Sara Schabas
soprano
Praised for her “beautifully clear, light lyric soprano” (Ludwig Van), Sara Schabas 2024-2025 season includes solo performances on three continents. Nominated in 2020 for the Dora Award for Outstanding Performance by an Individual, Sara is the 2024 winner of the Wirth Vocal Prize and a recent alumna of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium Young Artists. This season, she performs a recital tour of mainland China as well as residencies in Germany and France with the Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyriques. She returns to the Masterworks of Oakville as soprano soloist in Messiah, performs recitals for the Canadian Opera Company Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre in Toronto and Concerts Lachine in Montreal with her frequent collaborator Alexey Shafirov, records the debut recording of James Rolfe's O Greenest Branch as soprano soloist conducted by David Fallis, and sings as soprano soloist in Beethoven's 9th Symphony with the Amadeus Choir and the North York Concert Orchestra in Toronto.
"A young vocal virtuoso"
David Jaeger, The Whole Note
Upcoming:
August 2025
Sara travels to Bourgogne, France for a residency as part of the Jeunes ambassadeurs lyriques.
June 2025
Sara debuts with the North York Concert Orchestra and the Amadeus Choir as soprano soloist in Beethoven's 9th Symphony at the George Weston Recital Hall in Toronto, conducted by Rafael Luz.
Watch & Listen:
Eve's Aria (The Walk from the Garden) - Jonathan Dove
Armand Singh Birke, Conductor
Little Opera Company of Winnipeg, 2024
Non monsieur mon mari (Les mamelles de Tirésias) - Francis Poulenc
Alexey Shafirov, Piano
Pollack Hall, Montreal, 2024
Tanzen! Tanzen! (Hänsel und Gretel) - E. Humperdinck
Théâtre Monument-National
Montreal, 2023
Lilacs (Op. 21) - S. Rachmaninoff
Alexey Shafirov, Piano
Pollack Hall, Montreal, 2024
Writings:
'The right yoga for the right person:' Applying restorative yoga in the voice studio (The Journal of Singing, Vol. 81, n. 3 Jan/Feb. 2025; forthcoming)
an article about how restorative yoga can be a useful tool for classical singers
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Sara Schabas on Emmy Heim (The Sparks and Wiry Cries Podcast, Nov. 2024)
an interview with Martha Guth about the Viennese, naturalized Canadian singer and pedagogue, Emmy Heim
Emmy Heim: The Mother of Art Song in Canada (Art Song Canada, Autumn 2023)
an article about Emmy Heim
Spotlight on Rebecca Hass (Opera Canada Magazine, Winter 2022)
a feature on Opera Canada's inaugural Nada Ristich Change Maker recipient
Opera, sustainability and reconciliation (Opera Canada Magazine, Winter 2021)
a portrait of the Canadian opera community's efforts towards sustainability
La voix humaine and mental health (Opera Canada Magazine, Fall 2021)
a look at how opera companies can support singers' mental health
A tribute to Ezra Schabas (Opera Canada Magazine, Spring 2021)
a tribute to Sara's late grandfather, educator, author & musician Ezra Schabas
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