SandraHamaoui

French-American soprano, Sandra Hamaoui, has been praised for her “homogenous and flexible voice of fine velvet” in addition to her “musicality and finesse of expression”. Described as “heartfelt” and “prodigious”, her true talent lies not just in her effortless vocal technique and musicality, but also in her ability to fully captivate the audience.

Hamaoui will bring in the 24/25 season with an Open-Air concert of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana at Rathausmarkt in Hamburg, followed by a performance as Leïla in Les Pêcheurs de Perles in the South of France with Musical Guest Concerts. In the new year, she will perform with Les Arts Florissants as Constance in Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites and at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées as Sophie in Werther.

In 2023/24, Hamaoui made several notable debuts: as Leïla in Les Pêcheurs de Perles at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées, as Lisette in Christof Loy’s Opernhaus Zürich season-opener, La Rondine, and as Sophie in Werther. As an ensemble member at Opernhaus Zürich, Hamaoui appeared as Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro, Gilda in Rigoletto, Constance in a new production of Les Dialogues des Carmèlites, Nanetta in Falstaff under the baton of music director Gianandrea Noseda, and Gretel in Robert Carsten’s new production of Hänsel und Gretel. In 2023, she made her debut in the title role of Roméo et Juliette with l’Orchestre de Chambre de Genève. Previously, Hamaoui appeared at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées as Lisa in La Sonnambula under the directions of Rolando Villazon and Ricardo Frizza. At only 24-years-old, Hamaoui joined the ensemble of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, where she sang the roles of Pamina in Die Zauberflöte and Ninette in L'amour des trois oranges, among many others.

The recipient of numerous awards, Hamaoui was a National Semi-Finalist in The Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and first place winner in the New England Regional Finals; she has also been awarded Top Prize, Audience Favorite, and the Irene Patti Memorial Award from Florida Grand Opera's Young Patronesses of The Opera Competition; a Major Award from the Opera Index Vocal Competition; Top Prize and study grant from the Career Bridges Foundation; First Prize in the Mary Trueman Competition (Art Song Preservation Society of New York); First prize in the West Bay Opera League Competition; and Audience Favorite in the James Toland Vocal Competition. Additionally, she was the recipient of scholarships from Fondation des Treilles, The Opera Foundation, The Schuyler Foundation, and the Henry & Maria Holt Memorial Fund.

Her Bachelor of Music degree was completed at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in 2015. Prior, she attended the Juilliard School of Music Pre-College Division. She is fluent in English, French, Italian, and Spanish, and she speaks conversational German. Outside the theater, Hamaoui is profoundly inspired by visual art and the world of design.