Sharon Azrieli

Sharon Rachelle Azrieli Perez, well known as Sharon Azrieli, is a Canadian Soprano and Cantor born in Montreal, Quebec. Having performed operatic and classical works alike internationally with many renowned conductors and orchestras, Sharon Azrieli has been hailed as a "mistress of merry inflections, piquant phrasing, and pointed words" by Andrew Porter of New Yorker Magazine after performing as the heroine of Le docteur Miracle. She is fluent in five languages - English, French, Hebrew, Italian and Spanish, and is represented by George Martynuk at GMM. Azrieli is a director on the board of The Azrieli Group, and the Azrieli Foundation. Azrieli created the Foundation's $100,000 composition and commission competition, called the Azrieli Music Prize. Additionally, Azrieli sits on the board of directors of the Azrieli Amutah, which is the Azrieli Foundation's equivalent in Israel, the America Israel Cultural Foundation. Azrieli sits on the Boards of the following Philanthropic foundations: The McCord Museum, The McGill Chamber Orchestra, The Azrieli Foundation, and created the Opera Cares Foundation.

Born and raised in Montreal, Canada, Sharon Azrieli moved to New York City as a young adult to pursue her passion for music. First graduating from Vassar College in Art History, she then received an Associate Degree from the Parsons School of Design in Illustration, and then studied with Ellen Faull at the Juilliard School, where she graduated with a Diploma in Vocal Performance.

During that time, Sharon's mentors included Joan Dornemann, Principal Prompter at the Metropolitan Opera, and the late Herbert Breslin. Joan invited Sharon for three summers to attend her Vocal Arts Institute in Israel, where she was given the opportunity to learn many leading roles.

Shortly after graduating from Juilliard, Sharon was engaged by the Canadian Opera Company's artistic director, the late Richard Bradshaw, "as a cover for a mainstage production of Gounod's Roméo et Juliette and as Mimi in a small-stage production of Puccini's La Bohème."

She had the opportunity to perform Juliette on the main stage, and as a result, she was invited to join the roster of Matthew Laifer Artists Management, as well as perform with Marcello Giordani. From there, her career as a young soprano began to blossom, globe-trotting to perform with the likes of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, the Israel Chamber Orchestra, the Haifa Symphony Orchestra (Rossini's Stabat Mater and Beethoven's Mass in C Minor ), the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra (concert of Puccini arias and Leonard Bernstein's Songfest), the McGill Chamber Orchestra (Mozart concert arias under the baton of Alexander Brott ), and as the cover for Mirella Freni as Adrienne Lecouvreur with l’Opéra de Paris. Sharon also received rave reviews after her portrayal of Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro under the baton of Marco Armiliato.

After the birth of her two sons, Sharon put aside her developing opera career to raise a family. She studied at the Academy for Jewish Religion in New York, and her first job as a Cantor was for Temple Adas Israel in Sag Harbor with the late Rabbi Paul Steinberg. Sharon and her sons moved back to Montreal in 2000, and in 2001, she became the full-time Cantor at Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom, where she worked until 2003.

As her children grew older, Sharon Azrieli began to rekindle her opera career. The acclaimed Bill Schuman, vocal teacher of such notable singers as Celine Dion and Aprile Millo, and teacher at Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, helped bring Sharon to a new level of vocal mastery, priming her for Verdian soprano roles. Sharon performed Leonora in Il trovatore and Aida (Aida) with the New Jersey Association of Verismo Opera. With One World Symphony, under the direction of Sun Jing Hong, Sharon sang the roles of The Prioress in Dialogues des carmélites, as well as Leonora in La forza del destino. She has also been featured in prestigious music festivals, namely Orford Music Festival throughout Quebec, Brott Music Festival in Hamilton, Ontario, where she sang the soprano soloist in Mahler's Symphony No. 8, and Festival Sefarad in Montreal.

Meanwhile, she completed a Master of Music degree and a Doctor of Music in Vocal Performance at Université de Montréal. Sharon's thesis stemmed from her extensive experience with Verdian and cantorial works, and was published as "the first of its kind to show that the great Giuseppe Verdi used fragments of Jewish prayer modes in many of the melodies in his magnificent operas."

Sharon performed the soprano solo in the Verdi Requiem with the New Jersey State Opera under the baton of Jason Tramm, and has previously performed the same role with great reviews with the New West Symphony under the baton of Boris Brott.

Always maintaining a close relationship to her Jewish roots, Sharon performed frequently with the Israel Chamber Orchestra in Tel Aviv. She was also noted for having performed the world premiere of several Jewish works at her recital at the Rialto Theatre in Montreal in late 2012.

• Winner: Jarmila Novotná Competition, New York, 2000
• Winner: Canadian Women's Club Competition, 1990
• Winner: Boca Raton Music Guild Competition, Florida, 1990
• First place: Jarmila Novotná Competition, RTIVC, 1995
• District winner: Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, New York, 1993
• Concert Finalist: Luciano Pavarotti Competition, 1991 – 1992
• Finalist: American Opera Auditions, 1990
• Grant: Metropolitan Opera National Council, New York, 1991 & 1993
• Grant: Francisco Viñas Competition, Spain 1990