Barbara Hannigan

Embodying music with an unparalleled dramatic sensibility, Nova Scotian–born soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan is an artist at the forefront of creation. More than 30 years since her professional debut, Hannigan has created magical working relationships with world-class musicians, directors, and choreographers for audiences worldwide. Her artistic colleagues include John Zorn, Krzysztof Warlikowski, Simon Rattle, Sasha Waltz, Kent Nagano, Vladimir Jurowski, Andreas Kriegenburg, Andris Nelsons, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Christoph Marthaler, Antonio Pappano, Katie Mitchell, and Kirill Petrenko. The late conductor and pianist Reinbert de Leeuw has been an extraordinary influence and inspiration for her development.

The Grammy and Juno Award-winning Canadian musician has shown a profound commitment to the music of our time and has given the world premiere performances of nearly 100 new creations, with extensive collaborations with composers, including Boulez, Zorn, Dutilleux, Ligeti, di Castri, Stockhausen, Khayam, Barry, Dusapin, Dean, Benjamin, and Abrahamsen. 

A passionate musician of unique and courageous choices, Hannigan is renowned for creating innovative concert programs, combining new and older repertoire in a highly dramatic and authentic manner. She began her career as a soprano after her studies at the University of Toronto with Mary Morrison, tackling some of the repertoire’s most challenging and virtuoso roles. Hannigan then turned her hand to conducting, with her debut in 2011 at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, and now balances her engagements as a singer or conductor on a free and original path. She has held the position of Principal Guest Conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra since 2019, and in 2026, she will begin her tenure as Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. She became a member of the Order of Canada in 2016.

In recent years, she has been conducting world-class orchestras, including the Royal Concertgebouw and Cleveland orchestras, the London Symphony Orchestra, Rome’s Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, has ongoing relationships with festivals including Aix-en-Provence and Spoleto, and has had starring soprano roles on opera stages including London’s Covent Garden, the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, the Paris Opera’s Palais Garnier, and the opera houses of Berlin, Hamburg, and Munich.