Duncan Stenhouse
Bass

Named one of Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s “30 hot classical musicians under 30, Duncan Stenhouse is a Canadian-British-Irish bass and composer. This past summer 2026 Duncan debuted Opera Holland Park in the UK as Tom in Verdi’s Un ballo in Maschera. Future engagements include Truffaldino in Ariadne auf Naxos with Canadian Opera Company,and his debut in  Jonathna Dove’s The Enchanted Pig with Ammolite Opera. Most recently he appeared as a Resident Artist at the Glimmerglass Festival, and with the Ensemble Studio at COC as Count Ceprano in Verdi’s Rigoletto, Basilio in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia, The Duke while studying Friar Laurent in Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette, and Sparafucile in Rigoletto and Duke Bluebeard in Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle.

In the 2024/25 season, Duncan debuted as a member of Canadian Opera Company’s Ensemble Studio, singing the roles of The High Priest of Baal in Verdi’s Nabucco, First Apprentice in Berg’s Wozzeck, and Zaretsky in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin. He also covered the roles of The Bonze in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, the Assistant to Déscartes in Bilodeau & Bouchard’s La Reine-Garçon, and Prince Gremin in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin.

He is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music where he received his Advanced Diploma in Opera, and Master of Music (Honours). While at the Academy, Duncan sang as Bottom in the school’s production of Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Spinelloccio and Notaio in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi, the Keeper of the Madhouse in Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress, Bartolo in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro, Norton in Rossini’s La cambiale di matrimonio, and Superintendent Budd in Britten’s Albert Herring. He also sang as Il Commendatore, John Claggart, Olin Blitch, and Count Walter in the school’s scenes shows. Outside of the Academy, Duncan has sung the roles of Colline in Puccini’s La bohème for Longborough Festival Opera and Zaccaria in Uncovered Opera’s concert performance of Verdi’s Nabucco. He sang as an Alvarez Young Artist with Garsington Opera for two summers, performing in the chorus and covering the roles of Waiter 3 and Boots in their award-winning production of Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier and Dvorák’s Rusalka.

Prizes and awards include first place in the Christina and Louis Quilico competition, the Sarah Harrison Prize at the Hurn Court Opera Singer of the Year Competition, and the Sybil Tutton Opera Award from Help Musicians. He also placed 3rd at Canadian Opera Company’s 10th Centre Stage Competition and was a finalist in the Emmy Destinn Foundation’s Czech Music Competition.

His Master’s dissertation titled: Songs of the Great White North: Exploring Canada’s Peoples through Art Song, was written on the history of both traditional and classical Canadian song and also earned him an honourary Diploma of the Royal Academy of Music. Duncan is also a proud alumnus of the Memorial School of Music in Newfoundland where he received his Bachelor of Music (Honours) in Voice Performance with a minor in Composition.