Noted by Opera Canada as a "rising star to watch", Alberta-born soprano Sydney Baedke has made operatic and symphonic debuts across Canada, the United States, and Europe to consistent critical acclaim. Described as possessing an “impressively rich” and "exquisitely lyric" instrument (London Unattached, The Guardian), she is making a name for herself as “a singer to be reckoned with” across a wide breadth of repertoire (Times Colonist).

Her recent projects have included a “well-projected, vocally pure, and moving” Contessa Almaviva (Opera Magazine) for Pacific Opera Victoria’s Le Nozze di Figaro; the “unmistakably moving" Female Chorus (Opera Today) in The Rape of Lucretia coproduced by the Royal Opera & Ballet and Britten Pears Arts; and Bruckner’s Te Deum with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2025/26, Sydney reprised repertoire favourites including Donna Anna (Hamilton Philharmonic) and Messiah (Windsor Symphony Orchestra), in addition to her role and German debut as Gertrudis in Reznicek's Till Eulenspiegel (Theater für Niedersachsen) and role debut as a “luxuriously lyric” (La Presse) Liù in Turandot (Orchestre Philharmonique et Choeur des Mélomanes).

In 2026/2027, Sydney looks forward to debuting as Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with Edmonton Opera, Tzeitel in Fiddler on the Roof with Detroit Opera, reprising Contessa Almaviva for Opera Kelowna’s Le Nozze di Figaro, and performing Giulietta in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, which she adds to her repertoire after prior performances as Antonia (Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Showcase) and Olympia (Aspen Music Festival). Upcoming symphonic engagements include Rachmaninoff’s The Bells with Orchestre Philharmonique et Chœur des Mélomanes and Handel’s Messiah with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra.

The 2025/26 season also included numerous international competition appearances, including the semi-finals of the Paris Opera, Elizabeth Connell, and International Hans Gabor Belvedere Singing Competitions after competing in the 2025 iterations of the International Stanisław Moniuszko & the Queen Sonja Singing Competitions. Baedke also garnered a Bursary Award win from the prestigious International Opera Awards Foundation and was chosen as one of the 2026 Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Arts Awards recipients.

Named one of Canada’s top emerging musicians under 30 by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, 2024/2025 saw Sydney perform staples of her repertoire as the soprano soloist in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Handel’s Messiah with Ensemble Caprice and Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra respectively, pieces she has performed across Canada with organizations including Orchestre Philharmonique et Choeur des Mélomanes, Orchestre Classique de Montréal, and the Brott Music Festival among others.

Highlights of previous seasons have included Sydney’s “revelatory” debut as Musetta (Le Devoir) at Montreal’s Maison Symphonique, her 1st prize win at Edmonton Opera’s 2023/24 Rumbold Vocal Prize competition, and Ma Zegner in the Canadian premiere Mazzoli’s Proving Up. Additional Canadian engagements include the titular role of Brott Opera’s Filumena (Estacio), Beatrice in Heggie's Three Decembers with Opera on the Avalon, and Mimi with ICAV and Orchestre classique de Montréal.

As a member of The Rebanks Fellowship at Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music, she made concert appearances at Koerner Hall, the Canadian Opera Company Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre, the 21C Music Festival, and the National Ballet of Canada. Sydney has apprenticed with the Santa Fe Opera (Tatyana cover, Eugene Onegin) and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (La Fortuna & Valletto, The Coronation of Poppea; Gilda cover, Rigoletto).

On the symphonic stage, Sydney frequently performs as the soprano soloist in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Handel’s Messiah, having sung both on numerous occasions with orchestras across Canada. Additional concert engagements have included Carnegie Hall, the Rockport Chamber Music Festival, and the Aldeburgh Music Festival, the latter for which she performed a newly discovered work by Benjamin Britten.

July 2026
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