Mezzo-soprano Aigul Akhmetshina has announced her second album, Mujer Fatal, to be released on Decca Classics on 21 August 2026. Recorded with conductor Antonio Pappano at the piano, the album brings together works by Bizet, Ravel, Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Britten, Weill, Bernstein and Gershwin, alongside a newly commissioned title track written for Akhmetshina by composer Elena Roussanova, with lyrics by Sheila del Bosque Fuentes.

The release coincides with her role debut as Dalila in Saint-Saëns’ Samson et Dalila at the Royal Opera House, opening 13 May 2026.

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The album takes its central idea from the figure of the femme fatale, reimagined on Akhmetshina’s own terms: not a fixed archetype, but a portrait of a woman in transformation, complex and contradictory. The concept grew from her decade-long relationship with Carmen, a role she has performed to international acclaim, most recently in new productions at the Metropolitan Opera and the Royal Opera House. The New York Times has described her as “the world’s reigning Carmen.” She was named Best Female Singer at the International Opera Awards in 2025.

The recording reflects a close musical relationship with Pappano, built over several years of performance together. The album artwork was created by London-based artist Teniqua Crawford, whose work was recently shown at the Venice Biennale.

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Preorder below:

https://aigulakhmetshina.lnk.to/MujerFatal

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