Where Voice Meets Movement: Gulshan Akin’s New Year’s Day Ballet Nights Debut

As Ballet Nights prepares to welcome audiences into the New Year, we are delighted to shine a light on one of the extraordinary artists joining the New Year’s Day Concert: critically acclaimed soprano Gulshan Akin Ibadova. Her journey from Baku to London, from grand opera houses to Ballet Nights’ intimate, interdisciplinary stage, she embodies the very spirit of artistic evolution and fearless expression.

A graduate of the Baku Music Academy, named after Azerbaijan’s legendary composer Uzeir Gadjibekov, Gulshan’s musical path began remarkably early. Still in her teens, she was already performing in concerts organised by the Philharmonic Society for international embassies. An early sign of a career that would soon cross borders with ease. Her operatic debut in the title role of Verdi’s Aida proved pivotal, opening doors to both national and international opportunities. Ever drawn to innovation as much as tradition, Gulshan went on to make history as the first female singer to perform the lead role in Azerbaijan’s first rock opera, Sinbad the Traveller. Premiering in 2018, the production marked a bold new chapter, and she continues to collaborate with its creator, Ridvan Sadirkhanov.

Since relocating to London in 2021, Gulshan has become a familiar and much-in-demand presence on the city’s classical music scene. A true international artist, she speaks five languages and serves as the International Azerbaijan Ambassador for Freedom for Musicians, reflecting her commitment not only to performance but to artistic advocacy.

When asked what draws her to Puccini’s Tosca, Gulshan speaks with striking clarity and emotional depth. For her, Vissi d’arte is not simply an aria it is a confession.

“Vissi d’Arte represents the pure essence of artistic devotion and human vulnerability. Puccini’s writing allows the voice to carry both strength and delicacy, creating a powerful emotional truth.”

It is precisely this balance, power and fragility, devotion and doubt that makes Gulshan such a compelling interpreter of Puccini. In Tosca, she reminds us, music, drama, and the human spirit are inseparable.

Since arriving in the UK, Gulshan has embraced a rich range of repertoire, performing arias and duets from Madama Butterfly, Norma, La

Traviata, Don Giovanni, Pagliacci, Iolanta, The Tsar’s Bride, and more. Each role has contributed to her artistic growth and fuelled new creative ambitions, with major projects already in development for 2026–2027.

Gulshan’s introduction to Ballet Nights came through trusted musical friendships most notably via Ballet Nights’ pianist and accompanist Viktor Erik Emanuel. It was here that she met Jamiel, Ballet Nights’ founder and Artistic Director.

“From the very first meeting, Jamiel made a strong impression on me… His artistic ideas and vision immediately caught my attention.”

That sense of shared vision and openness to collaboration is at the heart of Ballet Nights and it is why this debut feels so natural.

What excites Gulshan most about her first Ballet Nights performance is the opportunity to present Vissi d’arte within the Evanescence concept. Where voice, piano, and ballet merge into a single emotional narrative.

“Performing alongside a pianist and a ballerina adds a new and poetic dimension to Tosca’s inner world.”

Making this debut on New Year’s Day gives the performance an added layer of meaning: a moment of renewal, reflection, and artistic truth, qualities that resonate deeply with Ballet Nights’ ethos.

As we step into a new year, Gulshan Akin’s Ballet Nights debut promises to be just that.

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