defying performances. As a teenager, he was bullied for his high speaking voice and briefly considered medical intervention before being encouraged to pursue singing instead. That same voice has since taken him around the world, with a sparkling opera career underway and his second album on a major label.

The album features works by Handel, Caccini, Dvořák, Liszt, Strauss, Rachmaninov, and Piaf, as well as Mariño’s own arrangements of “The Last Rose of Summer” and “Baïlèro” from Joseph Canteloube’s Chants d’Auvergne. Many of the arias were originally written for female voices and are heard here for the first time performed by a male soprano.

The album reflects a new chapter in Mariño’s journey as a singer, one that moves toward a more lyrical and intimate sound. “I have been growing as a singer. When I was younger it was more fun to sing the virtuosic repertoire, but today I’m 31 and I want to lead my instrument into something more lyrical, more ethereal,” says Samuel.

Recorded with conductor Ben Palmer,the Covent Garden Sinfonia and pianist Jonathan Ware, the album explores both sweeping orchestral textures and quiet piano-led moments

“I have learned so much about my voice during this recording,” Mariño reflects about the process. “When I was singing this repertoire, I was feeling more like a lyrical soprano, and this is how I want to continue with my voice.”

Nature runs throughout the album, both in theme and in the way Mariño shapes the music: Water, through “Rusalka”; earth, in “Ombra mai fu”; fire and passion in the love arias like “Amarilli”; and air, represented by folk songs such as “The Last Rose of Summer”. “I am a singer because of nature. I just don’t belong to the city. Nature is where I find myself and where I can feel grounded,” says Samuel.

Mariño’s versions of Gounod’s Ave Maria and Rachmaninov’s Vocalise are included as part of what he describes as a peace offering. “There is a different colour and a different vibration in my version of these works. I don’t think it’s about my sex, my gender, or my body. When people listen to these famous arias, it will be the first time that they listen in this way, and I like that.”

The selection of arias was also carefully curated to reflect his commitment to sharing joy and emotion with the audience: “Over the years, I’ve built a relationship with my listeners that feels almost like a marriage—there’s loyalty, affection, and trust. That’s why I wanted to include beloved classics like the two Ave Marias—pieces that bring comfort and serenity, especially in such chaotic times.”

Another highlight is Dvořák’s “Song to the Moon” from Rusalka. “If you told me five years ago that I’d be recording Rusalka I wouldn’t have believed you,” says Mariño. “But I want to open the doors for the next generation of male sopranos and say ‘listen, I did it, and so can you.’”

Romantic repertoire also plays an important part in the album, with Liszt’s “Oh, quand je dors” and Strauss’s “Morgen” recorded with piano. “When I first started singing Baroque repertoire as a young singer, to be honest I sometimes felt like I had to restrain my voice. When I’m singing romantic music, my voice is free.”

The album closes with Edith Piaf’s “Hymne à l’amour”, a track that first caught Mariño’s ear when he heard Céline Dion perform it at the Paris Olympics. “I first heard Celine Dion sing it at the Paris Olympics. I was so inspired by it that I said, ‘I want to sing that!’ I try to use my speaking voice as much as I can when I am singing this song, because I like the effect of the air of my voice.”

About the album, Samuel says: “This album is, in many ways, a love letter to my audience. It’s a gesture of gratitude for their support—for accepting me, respecting me, and walking with me through both the highs and lows. I’m truly thankful.”

Born in Caracas in 1993, Mariño trained in piano, ballet and voice before studying at the Conservatoire de Paris. He was nominated Best Revelation Artist by OpernWelt after his debut at the Halle Handel Festival and is mentored by soprano Barbara Bonney.

Samuel Mariño, soprano
Jonathan Ware, piano
Covent Garden Sinfonia
Ben Palmer, conductor

Samuel Mariño
Die einzigartige, glänzende, vibrierende, perlend-lebhafte Stimme des venezolanischen Soprans Samuel Mariño in Kombination mit seinen profunden musikalischen Kenntnissen ermöglichen es ihm, sich mit dem anspruchsvollsten klassischen Vokalrepertoire auseinanderzusetzen.

Samuel, Jahrgang 1993, hat seinen musikalischen Werdegang zunächst mit Klavier- und Gesangsstudium in Caracas begonnen, ergänzt durch Ballettunterricht an der Nationalen Tanzschule von Venezuela. Seine ersten Opernerfahrungen machte er mit der Camerata Barroca in Caracas sowie unter der Leitung von u.a. Gustavo Dudamel, Helmut Rilling und Theodore Kuchar. Dort entfaltete sich seine Leidenschaft für das Barockrepertoire, was ihn dazu brachte sein Studium am Pariser Conservatoire fortzusetzen. Er wird gegenwärtig von seiner Mentorin, der berühmten Sopranistin Barbara Bonney, eng betreut und ist Stipendiat des Rotary Clubs Salzburg.

