Canadian soprano Michelle Bawden places storytelling at the heart of her singing. Combining a crystalline tone with expressive depth and a vivid sense of character, she explores the musical and dramatic possibilities of each work.

​

Her operatic appearances include Die Mutter in Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel with Opera McGill, Miss Jessel in Britten’s The Turn of the Screw with the University of Ottawa, and Königin der Nacht in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte as a guest artist at Université de Montréal. At Festival Classica in 2024, her performance of Mozart arias with Arion Baroque Orchestra prompted Christophe Huss of Le Devoir to write: “She sings the Queen of the Night as easily as you and I brush our teeth. [...] the ease of the high notes and the projection in the Queen of the Night's two arias were impressive.”

​

Michelle’s concert appearances with Cantabile Chorale include performances as soprano soloist in Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Requiem, and Beethoven’s Mass in C major.

​

She has also enjoyed exploring storytelling through contemporary collaboration, developing MERGING SPECIES with interdisciplinary artist Gabriela Hébert. Following its original premiere in 2025, which brought together voice, electronics, fashion, and dance, the pair premiered a duo version at PHI during Montréal’s Festival ELEKTRA in June 2026. Throughout the work, Hébert’s gestures shape and transform Michelle’s operatic voice through live electronic manipulation.

​

In summer 2025, Michelle travelled to Baden bei Wien, Austria, to attend the Franz Schubert Institut with support from the Jacqueline Desmarais Foundation and the Art Song Foundation of Canada. Later that year, she was a semi-finalist in the Helmut Deutsch International Lieder Competition in Vienna. Her competition distinctions also include winning the voice category of the Canadian Music Competition and reaching the finals of the Prix d’Europe and McGill University’s Wirth Vocal Prize.

​

Michelle holds a Master of Music in Voice and Opera from McGill University, where she studied under the mentorship of Aline Kutan, and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Ottawa, where she studied with Christiane Riel.

 

Now based in Ottawa, Michelle enjoys reading, baking, and spending time outdoors.