Jennifer Maines-Chamandy

Jennifer Chamandy’s richly expansive spinto soprano and interpretive depth continue to enthrall audiences on both sides of the Atlantic. Leading soprano of the acclaimed Tiroler Landestheater in Innsbruck, Austria, where she has been championed by Intendantin (Artistic Director) and world renowned mezzo soprano Brigitte Fassbaender, Jennifer’s roles have included Salome, Senta, Tosca, and Santuzza (Cavalleria rusticana). In the words of opera critic Dietmar Plattner of Vienna’s Der Neue Merker: "there stands a real Diva on the stage, with her beauty of tone, vocal power and stage presence."

Reviewing her performances for Musical America, Larry L. Lash hailed Chamandy as "a force of nature with a voice of incredible power, effortless throughout its ranges" and was equally effusive in Opera News: "[a] one-hundred-percent committed and an attractive, intense actress … the unflagging power and accuracy with which she nailed Senta's treacherous music was … revelatory: a Wagnerian soprano is born."

Additional roles at the Landestheater since 2003 have included Manon Lescaut, Cassandre (Les Troyens), The Countess (Nozze di Figaro), Marie (Wozzek), Ellen Orford (Peter Grimes), Helena (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Rosalinda, Sylva Varescu (Die Csardasfürstin), the title role in Countess Mariza and the First Lady, among others. This past season, Jennifer enjoyed a personal triumph as Anna in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The King and I, winning rapturous standing ovations. Equally accomplished in modern opera, Jennifer performed the role of Avril Ainger in Michael Nyman’s two-person opera, Love Counts and, following her stunning debut as the Duchess in British composer Thomas Adès 1995 work Powder Her Face, was invited to perform the treacherous role in St.Gallen, Switzerland and in Bonn, Germany, to enormous critical success.

At home in Canada, where she studied at the University of Toronto and McGill University in Montreal, Jennifer has performed with Pacific Opera Victoria, Opera Mississauga, Opera in Concert, Toronto Operetta Theater, and Opera Lyra Ottawa in such roles as Cio Cio San, Violetta, the title role in Susannah by Carlisle Floyd, Kate the Shrew in Giannini’s opera, and numerous Gilbert and Sullivan operettas.

Jennifer Chamandy has also enjoyed much success on the concert stage where she has been invited soloist with Tiroler Symphonieorchester Innsbruck, the Amsterdam Promenade Orchestra, Transparent Music Theater Belgium, Toronto Philharmonia, Brampton Symphony, Quinte Symphony, McGill Symphony, and Ottawa’s Thirteen Strings.

Opera masterclass

I'll be working on vocal technique with the candidates to improve overall voice quality, evenness of tone and timbre, and flexibility throughout the range. Singing on the breath with full body support will be emphasized. Singer's translation of text into their own mother tongue, and knowledge of background and situation in the opera is a must.