Barbara Hannigan Essentials

A soprano and conductor with a penchant for 20th-century and contemporary material, Barbara Hannigan typifies adventurousness, nuance, and power in her performances. The Nova Scotia–born singer has an excellent command of standard repertoire (hear her take on Alban Berg’s Lulu) but has premiered an extensive amount of material by some of the early 21st century’s most adventurous composers. She has also tackled technically demanding works such as Henri Dutilleux’s soprano-and-orchestra song cycle Correspondances. These recordings—as well as her takes on more pop-adjacent fare from Gershwin and Weill—demonstrate Hannigan’s astonishing range and emotive breadth.