Barbara Hannigan
The Canadian coloratura soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan, born in 1971 in Waverley, Nova Scotia, really isn’t like any other artist. Her home country, where they sing all kinds of music without any preconception, has probably helped her follow a musical path unlike any other, whose originality couldn’t fail to inspire the numerous composers who have written and still continue to write works for her.
She’s a special artist. Vocally first of all: her voice is unique, as much by its technical virtuosity, always expressive, as by the various colours she dons it, which allows her to sing everything with a formidable versatility. Second of all, synthetically: by letting her fiery theatrical temperament explode, Barbara Hannigan also knows how to bring her body and fascinating stage presence into play. And last of all, by combining genres as well, because this gifted all-around artist proves to be equally at ease conducting an orchestra, by triumphing as much in London, Munich, Brussels (at the Théâtre de La Monnaie), Milan (at the Scala), New York (at the Lincoln Center), etc., as in France at the Opéra de Paris, at the Châtelet, in Aix-en-Provence, where we see her stand at the side of great figures like Pierre Boulez, Henri Dutilleux or the greatest directors—an extremely rare occurrence for a singer at such an international level (we saw Placido Domingo, José Cura, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Peter Schreier try their hand at this, but only for a few limited attempts). Since 2011, Barbara Hannigan has had a privileged relationship with the “Ludwig” orchestra, composed of the best instrumentalists coming from various Dutch and international formations.
If Barbara Hannigan is first and foremost a great performer of the repertoire from the 20th and 21st centuries (Ligeti, Stockhausen, Andriessen, Knussen…) and a regular of the places that bring it to life (Manifesto Festival, Ircam…), she tackles the repertoire from the previous centuries—from Handel to Britten, to Gluck, Mozart, Janáček or even Stravinsky—, but always having her own take on it to make it an almost new creation. Because everything she sings is in close affinity with her soul and sensibility. To accompany her, some beautiful phalanges and conductors fight over her (the London Sinfonietta, Bamberger Symphoniker, Berliner Philharmoniker, Cleveland Orchestra, Orchestre National de France…, conducted by Peter Eötvös, Jonathan Nott, Sir Simon Rattle, Reinbert de Leeuw, Peter Rundel, Michael Gielen…).
© Qobuz / GG (2017)
Read moreThe Canadian coloratura soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan, born in 1971 in Waverley, Nova Scotia, really isn’t like any other artist. Her home country, where they sing all kinds of music without any preconception, has probably helped her follow a musical path unlike any other, whose originality couldn’t fail to inspire the numerous composers who have written and still continue to write works for her.
She’s a special artist. Vocally first of all: her voice is unique, as much by its technical virtuosity, always expressive, as by the various colours she dons it, which allows her to sing everything with a formidable versatility. Second of all, synthetically: by letting her fiery theatrical temperament explode, Barbara Hannigan also knows how to bring her body and fascinating stage presence into play. And last of all, by combining genres as well, because this gifted all-around artist proves to be equally at ease conducting an orchestra, by triumphing as much in London, Munich, Brussels (at the Théâtre de La Monnaie), Milan (at the Scala), New York (at the Lincoln Center), etc., as in France at the Opéra de Paris, at the Châtelet, in Aix-en-Provence, where we see her stand at the side of great figures like Pierre Boulez, Henri Dutilleux or the greatest directors—an extremely rare occurrence for a singer at such an international level (we saw Placido Domingo, José Cura, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Peter Schreier try their hand at this, but only for a few limited attempts). Since 2011, Barbara Hannigan has had a privileged relationship with the “Ludwig” orchestra, composed of the best instrumentalists coming from various Dutch and international formations.
If Barbara Hannigan is first and foremost a great performer of the repertoire from the 20th and 21st centuries (Ligeti, Stockhausen, Andriessen, Knussen…) and a regular of the places that bring it to life (Manifesto Festival, Ircam…), she tackles the repertoire from the previous centuries—from Handel to Britten, to Gluck, Mozart, Janáček or even Stravinsky—, but always having her own take on it to make it an almost new creation. Because everything she sings is in close affinity with her soul and sensibility. To accompany her, some beautiful phalanges and conductors fight over her (the London Sinfonietta, Bamberger Symphoniker, Berliner Philharmoniker, Cleveland Orchestra, Orchestre National de France…, conducted by Peter Eötvös, Jonathan Nott, Sir Simon Rattle, Reinbert de Leeuw, Peter Rundel, Michael Gielen…).
© Qobuz / GG (2017)
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Sehnsucht (Live in Rotterdam)
Barbara Hannigan, Raoul Steffani, Camerata RCO, Rolf Verbeek
Classical - Released by Alpha Classics on 21/10/2022
"Sehnsucht", a central and nearly untranslatable word of the Viennese fin-de-siècle period, referring to aspects of longing, melancholy, and nostalgia ...
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Hans Abrahamsen : Let me tell you
Barbara Hannigan, Andris Nelsons & Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Secular Vocal Music - Released by Winter & Winter on 21/12/2015
Prise de Son d'ExceptionDiapason d'or de l'annéeDiapason d'orGramophone Editor's Choice5 Sterne Fono Forum KlassikAll the information about this half-hour-long song cycle is relegated to websites, and websites with user-unfriendly URLs, at that. So here's the basi ...
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
La Passione. Grisey, Nono, Haydn
Barbara Hannigan, Ludwig Orchestra
Classical - Released by Alpha Classics on 20/03/2020
The starting point for Barbara Hannigan’s third recording for Alpha is a work by Gérard Grisey (1946-98) that is particularly close to her heart. Gris ...
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Crazy Girl Crazy
Barbara Hannigan, Ludwig Orchestra
Classical - Released by Alpha Classics on 1/09/2017
Whether singing, conducting, dancing or acting, the Canadian soprano Barbara Hannigan is a source of fascination. Alpha Classics is proud to enter her ...
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Erik Satie : Socrate
Barbara Hannigan & Reinbert de Leeuw
Mélodies (French) - Released by Winter & Winter on 8/04/2016
Gramophone Editor's ChoiceSocrate is one of the strangest in the oeuvre of a composer who wrote a lot of strange works. Erik Satie reportedly ate only white foods to get himsel ...
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Vienna : Fin de Siècle (Webern, Berg, Schönberg, Mahler...)
Barbara Hannigan, Reinbert de Leeuw
Lieder (German) - Released by Alpha Classics on 24/08/2018
Soprano Barbara Hannigan has become something of a cult favorite with her deep dives into specific and unusual repertories. Her self-presentation in c ...
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Henri Dutilleux : Correspondances
Barbara Hannigan, Anssi Karttunen, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Esa-Pekka Salonen
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1/01/2013
4F de TéléramaChoc de ClassicaChoc Classica de l'annéeDiapason d'or16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Written on Skin
Opera - Released by Nimbus Records on 1/02/2013
The album at hand is a live recording of the premiere of the opera Written on Skin, commissioned from composer George Benjamin by the Festival of Aix- ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Britten : Les Illuminations, Serenade... (Barbara Hanningan, James Gilchrist, Jasper de Waal, Amsterdam Sinfonietta, Candida Thompson)
Classical - Released by Channel Classics Records on 1/01/2013
5 de Diapason24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Visman: Sables, Oxygène, Septet, New Heaven!
Schönberg Kwartet, Limburgs Symfonie Orkest, Barbara Hannigan
Classical - Released by Etcetera on 1/09/2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Luca Francesconi: Etymo
Barbara Hannigan, Pablo Márquez, Benny Sluchin, IRCAM, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Susanna Mälkki
Classical - Released by Kairos on 1/01/2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo