Praised as “powerful and engaging” [The Globe and Mail], Canadian soprano Elizabeth Polese has recently been a young artist at l’Atelier Lyrique de l’Opéra de Montréal, Tanglewood Music Center, and Detroit Opera. She is the winner of the prestigious Sullivan Foundation Award and Hnatyshyn Foundation Developing Artist Award.  

Recent seasons have seen Ms. Polese in several exciting role and house debuts, such as Norina in Don Pasquale (Vancouver Opera), The Governess in The Turn of the Screw, Soprano I in Mozart’s Mass in C minor, Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte (Detroit Opera & Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival), and Marguerite in Faust (Detroit Opera). She recently made her German concert debut with Gewandhaus Leipzig in repertoire by Bach and Webern, and is a regular guest with Orchestre Classique de Montréal, Brott Music Festival, and several chamber series throughout Canada. Her rendition of Mozart’s Exsultate, Jubilate has earned her several notable prizes in Canada, including the Toronto Mozart Competition, Ottawa Symphony Orchestra Mozart-Sénécal prize, University of Toronto Concerto Competition, and Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal competition.  

A proponent of new music especially, she has been critically acclaimed in her interpretations of Nuria in Golijov’s Ainadamar, Agnès in George Benjamin’s Written on Skin, Alice B. Toklas in 27, and most notably, of Isabel in the North American premiere of George Benjamin’s Lessons in Love and Violence.  

Ms. Polese is a graduate of the University of Toronto, where she studied under the tutelage of celebrated Canadian soprano, Mary Morrison (OC). She is currently based in Montréal, Québec.