Of Joyce El-Khoury’s performance as Violetta in her recent Royal Opera House, Covent Garden (ROH) debut, the Independent wrote: “Her pianissimi are exquisite, her coloratura is bold, fearless and flawless, and the expressiveness of her sound grips the heart”. She is embracing her gift for bel canto repertoire with the recent release of her debut solo album ‘Écho’ with maestro Carlo Rizzi and The Hallé Orchestra (Opera Rara).

After an acclaimed Glyndebourne Festival debut in August (Violetta in La traviata), Ms. El-Khoury opened her 2017-18 season in a gala performance with the NDR Symphony. She returned to the ROH as Musetta in Richard Jones’ La bohème, a production she revisited in her Teatro Real debut in December. Joyce made a splash in her role debut as Imogene in Bellini’s iconic opera Il pirata, a role she will reprise in her company debut with Theatre St. Gallen in the spring. She will appear in recital with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, and will continue to explore bel canto repertoire in a role creation in a never-before-heard Donizetti opera (Sylvia in Donizetti’s L’ange de Nisida) at the ROH this summer, in collaboration with Opera Rara whose new edition of the work, they will record for international release.

Ms. El-Khoury’s discography includes two rare Donizetti operas (Les Martyrs and Belisario) conducted by Sir Mark Elder on the Opera Rara label – both to critical acclaim. She also has a solo disc, ‘Écho’, also recorded with Opera Rara, with The Hallé conducted by Carlo Rizzi.

In the 2016-2017 season, Ms. El-Khoury made several major debuts: first in London at the ROH as Violetta in La traviata; and with Opéra National de Bordeaux as Leila in Les Pêcheurs de Perles. She also made role and house debuts with Opera Philadelphia as Liù in Turandot, and as Salome in Massenet’s Herodiade with Washington Concert Opera.

Recent engagements include Violetta in La traviata with the Canadian Opera Company in Toronto, Musetta in La bohème with the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich and with San Diego Opera in Jake Heggie’s new opera Great Scott as Tatyana Bakst. Ms. El-Khoury garnered raves when she starred in the title role of Maria Stuarda at Seattle Opera, replacing an ailing colleague in addition to giving her own scheduled performances, in some instances singing back to back performances. On the concert stage, Ms. El-Khoury debuted with the Orchestre de Paris in Rossini’s Stabat Mater, under the baton of Jesús López-Cobos, and performed in concerts in Austria with Elīna Garanča, and in Spain with Juan Diego Flórez.

Additional highlights include Joyce’s performance in the title role in Dvorak’s Rusalka with the Concertgebouw; her company debut with Santa Fe Opera as Micaela in their production of Bizet’s Carmen; her debut with Korean National Opera as Violetta in La traviata; Verdi’s Requiem at the Al Bustan Festival in Beirut; La bohème and Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with the Munich Philharmonic.

Born in Lebanon and brought up in Canada, Ms. El-Khoury earned her Bachelor of Music at the University of Ottawa. She received her Artist Diploma from the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, and is a graduate of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. She is a First Prize winner in many competitions including: the Loren L. Zachary Competition, the Opera Index Competition, the George London Foundation, and the Mario Lanza Vocal Competition.