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Natalie Choquette: A soprano like no other

Natalie Choquette is a soprano like no other. A magnificent voice that takes us under the skin of a comically over-the-top diva, she brilliantly blends opera and humour, laughter and emotion.

Who said opera is boring? Certainly not fans of Natalie Choquette, a remarkable diva who sings a Turandot aria decked out in hair curlers while munching on spaghetti, breaks into a classic Neapolitan while hanging her laundry on stage, files her nails while giving a superb rendition of “Summertime” or performs the death scene from La Traviata while doing a headstand on a grand piano!

The magnificent voice and singular humour of this “comic coloratura soprano” make her an artist of international stature, praised and applauded by all audiences, in Quebec and around the world.

Her birth in Tokyo during a violent typhoon was a harbinger of an extraordinary life. The daughter of diplomats, Natalie had a rich, nomadic childhood: she followed her parents all over the world, discovering different cultures and learning English, Spanish, Italian and a smattering of Japanese, Russian and German. It was in Italy, at the age of 11, that she discovered opera and, to our great delight, her voice…and her path.

She studied singing and piano from Moscow to Peru and from Rome to Montreal, where she began her career with the Chours de l'Opéra and the Société de Musique Contemporaine du Québec. In 1991, Isba Music released Natalie, her first album of popular songs. Over the next few years, she recorded some classical music albums that confirmed her exceptional talent.

It was in 1993 during a trip to Switzerland that she decided to infuse her opera singing with her tremendous sense of humour. The formula proved to be magical and the show she created De Vigneault a Mozart, in which her first comic diva character, La Fettucini, appeared garnered praise frrom Swiss critics and audiences alike.

The next show, Diva, ou une espèce en voix de disparition, debuted in November 1994 in Montreal with pianist Scott Bradford at the Lion d'or, before moving to the Just For Laughs Cabaret. It was a dazzling success, and Nathalie's career was off and running. After its premiere in Montreal, the show went on to find acclaim in both Quebec and France, where Nathalie gave several performances beginning in early 1995. During the summer, she was applauded by growing crowds at the Just for Laughs Festival, the Quebec City Summer Festival and the Lanaudière Festival. Then the album La Diva, which included thirteen excerpts from the show, came out in Canada, Europe and Asia.

La Diva has continued to reach new heights, bringing her dulcet tones to audiences the world over. In January 2001, she was a dazzling success at a concert in Buffalo with that city's symphony orchestra; in February, she stole the show from a number of internationally renowned artists participating with her in a massive concert in Cologne, Germany, in front of 12,000 people. This exceptional show was broadcast on Easter Saturday on European television stations, drawing an audience of 50 million people. Shortly thereafter, the audience at the prestigious Vienna Konzert Haus gave her a 20-minute ovation. Upon her return, Nathalie went back into the studio, this time to record her eighth album, le Noël de la Diva, on which her daughters Florence and Eléonore sang; it hit the shelves in November 2002. There was high praise for the album, and its arrival earned her a notable mention, ranking among the Top 10 Christmas albums.

Since 2003, Nathalie Choquette's world tour has continued at a dizzying pace. This past year, the hilarious coloratura soprano enchanted all her listeners with her comic stylings and her stellar singing. La Diva travelled extensively in Europe, performing a series of concerts in the Netherlands, Austria, Spain, Belgium, France and Italy. Nathalie also performed in Japan, Bermuda, the Dominican Republic and the United States.

La Diva continues to perform in Quebec and on the international music stage, with a new major five-concert tour in Germany and Belgium already scheduled for October.

Since she began, nearly two million spectators around the world have been won over by this exceptional Quebec artist. And as if that's not enough, our world diva recently recorded Aeterna in Montreal, a wonderful album (her tenth) released in November 2004. This magnificent album, which ranks among the most beautiful of 2004, has been a top-seller since its release!

We haven't heard the last of Nathalie Choquette, a diva on the rise!

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