She’s sung on stages in Germany, Portugal, Austria, France, Switzerland, England, Romania, and North America, and performed at the Tanglewood Music Festival, Toronto’s Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, and Carnegie Hall.
Soprano Emily Rocha joins the Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble Studio program for the 2024/25 season, and she’s covering the role of Anna in its current production of Verdi’s Nabucco.
Not that long ago, though, Emily was working at the Four Seasons as a part-time usher while finishing her studies at the University of Toronto. All that changed when she entered the Centre Stage: Ensemble Studio Competition in 2023.
Soprano Emily Rocha
The Canadian soprano earned an Honours BMus from the U of T Voice Performance program, and followed it with an MMus from the University of Toronto Opera School. Emily won 2nd Prize at COC Centre Stage: Ensemble Studio Competition in 2023, and was District Winner in the Metropolitan Opera Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition (Tulsa District). She was a 2024 Vocal Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Festival, where she premiered Ileana Perez Velazquez’s Vuelo as part of the Festival of Contemporary Music, among other notable performances and roles.
Along with Anna in Nabucco, this season Emily will be covering Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, and studying the role of Marguerite in Faust.
We asked Emily a few questions about her journey in the world of opera.
Soprano Emily Rocha: Questions & Answers
When did you first decide you wanted to pursue music as a profession? What drew you to opera in particular?
As a kid, I always loved to sing to myself around the house. It was mostly pop music (Taylor Swift’s Fearless album primarily), and was only for myself until I decided to audition for my school talent show in grade 5. It took a couple of tries to get in, but I’ve always been someone who uses obstacles as fuel to work even harder toward my goals. I also really loved acting, and did a lot of musical theatre and plays throughout high school.
My dad loved listening to opera, and my mom plays the flute, so I was always around classical music, but didn’t decide to be an opera singer myself until I saw La traviata at the COC in 2015. That was the moment for me. It was the perfect combination of all my passions — theatre, singing, classical music, in a heightened, super dramatic form — and from then on, I have been devoted to opera.
What was it like to work as an usher while you were studying? Was it a kind of educational experience to be able to observe the performances as you developed your own talents?
When I applied for my usher job, my goal was to immerse myself as much as possible in the opera environment, and take in as much as I could! Over the years as an usher, I have seen some incredible performances up close that have been really inspiring — one of my favourites was working at Orchestra Door A and hearing Sondra Radvanovsky from the fifth row in Rusalka!
I am so grateful to have formed good relationships with my coworkers, who sent a bouquet of flowers to my dressing room the night of Centre Stage. I was actually scheduled to work that night, but I had to tell them, “I need someone to cover this shift, and I can’t tell you why yet, but please trust that I have a very good reason”.
What have you gained during your time with the Ensemble so far?
My time in the Ensemble so far has been incredible. I am so grateful to get to dedicate all my time to developing my craft, and working with this fantastic team of trainers and colleagues has helped me grow even more as an artist in just a few weeks.
Would you recommend it to other singers contemplating an application?
I would absolutely recommend the Ensemble to any young artist. It’s the best way to bridge the gap between being a student and a professional, learn how a major opera company operates, and work alongside world class artists.
What can you tell us about the role you are covering in the COC’s production of Nabucco?
I am covering the role of Anna in Nabucco, sung by the wonderful Charlotte Siegel. Having seen her journey through the Ensemble, it’s amazing to get to learn from watching and hearing her now.
Anna is the sister of Zaccaria, a high priest, and she acts as a lieutenant in the conflict in this production.
I was very fortunate to sing for a couple of rehearsal days, and this meant singing with the unbelievable leads and working with the amazing artistic team. I have learned so much being in this process from rehearsal room to stage.
Having the opportunity to sing with people who are doing what I want to do with my life as their full-time job makes it seem possible, and shows me the level of care from each individual involved that goes into making an opera.
- Check out the 2024 Centre Stage Competition, held October 30, [HERE].
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