Paola Alcocer, the mezzo-soprano recognized for her vocal flexibility and exceptional stage presence, was born in Cochabamba, Bolivia. After completing her engineering studies, she moved to Europe to study at the Musik-Akademie Basel under the guidance of baritone Marcel Boone and further specialized in Opera at the Operastudio Biel/Bienne with Swedish soprano Malin Hartelius. She is currently pursuing her second master’s degree in Music Pedagogy at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt.
She has performed a wide variety of operatic roles, including Angelina in La Cenerentola at the Triomphe de l'Art Festival in Brussels (2024), Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia with Opera Munot (2024), and Maddalena in Rigoletto (2025), where she will sing alongside Josh Osborne and Lynette Tapia. She took part in the recording of Venus y Adonis by José de Nebra as Celfa, with the Ensemble Los Elementos in Basel. Other roles include Dido in Dido and Aeneas, Giovanna in Rigoletto at the Stadttheater Gießen, Matilde in Caterina Cornaro, and Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly.
In 2023, she was the sole soloist in the Bolivian chamber opera Mati, en las ojeras de la noche, composed by Bolivian composer Cergio Prudencio and presented at the Música para Respirar Festival in Sucre, Bolivia. This work, inspired by the life and writings of poet Matilde Casazola, pays homage to Latin American contemporary poetry and music, reinforcing Alcocer’s commitment to performing innovative and culturally rooted repertoire. It is the third Bolivian opera in which she has performed as both soloist and main character.
Alongside her operatic career, she has performed as a soloist in numerous symphonic and oratorio productions, including Duruflé’s Requiem in Basel, Berlioz’s Les nuits d'été with the Basel Symphony Orchestra, Ginastera’s Cantata para la América Mágica at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, Mozart’s Requiem at Victoria Hall in Geneva, and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony.
A multiple award-winning singer, she has received prizes at Corsica Lirica, Opera Munot, and Romana Vacaro, in addition to being a finalist in competitions such as the Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Traetta Competition, Concorso Van Westerhout, Concours d’Excellence des Maîtres de Chant, and other prestigious international contests. She has also performed at renowned festivals such as the 57th Festiwal im. Jana Kiepury in Krynica-Zdrój, Poland, the Música para Respirar Festival in Sucre, and the Festival Misiones de Chiquitos in Santa Cruz, Bolivia.
Additionally, she recently released a CD featuring Spanish songs by Montsalvatge and de Falla alongside pianist Wolfgang Wels, with whom she is planning a series of release concerts.