Meet Indyana Schneider, the newest artist to join the Bergos AIR Program. In this exclusive interview, the Australian mezzo-soprano reflects on her artistic journey from academic foundations in Oxford and Hannover to the stages of the Opernhaus Zürich. She speaks about emotional honesty in music, the power of storytelling through opera and song, and her vision for creating performances that resonate far beyond the concert hall.
How would you describe yourself in three words?
Creative, honest, curious
What first drew you to opera / what is your earliest memory of opera and what were the defining moments that shaped you into the singer you are today?
When I was about 5 years old, a teacher suggested to my parents that I take singing lessons to come out of my shell. I loved them. Then a couple of years later, the school singing teacher took a week off and asked her friend to substitute. That friend happened to be an opera teacher and ‘heard’ something classical about the way I instinctively liked to sing.
My parents were quite surprised by this – no one on either side of my family even played an instrument – but we went with it. Not long after, I found myself in the children’s chorus of La Boheme at the Sydney Opera House. The scene with the children is a market scene just after the love-at-first-sight duet between the two leads, and I remember being completely bewitched by that duet. I think I was ten years old and something about the music felt enormous, colourful like I’d never experienced before, and intoxicating.
In terms of defining moments – I remember I’d gotten hold of a video of a production of Carmen when I was about 12 and took it on a holiday with my family. We were somewhere sunny, by the beach, and I swear to you I sat inside and watched that video 7 times over the first 4 days of the holiday until I was dragged into the sea by a family friend.
What would you say to someone who thinks opera isn’t for them?
I’d probably start by saying that that’s okay – opera isn’t a moral obligation. But if they’re even the tiniest bit curious, it might help to think of opera not as a genre but a medium.
We don’t say ‘film isn’t for me’ because films range from horror to rom-com, indie projects to blockbusters. Opera is similar. Over centuries, composers have used it to tell wildly different kinds of stories: comedy, intimate psychological dramas, sweeping romances, political thrillers, fairy tales. The emotional and narrative possibilities are massive.
Your dream role, collaboration, location to perform in?
I’ve always said I would love to sing Carmen at home in Sydney one day – there would be something wonderfully full circle about that. Another dream role is Octavian in Vienna or London. I’d also love to come back and sing in Zürich as I feel like this is the house that actually taught me how I wanted to turn up (musically, technically, professionally) in this industry.
As our Bergos AIR Artist 2026, what do you hope to create or explore this year whether creatively or personally?
First and foremost, I feel so grateful to have the resources to really invest in the continued development of my singing – access to lessons, coaching, and to travel to auditions internationally. At the beginning of a freelance career, that support is truly invaluable.
I would also love to start working on a recording project that I’ve been thinking about for a long time. During my studies, I became a little obsessed with what music sounded like when the whole tonal system was on the brink of collapsing – when harmony was stretched to its limits and how it mirrored the fractured state of the world at that time.
I’d love to record chamber music from that period (Zemlinsky, early Schönberg), and explore how it resonates now. There’s something urgent and very human in that music that feels especially relevant at the moment.
🎧 Want to dive even deeper into Indyana’s story? Listen to our latest Passion Pod episode, where she talks about her musical journey, inspirations, and what’s next with the Bergos AIR Program. LISTEN NOW
