Praised by international publications, soprano Lara Secord-Haid has been described as “possessing a rich and expressive overall quality” (Attencion San Miguel), “charismatic” (Opera Today) and was praised for her “flinty acuity” by the New York Times.
Ms. Secord-Haid is enjoying a diverse and dynamic international career. Recent performances include, The Sopranos of Winnipeg Concert at Manitoba Opera, a residency and recitals with Pacific Opera Victoria, Governess in Turn of the Screw with Nashville Opera, Poulenc’s Gloria with the Greenwich Choral Society, Sophie in Wertherwith Manitoba Opera, a concert in the Jeonju International Sori Festival in Korea and a concert at Opera Helikon in Moscow, a 15-city operatic concert tour throughout China, Cendrillon in Cendrillon (New York Lyric Opera), a solo concert with Opera San Miguel (San Miguel, Mexico), Marsinah in Kismet (Little Opera Winnipeg), Miss Jessel in The Turn of the Screw (Opera on the Avalon) Marzelline in Fidelio (Manitoba Opera), 3 Settings of Celan by Harrison Birtwistle with the AXIOM Ensemble at Lincoln Center, Miss Silverpeal in The Impresario (North Shore Music Festival), and Tytania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Opera on the Avalon).
Additional roles include Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos (Manhattan Opera Studio), Suor Genovieffa in Suor Angelica (Manhattan Opera Studio) Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni (Banff Center), Giulia in La Scala di Seta (Juilliard) as well as the Woodpecker in Janacek’s The Cunning Little Vixen (Juilliard).
On the concert stage, Ms. Secord-Haid has delved with keen interest into the study and performance of contemporary works. She performed an Alice Tully Hall premier of Ritual by Alessandro Iglesias Rossi and works of John Cage with both The New Juilliard Ensemble and Banff Centre with the resident new music ensemble conducted by Joel Sachs. She also performed Handel’s Messiah and Verdi’s Requiem with the Orchestra at Shelter Rock and sang featured works of Granados, R. Strauss and Rimsky-Korsakov in recital.
She has given recitals in the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra’s summer concert series and performed Tyzik’s 12 gifts of Christmas and Howard Blake’s The Bear. Ms. Secord-Haid is the 2017 winner of the prestigious George London Award. She was also 1st place winner of the Upper Midwest Regional Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, advancing to the upper Midwest regional finals to win 3rd place. Additionally, she was named a Jeune Ambassadeur Lyrique in 2015 and 2016 by Théâtre Lyrichorégra 20 and was awarded the top Canadian Prize of Jeune Espoire Lyric Canadien as well as the Mexican, Austrian, Korean, Russian and the Chinese Lyric Bursaries and the Opera San Miguel Prize “for outstanding Artistic potential”. Ms. Secord-Haid recently took a top prize in the Orvieto International Singing Competition, was a finalist in the Benjamin Matthews Vocal Competition and has received awards from the Giulio Gari Foundation, the George London Foundation, the Manitoba Arts Counciland the Winnipeg Arts Council. She has been a two-time finalist in the Canadian Opera Company’s Center Stage competition.
In 2018 Ms. Secord-Haid sang a concert at Linz Oper in Linz, Austria and Poulenc’s Gloria with the Greenwich Chorale Society.
In 2019 she sand Jessie Anderson in the new opera No One’s Safe by Lizée and Ivany and workshops a new production of Silent Light by composer Paola Prestini and librettist Royce Vavrek, directed by Thaddeus Strassberger at the Banff Festival. She also made a role debut as Micaëla in La Tragedie de Carmen with City Lyric Opera and will appear as a soloist in a Salute to Bernstein with Little Opera Winnipeg.
In 2020 she made a role debut as The Governess in The Turn of the Screw with Nashville Opera.
In 2021, She will perform the Maid in Powder her Face by Thomas Ades with Opera on the Avalon and Frasquita in Carmen with Manitoba Opera in rescheduled performances due to Covid-19.
She holds a Master of Music from The Juilliard School and a Bachelor of Music from The New England Conservatory of Music. She was a fellow at the Internationale Meistersinger Akademie, attended Highlands Opera Studio, the Banff Center, the Conservatoire de Nice summer academy and the Spoleto Vocal Arts Symposium.
January 2021
