Lunchtime Music

Elissa Street soprano
Elizabeth Haughan piano

Weill
'Barbarasong' from Die Dreigroschenoper
'Surabaya Johnny' from Happy End
Complainte de la Seine
'One Life to Live' from Lady in the Dark
'Somehow I Never Could Believe' from Street Scene
'Speak Low' from One Touch of Venus

Roberto Rúmenov piano

Brahms
Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Händel

Elissa ‘Eli’ Street (pictured) is a soprano currently undertaking postgraduate studies at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire under the tutelage of Louise Crane and generously supported by several grants and a scholarship. They were a first-class undergraduate and postgraduate scholar of the University of Birmingham and previously also studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and Purcell School for Young Musicians.

Eli has performed at many esteemed locations within the UK, including Wigmore Hall, Cadogan Hall, and Birmingham Symphony Hall. They are the recipient of ‘Best Female Voice’ at the 2023 International G&S Festival, two prizes for the quality of their vocal performance at the University of Birmingham (2023), and highly commended in the Stuart Cameron-Smith American Song Prize (2024).

Most recently, they were a Chorus Mentor for Birmingham Opera Company’s New Year (Tippett), performed as Aline in The Sorcerer (G&S) at the Old Rep and Henley-in-Arden Arts4All Festival, and continue to tour with Opera Anywhere as Saphir in Patience (G&S). In 2025, they look forward to performing as Lady Billows in Albert Herring (Britten) with RBC.

Eli has a keen interest in Weill's vocal works which manifests not only in their performances but also in extensive research. In partial fulfilment of their first master's from the University of Birmingham, they examined the performance practices of Weill from 1928-1941 in lecture recital, commentary and recital format. They aspire to share this research and perpetuate the performance of Weill’s diverse compositional catalogue in future engagements.

Roberto Rúmenov was born in 2000 and is a highly sought-after Bulgarian pianist whose artistry continues to garner widespread acclaim. Rúmenov has achieved recognition in numerous national and international piano competitions. His two most recent significant successes were winning 2nd Prize and the Audience Prize at the prestigious Premio Jaén International Piano Competition (April 2024) and winning 2nd Prize at International Ferrol Competition (November 2024). He has also secured 1st Prizes at some of Spain's top competitions for young artists, including the Intercentros Melómano and Juventudes Musicales de Albacete.

Roberto has made a tour across Spain, performing in 15 cities. In February 2024, he made his debut with the RTVE Symphonic Orchestra, performing Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No.3, conducted by Isabel Rubio.

Roberto began studying piano at the age of six, and by ten, he was under the tutelage of Professor Antonina Boneva. He graduated from the Royal Conservatory of Music of Madrid (RCSMM) in 2022, where he was mentored by Graham Jackson and Mariana Gurkova, earning the prestigious "End-of-Degree Award" for his exceptional accomplishments.

Currently, he is pursuing an Advanced Diploma at RBC on a full scholarship, under the guidance of Pascal Nemirovski.