Grammy-winning soprano Barbara Hannigan brings her vocal chops to Vancouver, November 30

The artist, who’s also a conductor, will be accompanied by esteemed pianist Bertrand Chamayou in a Vancouver Recital Society performance

By Gail Johnson

Barbara Hannigan.

Vancouver Recital Society presents Barbara Hannigan and Bertrand Chamayou on November 30 at 7:30 pm at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts

BORN IN NOVA Scotia and based in France, Grammy-winning soprano Barbara Hannigan has given world-premiere performances of nearly 100 compositions. The recording artist and conductor has tackled some of the most difficult roles in the repertoire. The New Yorker once wrote of her: “The intrepid Canadian soprano has emerged over the last half decade as one of the most vital and original musicians of her generation.”

Local audiences will have the chance to experience Hannigan’s musical mastery when she appears courtesy the Vancouver Recital Society in a concert on November 30 featuring accompaniment by acclaimed piano player Bertrand Chamayou.

A member of the Order of Canada and an Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in France, Hannigan will perform French composer Olivier Messiaen’s “Chants de Terre et de Ciel”, a song cycle in six movements, and American composer John Zorn’s “Jumalattaret”, a song cycle in praise of nine Finnish goddesses. Rounding out the program are two piano solos: “Poème-nocturne, Op. 61” and “Vers la flamme, Op. 72”, both by Russian composer Alexander Scriabin.

Hannigan made her conducting debut at age 40 at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris and has become known for creating dynamic programs that combine new and older repertoire. She is the Reinbert de Leeuw Professor of Music at London’s Royal Academy of Music and has been visiting professor at the Juilliard School in New York.

Chamayou has performed such venues as the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, New York’s Lincoln Center, and London’s Wigmore Hall.

A pre-concert talk takes place at 6:45 pm.  

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