Soprano Rochelle Bard has been described as an ‘exquisite singing actress, brilliant and heart-breaking.’ With a specialty in bel canto and Verdi repertoire, performances include the title roles of Norma, Tosca, Aida, Maria Stuarda, and Lucia di Lammermoor, as well as Abigaille in Nabucco, Elisabetta in Roberto Devereux, Violetta in La Traviata, Leonora in Il Trovatore, and Lady Macbeth in Macbeth, and at such companies as Hawaii Opera Theatre, Opera Tampa, Sarasota Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Knoxville Opera, Utah Festival Opera, Opera Company of Middlebury, and Sacramento Opera. Recent performances include Tosca with the Kalamazoo Symphony, Verdi Requiem with the Knoxville Symphony, and Verdi concerts in Knoxville and Sarasota. A signature role for Rochelle, her 7th production singing the title role of Tosca will be with Opera Theater of Connecticut this summer. This March, she will be the soloist with the New Britain Symphony and will present a recital of rare Italian songs at the Hartt School of Music in April.
Opera News acclaimed her tour de force performance of the three leading ladies in The Tales of Hoffmann as: ‘Bard’s transformative ability is uncanny, I had to double check the program to be sure that they were all the same woman…an astonishing display of versatility.’ and of her performance of Tosca in Hawaii, ‘Bard’s large, rich soprano proves a match for Scarpia (Aleksey Bogdanov), and her delivery of Vissi d’arte was absolutely magical. The sheer beauty of her voice, coupled with impressive control on high pianissimo notes, raisesgoosebumps.’ On the concert stage, she has been a soloist on the stages of Carnegie Hall with a recent Carmina Burana with Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, Lincoln Center, Tanglewood, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Boston Symphony Orchestra, National Chorale, and Opera Orchestra of New York. Ms. Bard earned a Master’s degree from the New England Conservatory and was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Music from her alma mater, the College of the Holy Cross. A pianist before finding her classical voice, she is also the Director of Music at St. Josephine Bakhita parish in Rocky Hill, CT.