Mezzo-soprano Linda Barcan holds a Bachelor of Arts (Class I Honours) from the University of Newcastle, a Graduate Diploma in Vocal Pedagogy from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), a Masters in Vocal Pedagogy from the University of Sydney and a PhD in Music Performance from the University of Melbourne.
Linda has performed with opera companies, orchestras, and chamber ensembles in Australia, Europe and the USA, including for Opéra de Lyon, Opera Australia, Sydney Chamber Opera, Opera Hunter, Short Black Opera, Lost & Found Opera, Australian Contemporary Opera Company, Nightingale Opera Theatre, Penrith Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Youth Orchestra, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Youth Orchestra, Sinfonia de Lyon, Sydney Youth Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria, and the orchestra of the Conservatoire de musique de la Nouvelle-Calédonie.
Linda specialises in 20th and 21st century vocal music in productions like Christina’s World (Dorothy Hewitt/Ross Edwards), Abelard and Heloise (Paul Kavanagh/Ross Fiddes), Pecan Summer (Deborah Cheetham Fraillon), The Emperor of Atlantis (Viktor Ullmann), love fail (David Lang), To Hell and Back (Gene Scheer/Jake Heggie), Eumeralla (Deborah Cheetham Fraillon), Woven Song: Catching Breath (Deborah Cheetham Fraillon) and Two Remain (Gene Scheer/Jake Heggie). Linda is an advocate for contemporary art song, interpreting works by Australian female composers Linda Kouvaras (Art and Life) and Katy Abbott (The Domestic Sublime; We’ll Meet Again). Recent recordings are Women of Note: A Century of Australian Composers Volume 2 (ABC Classics), Gardener of Time: Barry Conyngham at 75 (Move Records), and Linda Kouvaras: Instrumental music, chamber works and songs Volume 1 (Toccata Classics).
Linda has 36 years’ experience as a singing teacher: nine years in secondary and performing arts specialist schools, nine years in music theatre, acting, classical voice and opera at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA), Edith Cowan University, and nine years in classical voice and opera at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. Linda has operated an active and successful private studio in Sydney, Perth and Melbourne and is currently Lecturer in Music (Voice) at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, University of Melbourne.
