In 2000, contralto Marie-Nicole Lemieux became the first Canadian to win the First Prize and the Special Prize for Lieder at the Queen Elisabeth Competition. Winning these awards opened the door to an immediate international career, allowing her to perform in recital and in concert. Each year, Marie-Nicole Lemieux is invited to sing in prestigious venues and international music festivals across Europe and North America, such as the Staatsoper Berlin, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Théâtre des Champs Élysées in Paris, the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, and the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels.

On stage, Marie-Nicole Lemieux regularly sings the works of the great composers, performing roles by Berlioz, Debussy, Gluck, Handel, Honegger, Monteverdi, Mozart, Rossini, Verdi, Vivaldi and Wagner.

She has recorded for numerous labels, including Cyprès, Dorian Recordings, Analekta, Deutsche Grammophon and EMI/Virgin Classics. She now enjoys an exclusive contract with the Naïve label, for whom she recorded the title roles of Griselda and Orlando in Vivaldi’s masterworks (Griselda and Orlando furioso). She has recorded seven discs with Naïve, including her first recital CD, the critically-acclaimed L’Heure exquise, a collection of French art songs with piano.

Her many projects in 2010 brought Marie-Nicole Lemieux to Europe and to North America; she appeared in Falstaff at the Théâtre des Champs Élysées (Paris), the St. Matthew Passion at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, under Bernard Labadie, Bach’s Mass in B minor in Washington, with the National Symphony Orchestra, in addition to concerts with Les Violons du Roy in Québec City and Montreal.

The 2010-2011 season included the release of her new disc, concerts with the Orchestre National de France, her debut with the New York Philharmonic, performances with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Orlando furioso at the Théâtre des Champs Élysées and a recital tour in Quebec.

Her CD, Ne me refuse pas, released in 2010, was recognized that year as best solo recording by the prestigious Académie Charles Cros (France). The latest one, Streams of Pleasure, with Karina Gauvin, was released in France in 2011.