The mezzo-soprano Christiane Iven studied singing with Judith Beckmann in Hamburg and completed her studies with Lieder interpretation courses with Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau in Berlin. She was a prizewinner in the German Music Competition and in several international Lieder competitions. After engagements at the Bremen Theatre and at the National Theatre in Mannheim she joined the Hanover Staatsoper. Her most important rÃŽles have included those of Octavian, the composer in Ariadne auf Naxos, Donna Elvira, and Charlotte in MassenetÂs Werther. Her Countess in Le nozze di Figaro in Hanover marked her operatic début in soprano rÃŽles. She has appeared as a guest artist at opera houses in Hamburg, Leipzig, Bonn and Basel, and is also known at home and abroad in the concert hall, in collaboration with conductors and orchestras of the highest distinction in a wideranging repertoire. She has given many Lieder recitals and her broadcasts have included songs by Hugo Wolf and Richard Strauss and SchoenbergÂs Pierrot lunaire. She teaches at the Hanover Hochschule fÃŒr Musik und Theater.