was born in Saransk, in the Russian Republic of Mordovia, where she graduated from the Saransk College of Music in 1987. From there she transferred to the Kazan State University in the Republic of Tatarstan, where she studied musicology under Professor L.Brazhnik.

Upon completion of these studies, Elena concentrated more fully on singing and enrolled in the St. Petersburg Conservatory - studying with Professor Svetlana Gorenkova; she graduated from the Conservatory in 2001. During this period she likewise studied voice with Galina Vishnevskaya, Leone Vetusky, Dragomir Neonov, and Dorothea Gali. Upon graduation, Elena entered and received awards at several competitions, including First Prize in the International Competition "Hopes, Talents, Masters" (Bulgaria); First Prize in the All-Russian Singers Competition in Tver, Russia (2001), and Third Prize in the International Competition of Chamber Singers in Kazan (2003).

Since then, Elena has performed in numerous concerts of chamber music as well as operatic performances in Russia, Bulgaria, Switzerland, Spain, and Belgium. Among the operatic roles in her repertory include the Countess in Mozart's Marriage of Figaro, Leonora in Verdi's La forza del destino, Tatiana in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, and Tosca in Puccini's Tosca. As seen in the works presented here at the Classical Archives, moreover, Elena also embraces the challenging repertory of more modern works - including Berg's Seven Early Songs and recent works by Belgian composer Dirk Brosse and German composer Dieter Schnebel.

At present Elena Yaparova teaches in St.Petersburg Conservatory.