Barbara Hannigan | |
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 Barbara Hannigan, 2024 | |
| Born | 8 May 1971 (age 53) Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada |
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| Years active | 1988–present |
| Website | barbarahannigan |
Barbara Hannigan CM (born 8 May 1971) [1] is a Canadian soprano and conductor, known for her performances of contemporary classical music. [2]
Hannigan's initial musical education came from music teachers in her hometown of Waverley, Nova Scotia, in Halifax. [2]
After growing up in Waverley, Hannigan moved to Toronto at the age of 17. [3] She studied music at the University of Toronto, where her teachers included Mary Morrison. [4] She graduated from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Music degree in 1993 and a Master of Music degree in 1998. [5] She continued her studies at the Banff Centre for the Arts, the Steans Institute for Young Artists at the Ravinia Festival, and the Centre d'arts Orford.[ citation needed ] She also studied for one year at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague.[ citation needed ]
Hannigan is known for her performances of contemporary music. Her advocacy of contemporary music began in her youth, and she sang her first world premiere at the age of 17.[ citation needed ]As of 2011 [update] , she had premiered approximately 75 contemporary compositions. [6] These include Written on Skin by George Benjamin (2017), [7] La plus forte by Gerald Barry (2007) [8] let me tell you by Hans Abrahamsen, [9] Split the Lark (2022), Starcatcher (2022), and several other works by John Zorn. [10] She gave the world premiere of Golfam Khayam’s Je ne suis pas une fable à conter for voice and orchestra in June 2023. [11]
Hannigan is particularly noted for her performances of György Ligeti's Mysteries of the Macabre (a concert version of a scene from his opera Le Grand Macabre ); in 2011 she began to conduct the work in addition to singing the vocal part. [6] Her work in contemporary opera has included singing in the premieres of Louis Andriessen's Writing to Vermeer , [12] Gerald Barry's The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant [13] and The Importance of Being Earnest , [14] Jan van de Putte's Wet Snow, and Kris Defoort's House of the Sleeping Beauties. [15] She has worked with choreographer Sasha Waltz on productions of Toshio Hosokawa's Matsukaze and Pascal Dusapin's Passion. [16] Hannigan received critical acclaim for her performance in Alban Berg's Lulu , which included dancing en pointe. [17] In 2014, Hannigan sang the role of Marie in Bernd Alois Zimmermann's opera Die Soldaten at the Bavarian State Opera. [18] For her performance as Marie, she won the 2015 Der Faust (award) in Germany. [19]
Hannigan regularly performs in concert as both soprano and conductor. [20] She has worked with the Berlin Philharmonic, [21] Münchner Philharmoniker, London Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony, [22] Orchestre philharmonique de Radio France, [23] Göteborgs Symfoniker, Prague Philharmonic, Mahler Chamber Orchestra, [24] Avanti! Chamber Orchestra, [25] Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Britten Sinfonia, Gulbenkian Orchestra, [26] and The Cleveland Orchestra. She won the Ovatie 2014 award for her performance as soprano/conductor with her conducting debut at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam with the Ludwig Orchestra, [27] The Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Copenhagen Philharmonic, Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, and Orchestre de chambre de Lausanne.
In 2019, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra (GSO) named Hannigan its Principal Guest Conductor. [28] In December 2023, the GSO announced that her contract has been extended until the 2027–2028 season. [29] Hannigan first-guest conducted the Iceland Symphony Orchestra in 2022. In May 2024, the Iceland Symphony Orchestra named her its next chief conductor and artistic director, for a three-year term beginning in 2026. [30] [31] She is also the Première Artiste Invitée of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, [32] Associate Artist of the London Symphony Orchestra, and Principal Guest Conductor of the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra (starting in the 2024/25 season). [33]
Hannigan was previously married to Dutch theatre director Gijs de Lange . [78] [79] Since 2017, she has lived in Paris, France. [80] From 2015 to 2024, she was in a long-term relationship with French actor Mathieu Amalric.
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