Nora Sourouzian is a French-Canadian

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

with Armenian roots.

Early life and education

Born in Montreal, Quebec, she studied piano and voice at McGill University with Thérèse Sevadjian. During her time at McGill University she already sang Mrs Herring in '' Albert Herring'', the title roles in '' Giulio Cesare'' and '' Mignon'', the Komponist in '' Ariadne auf Naxos'', as well as Hänsel in ''

Hänsel und Gretel "Hansel and Gretel" (; german: Hänsel und Gretel ) is a German fairy tale collected by the German Brothers Grimm and published in 1812 in Grimms' Fairy Tales, ''Grimm's Fairy Tales'' (KHM 15). It is also known as Little Step Brother and Little ...

'' with the Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal. From 1998 to 1999 she was a member of the Internationaal Opera Centrum Nederland in Amsterdam, where she sang Lucrezia in '' The Rape of Lucretia''.

Artistic career

From 1999 to 2001, Sourouzian was part of the soloist ensemble of

Staatstheater Kassel The Staatstheater Kassel is a state-owned and operated theater in Kassel, Germany. History A permanent theatre house existed in Kassel during the first decade of the 17th century. It stood immediately next to the Ottoneum near the State Theatre ...

. Since 2002 Sourouzian is a freelance opera singer. Her career, which leads her all over Europe, parts of USA, Canada, Chile, Asia and Mexico, consists of numerous leading roles both of well-known and rare repertoire. One of her key roles throughout many years has been

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...

which she interpreted in many opera houses such as Welsh National Opera (2004), Klagenfurt, (2005),

Opéra de Québec Opéra de Québec or Opera of Quebec City is a Canadian opera company founded in 1983; it is related to Opéra de Montréal, founded in 1980. The company does not have its own venue but performs in the Grand Théâtre de Québec on 269 Boulevard R ...

Den Norske Opera The Norwegian National Opera and Ballet ( no, Den Norske Opera & Ballett, links=no) is a Norwegian opera company and ballet company. The first fully professional company each for opera and ballet in Norway and the only such professional organisati ...

(2006), the

Teatro Comunale Ponchielli The Teatro Comunale Ponchielli, as it has been known since 1986,Lynn, pp. 19-20 is an opera house located in Cremona, Italy. For more than 250 years it has been that city's primary venue for opera and other theatrical presentations. The origina ...

in Cremona] (2008), Opéra de Lausanne and Tokyo (2008–2009),

Oper Köln The Cologne Opera (German: Oper der Stadt Köln or Oper Köln) refers both to the main opera house in Cologne, Germany and to its resident opera company. History of the company From the mid 18th century, opera was performed in the city's court th ...

(2009), Leipzig and Bologna, Teatro Lirico di Cagliari (2010), Minnesota (2015). and Palm Beach Opera (2016); She recently appeared in Santiago de Chile with Mahler's Symphony No. 3 and sang Marguerite in '' La damnation de Faust'' at the Palacio de Bellas Artes Mexico. Sourouzian sang leading roles such as: Idamante (Mozart, '' Idomeneo''), Dorabella (Mozart, ''

Così fan tutte (''All Women Do It, or The School for Lovers''), K. 588, is an opera buffa in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was first performed on 26 January 1790 at the Burgtheater in Vienna, Austria. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte w ...

''), Romeo (Bellini, '' I Capuleti e i Montecchi''), Marguerite (Berlioz, '' La damnation de Faust''), Dulcinée (Massenet's '' Don Quichotte'', production of Laurent Pelly in Palermo), Laura (A. Ponchielli, ''

La Gioconda La Gioconda ( , ; "the joyful one" feminine_gender.html" ;"title="'feminine gender">f.'' may refer to: * ''Mona Lisa'' or ''La Gioconda'', a painting by Leonardo da Vinci * Lisa del Giocondo, the model depicted in da Vinci's painting * La Gioconda ...

'') and La Favorita (Donizetti, '' La favorite''), Eboli (Verdi, '' Don Carlo'') and Azucena] (Verdi, '' Il trovatore''). Her role debut and strong interpretation of the role at Graz Opera in 2017 was highly acclaimed in the press.,,. In January 2019 she appeared at Seattle Opera also in the role of Azucena. Alongside well-known repertoire, Sourouzian regularly sings opera roles of rare pieces. She sang Aloès in David Pountney's production of Chabrier's '' L'étoile'' under John Eliot Gardiner at Zürich Opera House in 2006, Maria Callas in Michael Daugherty's opera ''

Jackie O Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A pop ...

'' in a production of

Damiano Michieletto Damiano Michieletto (born 1975) is an Italian stage director especially known for opera. He has staged productions at leading opera houses and festivals worldwide. His awards include the 2015 Laurence Olivier Award for the production of Mascagn ...

, which is available on DVD. Further she sang the role of Zuléma in Théodore Dubois' ''Aben-Hamet'' under

Jean-Claude Malgoire Jean-Claude Malgoire (25 November 1940 – 14 April 2018) was a French oboist and later conductor. Early life Malgoire was born on 25 November 1940 in Avignon, France. His mother was born in Italy. Malgoire graduated from the Paris Conservatory ...

