Maureen Batt

“young, lovely, and captivating soprano” ~ Opera Canada (Zerlina in Mozart’s Don Giovanni)

“enthusiastically at home on stage…endlessly energetic and animated interpretation” ~ Chronicle Herald, Halifax (Serpina in Pergolesi’s The Maid Mistress)

“Batt brought a warm and very pleasing voice to her performance.” ~ Opera Canada (Helen in Monica Pearce’s Aunt Helen)

Maureen Batt (she/her) is celebrated for her “rich, warm sound and masterful acting” (Opera Canada). Maureen focuses on celebrating Western classical contemporary repertoire by collaborating with composers to commission, première, and re-perform their works.

Her discography includes 2-time ECMA-winning Lighthouse (with Grej), a journey of grief told through a love story, fusing classical and electronic genres; JUNO-nominated Breathing in the Shadows featuring works by Saman Shahi, with Tara Scott, piano; Aunt Helen, a one-act opera by Monica Pearce about Dr. Helen Creighton, with Simon Docking, piano; Mirror, Mirror, a one-act opera by Anna Pidgorna about the Grimm fairy tale Snow White, with Erin Bardua, soprano; and Lady of the Lake with song cycles by Franz Schubert and Fiona Ryan based on Sir Walter Scott’s texts, with Simon Docking, piano; Durme, Durme: Four Ladino Folk Songs, a song cycle by Elisha Denburg, with Tara Scott, piano. Her latest EP Etiquette (with Essential Opera) is a one-act opera about Dorothy Parker’s 1927 review of Emily Post’s book Etiquette.

Maureen has created many Canadian opera roles, including Lucille (Memories Beyond the Grave) by Michael Donovan; Helen (Aunt Helen), Dorothy Parker (Etiquette), Bride (Cake), and Top Priority Air Customer Service representative and security guard (December) by Monica Pearce; Anna (Regina) and Keri Ferrell (Hipster Grifter) by Elisha Denburg; Cindy (Heather: Cindy + Mindy =BFFS 4EVER) and Hannah (Hannah & Paige and the Zombie Pirates)by Christopher Thornborrow; Lorelie Henderson (Stockholm Syndrome) by Fiona Ryan; and Sister Mary Francis (Time of Trouble) by Elizabeth Raum.

She has been engaged by the Open Waters Festival, Vocalypse Productions, Orchestra Toronto, Classics by the Bay, Windsor Symphony Orchestra, VoiceBox, Toronto Operetta Theatre, Maritime Concert Opera, Opera Nova Scotia, New Hamburg Live!, Open Ears Festival of Music and Sound, Whale Song Theatre, The Toy Piano Composers, performed as part of Neptune Theatre’s bonus features with her trio Diva Station, and has performed recitals across Canada, the United States, and Colombia.

Selected opera credits from standard Western classical repertoire include Musetta, La Bohème (Puccini), Valencienne, The Merry Widow (Léhar), Susanna, Le nozze di Figaro (Mozart); Zerlina, Don Giovanni (Mozart); Despina, Così fan tutte (Mozart); Serpina, The Maid Mistress (Pergolesi), Belinda, Dido and Aeneas (Purcell); Yum-Yum, The Mikado (Sullivan), Lauretta, Gianni Schicchi (Puccini); Polly, The Threepenny Opera/Die Dreigroschenoper (Weill); Morgana, Alcina (Händel); Nina, Chérubin (Massenet). Her selected concert and oratorio credits include Händel’s Messiah and Esther, Mozart’s Vesperae solennes de confessore and Exsultate Jubilate, Bach’s BWV 187 Es wartet alles auf dich, BWV 4 Christ lag in Todesbanden, and BWV 245 St. John Passion.

Maureen has a Master of Music from the University of Toronto, a Bachelor of Music from Dalhousie University, and a Bachelor of Arts from St. Thomas University (French and Spanish).  Professional training programs include: Wholeness in Motion (Wisconsin, US), Centre for Operatic Studies (Sulmona, Italy), Contemporary Performance Studies, VISI (Vancouver, BC), Tapestry New Opera 101 Songbook (Toronto, ON), Opera from Scratch (Halifax, NS), St. Andrews Opera Workshop (St. Andrews, NB), Daniel Ferro Vocal Program (Greve, Tuscany, Italy), Casalmaggiore International Festival (Casalmaggiore, Italy), Halifax Summer Opera Festival (Halifax, NS). She is also a member of the Board of Directors for the Canadian Music Centre.

As a pedagogue, Maureen maintains a mostly virtual voice studio, is a regular vocal coach on faculty at the Halifax Summer Opera Festival, is a frequent festival adjudicator, and offers masterclasses and workshops on voice and movement play, as well as consulting services on new music vocal scores, grant writing, editing, producing, and project management. An inspiring educator, her voice students have won festival competitions; agents; and admission to private arts schools, musical theatre diploma programs, and Bachelor of Music degree programs. Maureen has been on faculty as vocal coach at the Halifax Summer Opera Festival for Massenet’s Cendrillon, Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea, Händel’s Alcina, Gluck’s Armide, and Händel’s Serse. As an educator, Maureen invites her students to explore their singing through the lens of wholeness, embodied play, curiosity, and compassion.

Maureen has had the distinguished honour of being invited to perform as a guest soloist for Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress of Japan during their visit to Ottawa, marking 80 years of diplomatic ties between Canada and Japan. Also, with the St. James Choir in Toronto, she sang for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Among the list of conductors and directors Maureen has worked with are Andrew Ager, Derek Bate, Larry Beckwith, Michael Capon, Laura Caswell, Robert Cooper, Philippe Djokic, Gary Ewer, Richard Hornsby, Steven Jarvi, Walter Kemp, Kevin, Mallon, Peter Merrick, David Overton, David Passmore, Leigh Rivenbark, Ilkay Silk, Guillermo Silva-Marin, and Vicki St. Pierre. As part of the BlackCreek Music Festival Chorus, Maureen had the honour of singing under the batons of Marvin Hamlisch, Eugene Kohn, and Lorin Maazel.

As an actor, Maureen filmed the pilot for the TV series Oznaberg, which premièred in the 2011 Silverwave Film Festival, and aired on Rogers Television. Maureen has appeared in Theatre St. Thomas University’s productions of Measure for Measure, Oh, What a Lovely War, and Caucasian Chalk Circle. Maureen also appeared as Ms. Fleming in Heather’s: The Musical! with Whale Song Theatre.

Please contact Maureen for an event-specific bio at any time.