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Lyric soprano, Madeleine Pierard excels in adventurous repertoire and is noted for her outstanding vocal dexterity. A native New Zealander, she studied in London at the Royal College of Music and the National Opera Studio, garnering numerous awards including the Lexus Song Quest, Lies Askonas and Royal Overseas League prizes, and was a Jette Parker Young Artist with The Royal Opera, Covent Garden.
For The Royal Opera, Madeleine has sung the roles of Contessa di Folleville (Il Viaggio a Reims), Musetta (La Boheme - London/Istanbul), Lisa (La Sonnambula), Berta (ll Barbiere di Siviglia), Sandmann (Hänsel und Gretel), Sacerdotessa (Aida), Noémie (Cendrillon), Wood Nymph (Rusalka) and Costanza in Haydn’s L’isola disabitata in Hobart, Tasmania. Also for The Royal Opera she has covered the roles of Violetta, Donna Anna, Kát'a (Kát'a Kabanová), Marfa (The Tsar’s Bride), Elettra (Idomeneo) and Leila (Les Pêcheurs de Perles). She featured in the BBC's landmark television series 'Maestro at the Opera' in association with The Royal Opera House, singing the roles of Rosalinde, Donna Anna and Musetta.
Other roles include Lady Macbeth (Macbeth) with English Touring Opera, Violetta, Pat Nixon (Nixon in China), Miss Jessel (Turn of the Screw) and Musetta with New Zealand Opera; Anne Trulove (The Rake’s Progress) and Marzelline (Fidelio) with the Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra, Musetta in Francesca Zambello’s La Boheme at the Royal Albert Hall, Louise (Louise), Elettra (Idomeneo) and Cecilio (Lucio Silla) for The Buxton Festival, Female Chorus (The Rape of Lucretia) under Muhai Tang and the Tianjin Symphony Orchestra in China, Woman (Erwartung) with Shadwell Opera and the title role of Régine in Rufus Wainwright’s Prima Donna.
Madeleine's recent concert appearances as a soloist include Beethoven's 9th Symphony and Poulenc's Stabat Mater with the London Philharmonia at the Royal Festival Hall and Barbican, numerous appearances and recordings with the NZ Symphony Orchestra including Haydn's Creation and Handel's Messiah under Nicholas McGegan, an opera gala with L’Orchestre Symphonique de Bretagne in Brittany, France, Ross Harris’ Symphony No. 2 with the Orchestre Symphonique de Strasbourg, NZSO and APO and Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire with Stroma. She has also featured as a soloist with the Royal Ballet in Fauré’s Requiem and Poulenc’s Gloria, as well as soloist in Carmina Burana with the Birmingham Royal Ballet at The London Coliseum. A noted recitalist, she has appeared alongside Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, and at the Wigmore and Cadogan Halls and has toured New Zealand in recital. Madeleine has also sung numerous recitals at The Royal Opera House, both as a Jette Parker Young Artist and Alumnus.
Madeleine also recently made her Sydney Opera House debut singing Leonore in Beethoven's Fidelio in concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under Simone Young.
The 2022/23 Season will include singing Empress Arianna in Legrenzi’s Giustino with Pinchgut Opera in Australia, Marie in Wozzeck with Orchestra Wellington, Carmina Burana and the title role in Dido and Aeneas with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra; and a tour of Sibelius’ Luonnotar with the NZSO.