Trotz seines jungen Alters hat sich Samuel Mariño schon mit einigen der imposantesten Rollen der Barock- und klassischen Opern sowie Oratorien auseinandergesetzt, mit Werken von Monteverdi, Händel, Porpora, Vivaldi, Hasse, Mozart und Salieri.

In der Saison 2018/19 sang er Aufführungen der h-Moll Messe von J.S. Bach in Budapest; Händels La Resurrezione (Angelo) in Giessen; Glucks Antigono (Demetrio) in Bayreuth; Cimarosas Gli Orazi e i Curazi (Curazio) in Rheinsberg; Agnesis Il Re Pastore in Kattowitz. Dazu kommen Galakonzerte in Halle in der Rolle des Cherubino, aber auch der Maria aus West Side Story sowie Fiorilla aus Il Turco in Italia. Seine Vielseitigkeit und seine breite Stimmpalette haben dem Sopranisten auch Zugang zu Rollen des Belcanto-Repertoires gegeben, wie z.B. der des Oscar (Verdi: Un Ballo in Maschera) , des Romeo (Bellini : I Capuleti ed I Montecchi) sowie des Arsace (Rossini : Aureliano in Palmira).

Während der Saison 2017/18 erhielt Samuel Mariño den Preis der Interpretation bei dem Internationalen Gesangswettbewerb der Oper von Marseille sowie den Publikumspreis des Wettbewerbs Neue Stimmen. Kurz darauf, 2018, gab er sein Bühnendebüt anlässlich des Händelfestivals in Halle, wo er mit großem Erfolg die Rolle des Alessandro in Berenice sang und vom Magazin Opernwelt zweimal als Nachwuchssänger des Jahres nominiert wurde.

Aufgrund seiner Leidenschaft für die Neuentdeckung von wenig bekannter Musik und für die innovative Wiederbelebung der damaligen Aufführungspraxis gründete Samuel 2019 das Ensemble TESEO mit dem Ziel, in Vergessenheit geratene Techniken und Werke des Barocks auf heutige Opern-und Konzertbühnen zu bringen.





Samuel Mariño
The Venezuelan male soprano Samuel Mariño’s unique, brilliant, agile, and sparkling voice, paired with his musical expertise, enable him to undertake the most demanding forms of the classical vocal repertoire.

Born in 1993, Samuel began his studies in piano and voice at the National Conservatory in Caracas, also studying ballet at the National School of Dance in Venezuela. His first operatic experience was with the Camerata Barroca in Caracas, where he had the opportunity to work with conductors such as Gustavo Dudamel, Helmuth Rilling, and Theodore Kuchar. It was there that his passion and affinity for the baroque repertoire was ignited, inspiring him to further his studies at the Conservatoire de Paris. He is currently closely mentored by the renowned soprano Barbara Bonney and the recipient of a scholarship by the Rotary Club of Salzburg.

At his young age, Samuel Mariño has already portrayed some of the most monumental roles in baroque and classical opera and oratorio, including works by Monteverdi, Handel, Porpora, Vivaldi, Hasse, Mozart, and Salieri.

His 2018/19 season included performances of Bach’s B-minor Mass in Budapest, Handel’s La Resurrezione (Angelo) in Gießen, Gluck’s Angigono (Demetrio) in Bayreuth, Cimarosa’s Gli Orazi e id Curiazi (Curazio) in Rhiensburg, Angesi’s Il Re Pastore in Kattowitz, in addition to gala concerts in Halle, where he portrayed Cherubino, Maria from West Side Story, and Fiorilla from Il Turco in Italia. His versatility and ample vocal range have enabled the male soprano to explore such roles in the Bel Canto repertoire as Oscar (Verdi’s Un Ballo in Maschera), Romeo (Bellini’s I Capuleti ed I Montecchi), and Arsace (Rossini’s Aureliano in Palmira).

In the 2017/18 season, he won the interpretation award in the International Singing Competition with Opéra de Marseille as well as the audience prize in the Neue Stimmen Competition. Shortly thereafter in 2018, he made his stage debut at the Handel Festival in Halle, performing the role of Alessandro in “Berenice” to great success, being nominated by the magazine OpernWelt as the “Best Revelation Artist.”

Following his passion for rediscovering obscure music and innovating period performance practice, Samuel founded Ensemble Teseo in 2019, where he aims to bring forgotten baroque techniques and works to the mainstream operatic and concert stages.

This album contains no booklet.