Iris Hendrickx

"…an established soprano with a beautiful melancholy in her voice, which shines within the repertoire of French Romanticism. It sounds like a kind of

heartbreak that one would want to experience again and again..." (KlassiekCentraal)

Praised by the International press for her authentic, vulnerable interpretations Iris Hendrickx is being recognised as an exciting soprano on the rise. Iris is a full lyric soprano who knows how to perfectly embody the French romantic music. Her recently released album French Opera Arias is the purest proof of this. (Amazon)

Ms. Hendrickx has made a remarkable debut as Pamina and is lauded as an "accomplished comédienne" (Mundo Clasico) with an "impeccable accuracy" (De Standaard) and an "impassioned, breathtaking voice" (La Libre Belgique). Iris has sung in opera houses and concert halls all over the world including Opera Vlaanderen, Opéra de Lille, Opéra de Wallonie, Opéra Bergen, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Pollack Concert Hall Montreal and Palais des Beaux Arts Brussels.Acclaimed as a versatile lyric soprano she has been invited by numerous International Festivals such as Ottawa International Chamber Festival, KLARA Festival, Rotterdamse Operadagen, Bergen International Festival, Festival International du Domaine Forget and The Musimars Festival Montreal.

In 2017 Iris Hendrickx “beniamina del pubblico francofono” (vivimilano.it) was discovered by Maestro Patrick Fournillier. Together they have a great love of the major French operatic literature and it shows in the warm, passionate performances that were recorded live in Milan for Iris' debut CD French Opera Arias. (Amazon) The recordings are aided by one of the finest Italian orchestras: Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi. Iris shows an intens pallet of melancholic colours in her heartbreaking interpretations of French heroïnes as Marguerite (Faust), Juliette (Roméo et Juliette), Lia (L’enfant prodigue), Micaela (Carmen), Antonia (Les Contes d'Hofmann), Cathérine (Henri VIII) and Salomé (Hérodiade).  Iris' CD French Opera Arias is reviewed as "a sweet torment for your ear, those suffering heroïnes" (Cultuurpact) and is nominated for a Golden Label (Klassiek Centraal)

Iris Hendrickx made her debut at Opera Vlaanderen at a very young age singing Emmie in (Albert Herring) and was invited again to sing the roles of Sister and Bum in the world creation of "The rage of Life" by E. Kats Chernin. As a member of Opéra McGill Montreal she interpreted the roles of Baronnes de Gondremarck (La vie Parisienne), Bat & Owl (L'enfant et les sortilèges) and Despina (Cosi fan tutte) and covered the roles of Alcina and Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi).

Iris has been an award and scholarship winning member of The International Vocal Arts Institute Montreal, OperaWorks Los Angeles and The Meditteranean Opera Studio singing the roles of Violetta (La Traviata), Mimi (La Bohème) and Laititia (The old maid and the Thief).

As a concert singer Iris has performed live for CBC Radio, Klara and Musique 3 the Bachianas Brasilieras No.5 (Villa Lobos), Frauenliebe und Leben (Schumann), Liederkreis Op.39 (Schumann), Fiancailles pour rire (Poulenc) and Sieben frühe Lieder (Berg).

On the concert stage Ms. Hendrickx has appeared in recital at Concertgebouw Brugge, Bozar, De Grote Post, DeSingel and Pollack Hall and as a soloist in The Saint John's Passion (Bach), Requiem (Brahms and Mozart), The Messiah (Handel), Gloria (Poulenc), 9th Symphony (Beethoven) and Carmina Burana (Orff) with orchestra's such as Brussels Philharmonic, Jerusalem Philharmonic Orchestra, The National Orchestra of Belgium, The Delphi Consort, Brussels Choral Society, Nuove Musiche and Anima Eterna. Conductors with whom she has collaborated with include Richard Hetherington, Julian Wachner, Philippe Herreweghe, Marc Shanahan, Daniel Inbal, Stefan Blunier, Aharon Harlap, Jos Van Immerseel, Frieder Bernius, Giovanni Reggioli and Giuliano Carella.

Iris has recorded a full CD of songs by Francis Poulenc and Ben Moore, she recorded a new composition "Creating Chances" by Frank Vaganée with Brussels Philharmonic and Brussels Jazz Orchestra and was "live" captured in a Schumann recital at Concertgebouw Brugge.

Ms. Hendrickx holds a Master degree in Music from The Royal Conservatory of Antwerp and an Artist Diploma in Opera from McGill Schulich School of Music.