, Herodias in

Antoine Mariotte Antoine Mariotte (22 December 187530 November 1944) was a French composer, conductor and music administrator. Biography Mariotte was born in Avignon (Vaucluse) in 1875. After studies at the School of Saint-Michel in Saint-Étienne, he enter ...

's opera '' Salomé'', the role of Florinda in the newly written opera ''O Rapaz de Bronze'' by , as well as the role of Marfa in Dvořáks opera '' Dimitrij'' at

Bard SummerScape Bard SummerScape is an annual eight-week-long arts festival held during the months of June, July, and August at Bard College. Since its inaugural season in 2003, the festival is held in tandem with the Bard Music Festival and features performances ...

, New York, in summer 2017. Her interpretation of Thérèse (Massenet, '' Thérèse'') and Anita (Massenet, ''

La Navarraise ''La Navarraise'' (, "The Woman of Navarre") is an opera in two acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Jules Claretie and Henri Cain, based on Claretie's short story ''La cigarette'' (1890). It was first performed at Covent Garden in ...

'') at the Wexford Festival 2013 was highly praised in the international press. Sourouzian collaborates with directors such as Calixto Bieito (''Così fan tutte''), Robert Carsen (''Carmen''),

Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier Moshe Leiser, born 1956 in Antwerp and Patrice Caurier born 1954 in Paris are two Theatre director, opera directors who have worked exclusively as a couple since 1983. They stage productions at theaters in Western Europe. Life and work The two di ...

(''Carmen''),

Christine Mielitz Christine Mielitz (born 23 November 1949) is a German theatre and opera director. Life Born in Chemnitz, Mielitz was the daughter of a Chemnitz concert master and therefore came into contact with music theatre at an early age. After finishing ...

(''Così fan tutte''),

Christof Loy Christof Loy (born 5 December 1962) is a German stage director especially for opera, whose work received several awards. A freelance director, he has staged operas from Baroque to premieres of new works at major European opera houses and festivals. ...

(''Carmen''), David Pountney (''L’Étoile''), Barbe & Doucet (''Pénélope'', ''Thérèse'' and ''La Navarraise'') and

Vera Nemirova Vera Nemirova ( bg, Вера Немирова, born 1972) is a Bulgarian-German opera director who has worked at major opera houses in Europe, staging for example Wagner's ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' at the Oper Frankfurt. She directed for the Muni ...

(

Rusalka In Slavic folklore, the rusalka (plural: rusalky/rusalki; ; pl, rusałka}) is a typically feminine entity, often malicious toward mankind and frequently associated with water, with counterparts in other parts of Europe, such as the French Melus ...

Theater St. Gallen The Theater St. Gallen is a performing arts center for opera, musical, ballet, and theatre in St. Gallen, Switzerland, and considered to be the oldest professional theatre in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance. Al ...

2019). She has so far sung under the baton of conductors like Christoph Eschenbach,

Marc Minkowski Marc Minkowski (born 4 October 1962) is a French conductor of classical music, especially known for his interpretations of French Baroque works, and is the current general director of Opéra national de Bordeaux. His mother, Mary Anne (Wade), i ...

, Ed Spanjaard, Franz Welser-Möst,

Hubert Soudant Hubert Soudant (born 16 March 1946 in Maastricht, Netherlands) is a Dutch conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Music * Conductor (music), a person who leads a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra. * ''Conductor'' (album), an ...

Dietfried Bernet Dietfried Bernet (14 May 1940 – 23 May 2011) was an Austrian conductor. Life Born in Vienna, Bernet studied in his native hometown with Hans Swarowsky and Dimitri Mitropoulos, conducted his first concerts at the Vienna Musikverein at the ag ...

, Cyril Diederich,

Joseph Rescigno Joseph Rescigno (born October 8, 1945) is an American conductor best known for his work in opera in North America and Europe. He served as Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor of the Florentine Opera Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, WI for 38 ...

and Nicholas McGegan.

Competitions

* First prize at Prix d'Expression Musicale – 1995 * Winner at Fondation Charles Emiles Gadbois * First prize at Concours de la Journée de la Musique Française – Montréal 1997 * Second prize at Début-CBC – USA 1997 * First prize at NATS International – 1997 * First prize in all categories at Concours de Musique du Canada 1997 * First prize at Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyriques 1999 * Finalist at Hans Gabor Belvedere – Vienna 1999 * Finalist at the 3rd Wagnerstimmen Wettbewerb Saarbrücken in 2000RWV Festschrift
(in German)

Recordings

''Jackie O'', Michael Daugherty''Salome'', R. Strauss

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sourouzian, Nora Canadian mezzo-sopranos Operatic mezzo-sopranos Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Canadian people of Armenian descent McGill University School of Music alumni 20th-century Canadian women singers 21st-century Canadian women singers Singers from Montreal