Nathalie Paulin

Soprano Nathalie Paulin has established herself in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Asia as an interpretive artist of the very first rank. Winner of a Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Opera Performance, she has collaborated with internationally renowned conductors including Harry Christophers, Jane Glover, Michael Christie, Robert Spano, Kent Nagano, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Antony Walker, Bernard Labadie, Sir Roger Norrington, Andrew Parrott, David Agler, Jacques Lacombe, Graeme Jenkins, and Andrew Litton on both the concert platform and in opera. As well, critics have been lavish in their praise. Reviewing from Chicago, John van Rhein noted that “Paulin in particular is a real find; her rich, agile voice possesses great depth and allure, her manner radiates sensuous charm,” and for the New York Times, Steve Smith noted that "Paulin [sings] with rich tone and compelling emotion," while Renaud Machart from Paris’ Le Monde writes: “Nathalie Pauiln was impeccable in diction, musicality and style.” Ms. Paulin debuted for L’Opéra de Montréal as Mélisande in Pélléas et Mélisande and for Chicago Opera Theater as Galatea in Acis and Galatea. She was re-engaged by Chicago Opera Theater for the title role in Semele and for Mary in La Resurrezione, both by Handel. She has also been heard as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro for Cincinnati Opera and the Dallas Opera featured her in Carmen and Cunning Little Vixen.

The 2020/2021 season saw Nathalie join Chants Libres for L’Orangeraie, a new opera featuring music by Zad Moultaka and libretto by Larry Tremblay. The world premiere took place in October, with additional performances in both Montréal and Québec City, which garnered much critical acclaim. Nathalie returned to Montréal in March 2022 for a program of Bach cantatas with Les Violons du Roy at Salle Bourgie. Paulin rounded out the season with the Kitchener Waterloo Symphony, performing as the soloist in Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. Nathalie joined the Victoria Symphony and Brott Music Festival this winter for Handel’s Messiah (2022), and looks forward to returning to New Brunswick for Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 in Spring 2023.

The New Brunswick native’s recent seasons included Dear Life and Vivier’s Lonely Child for the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa and the extensive European Tour which followed; the title role in Beethoven’s Leonore (1805) for Opera Lafayette (D.C); Vivier’s Lonely Child and Mozart’s Requiem for the Vancouver Symphony; Handel’s Messiah for the Vancouver Chamber Choir; and she curated a programme for Montréal’s Arion at Bourgie Hall. Further engagements have included Blow’s Venus and Adonis for Clavecin en Concert, Lonely Child for Symphony Nova Scotia, Goercki’s Symphony No. 3 for the Winnipeg Symphony, and Cherubini’s Stabat Mater for Ottawa’s Thirteen Strings. Of special interest were performances of scenes from late eighteenth century French operas by Sacchini, Cherubini and Martini, conducted by Ryan Brown for Opera Lafayette in D.C. and New York. Other credits in the USA and Canada include Messiah for Portland Baroque, the Naples Philharmonic, the New Jersey Symphony and Orchestre symhonique de Trois-Rivières; Fauré’s Requiem for the Vancouver Symphony; Carmina Burana for Festival de Lanaudière; Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 for the Kingston and Ottawa symphonies; Bach Cantatas for Stratford Summer Music; the title role in Theodora for Vancouver Early Music; the Countess in Le Nozze de Figaro for Opera Lyra Ottawa; and Beethoven’s Mass In C with Tafelmusik.

Ms. Paulin is highly regarded for the breadth of her musical curiosity and she has been engaged for works ranging from Jacques Hetu’s Les Clartés de la nuit with the National Arts Centre Orchestra and Handel’s Orlando with Washington Concert Opera to Micaela in Carmen with Opera Tampa to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 for the Seattle Symphony. She has been featured by Bard Summerscape in New York, the Handel and Hayden Society, Cincinnati Opera, Atlanta Symphony, Boston Baroque, Music of the Baroque, Brooklyn Philharmonic, Arizona Opera, Phoenix Symphony, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Mercury Baroque and the Colorado Symphony, as well as all the major orchestras and opera companies of Canada. On the festival circuit, she has been heard with the Wexford Festival in Ireland, the Fredericton Chamber Music Festival, the Elora Festival, Ottawa Chamber Music Festival, and the Scotia Festival in Halifax.

Frequently heard on both the French and English CBC networks, she is a past winner of the Montréal Symphony Competition and holds a Master's Degree from the Université de Montréal. She won the Dvorak prize and has also received awards and prizes from the George London Foundation in New York, the Young Mozart Singers' Competition in Toronto, and the Canadian Music Competition. Nathalie Paulin has been teaching voice as well as French Mélodie for undergraduate students, and Advanced French Lyric Diction for graduate students, at the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto since 2008. Nathalie has also been on faculty at VISI (Vancouver International Song Institute), Orford Music (Quebec), the Barachois Musical Summer Academy (New Brunswick) and at the Stratford Summer Music Vocal Academy.

DISCOGRAPHY:

Antonio Sacchini: “Oedipe a Colone” with Opera Lafayette, Ryan Brown, Director (Naxos)

Felicien David: “Lalla Roukh” with Opera Lafayette, Ryan Brown, Director (Naxos)

Antonio Caldara: “La Conversione di Clodoveo, Re di Francia” with Le Nouvel Opera, Alexander Weimann, Director (ATMA Classique)

Fauré and Duruflé Requiems with the Elora Festival Singers

January 2024

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