Claire de Sévigné

Soprano

Named one of CBC’s Top 30 Canadian Classical Musicians under 30, coloratura soprano Claire de Sévigné was recently nominated for a 2016 Classical Album of the Year JUNO award for her Naxos album of Vivaldi Cantatas featuring Maestro Kevin Mallon and the Aradia Ensemble. As the Queen of the Night with the Opera Theater of St. Louis, de Sévigné “dispatched the high-flown coloratura with laser-like precision and tonal beauty”. Her most recent success has been with the Savonlinna Opera Festival, Opernhaus Zürich and Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in the role of Blonde in Die Entführung aus dem Serail, in which she was hailed for her “sparkling top notes and vocal brilliance, lightness and finesse”.

In the 2018-19 season, de Sévigné makes her debut with Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam as Vierge in Honegger’s Jeanne d’Arc au Bucher, reprises the role of Blonde in Die Entführung aus dem Serail for Opernhaus Zurich, and sings Messiah with Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa and Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Further ahead she will return to the Savonlinna Festival Finland and to Opernhaus Zurich and perform a season at the Grand Théâtre de Genève.

In 2017-18 de Sévigné made a successful role debut as Fiakermilli in Strauss Arabella with the Canadian Opera Company, where she also sang the role of Blonde in Die Entführung aus dem Serail. Other engagements included a concert tour in China with the Salzburg YSP in collaboration with Hantang International Music Festival, Handel Messiah with the Edmonton Symphony, Previn’s Honey and Rue with the Niagara Symphony, and Mozart C Minor Mass with the Niagara Chorus.

From 2015 to 2017, de Sévigné spent her time with Opernhaus Zürich performing the roles of Hermione in a new production of Manfred Trojahn Orest, Feu, Princesse and Rossignol in Ravel L’enfant et les sortilèges, as well as the principal role of Angelica in Haydn Orlando Paladino. Additionally, she performed the role of Die Modestin in Der Rosenkavalier with the Salzburg Festival’s Young Artist Project. As a graduate of the Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble Studio, her roles on the main stage included Despina in Così fan tutti, First Niece in Peter Grimes, Ida in Die Fledermaus and Servilia in La clemenza di Tito. As a cover artist, she was responsible for the role of Constance in Les Dialogues des Carmélites. During her Master’s degree in opera at the University of Toronto de Sévigné performed Flaminia in Il mondo della luna, Cunegonde in Candide and the title roles in Lucia di Lammermoor and Hansel and Gretel. She created the role of Oksana in The Enslavement and Liberation of Oksana G. for Tapestry New Opera and at the Centre for Opera Studies in Italy, she sang Cleopatra in Giulio Cesare with Thirteen Strings Orchestra. During her Bachelor’s of vocal performance studies at Opera McGill, she added Lisette in La Rondine and Lucia in The Rape of Lucretia to her repertoire.

A Semi-finalist in Placido Domingo’s Operalia Competition in Guadalajara, she has been awarded prizes, top placement and grants from the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal Standard Life Competition, the Montreal International Competition, Vancouver Opera Guild, the Christina and Louis Quilico Competition, the Marcello Giordani Foundation International Vocal Competition and the Annual COC Ensemble Studio Competition. She is also proud to be supported by the Jacqueline Desmarais Foundation, SSHRC Bombardier Master’s Research Grant, and the Canadian Opera Volunteer Committee.

2018-2019 season, 554 words. Not to be altered without permission