Natalie Buickians

Biography

With a “timbre of melodious, bell-like clarity,” soprano Natalie Buickians is a burgeoning talent with vocal versatility and musicality. She is a recent winner of the Metropolitan National Council Competition, Los Angeles District 2020 and a participant in SongStudio 2020 at Carnegie Hall under the direction of soprano Renée Fleming. She competed in the Aram Khachaturian International Competition where she took top jury prizes, 2nd in the Friends of Eastman Opera Aria Competition, and 3rd in the Jesse Kneisel Lieder Competition. 

Natalie premiered the role of Paula in Polymnia, endowed by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation at UCLA in January 2023. Past notable roles include Suor Genovieffa in Puccini's Suor Angelica, First Lady in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, Giulietta in Offenbach's Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Elle in Poulenc's La Voix Humaine, Susanna in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro, Governess in Britten’s The Turn of the Screw, and the roles of Fanny in Rossini’s La Cambiale di Matrimonio and Mrs. Ford in the West-Coast premiere of Antonio Salieri’s Falstaff. 

An avid recitalist, Natalie has performed numerous times in the Eastman Bach Cantata Series, Eastman Collegium Musicum and has served as soloist for the Voices Ensemble, First Inversion, Claremont Symphony Orchestra, and the Skagit Symphony. Some notable solo engagements include J.S. Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Mass in A major and the Mass in B minor, Haydn’s Creation, Händel’s Messiah and Mozart’s Requiem. 

Natalie is a recent graduate of doctoral program at the Eastman School of Music, where she studied with Kathryn Cowdrick. She completed her master’s degree at Eastman under the tutelage of Robert Swensen. Natalie has had the privilege of participating in master classes given by Graham Johnson, Mira Zakai, Dawn Upshaw, Martin Katz, Roger Vignoles, and Jeffrey Thomas. 

Making her home in Los Angeles, Natalie is an Assistant Professor of Voice at Pepperdine University. She served as assistant professor of voice at California State University, Los Angeles as well as voice instructor at AMDA College of the Performing Arts and adjunct instructor at Azusa Pacific University. She is an auxiliary singer with the LA Master Chorale and gigs independently. 

Education

• DMA, Performance & Literature, Voice, Minor in Music Theory, Eastman School of Music, 2019
• MM, Performance & Literature, Voice, Eastman School of Music, 2015
• BM, Vocal Performance, Azusa Pacific University, 2013
• BA, Piano Performance, Azusa Pacific University, 2013