Claudia Stefke-Leuser

Claudia Stefke-Leuser studied singing at the State University for Music and Performing Arts in Stuttgart (HMDK) by Sylvia Geszty, Luisa Bosabalian, Carl Davis, in the Lied class of Konrad Richter and in the opera school with Ernst Poettgen and Kathrin Prick.

She completed her studies in master classes of Ileana Cotrubas, James King, Julia Hamari, Anna Reynolds, Dunja Vejzovic and Margreet Honig and during this time she won the 1st prize in the competition VDMK-Baden Württemberg in Oper/Operette. She also has been a finalist in the competition “Robert Stolz-Competition“ in Hamburg.

1991/92 she made her debut as „Ännchen“ (Der Freischütz) at the Stadttheater Pforzheim where she was engaged as a soloist until 1998. Among her most important opera parts were a.o. Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), Titania (A Midsummer Night‘s Dream), Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel) and Gilda (Rigoletto).

Opera engagements as well as radio- and gala concerts brought her to Budapest, Baden Baden, Hamburg, Köln, Krefeld, Gelsenkirchen, Bregenz and Stuttgart, where she performed with Justus Franz a.o.

Inspired by the renowned Dutch singing teacher Margreet Honig, she successfully completed her 5-year training as a breathing teacher/breath therapist at the “Ilse-Middendorf-Institute for the Perceptible Breath“ in 2020.

Since 2019, Claudia Stefke-Leuser has been supporting the singers Thomas Hampson and Melanie Diener at the “International Opera Workshop Waiblingen” as a breathing coach, as well as Margreet Honig at her master classes at the HMDK Stuttgart, in Amsterdam and at the “Margreet Honig Summer Academy” at Schloss Weinberg in Austria. Through targeted breath work, she helps singers to develop their vocal freedom and expressiveness.

She also teaches in her studio for breathing and singing in her home town near Ludwigsburg. With her many years of experience as a singer, singing teacher and breathing teacher, she helps people to develop their vocal and physical potential and to achieve a more conscious perception of body, mind and soul and to bring them back into harmony.

Since 2003, she has a teaching position for singing at the HMDK Stuttgart.