About Danika
Danika Lorèn is a multi-disciplinary creative force based in Toronto, known for their bold fusion of classical tradition and contemporary innovation. Danika brings a distinctive voice to both performance and composition, creating work that is emotionally rich, theatrically compelling, and technically virtuosic.
As a composer, Lorèn's work has been showcased internationally at Wigmore Hall, the Leeds Lieder Festival, National Sawdust, Cincinnati Song Initiative and the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ. Within Canada, their compositions have been featured by the Canadian Opera Company, Soundstreams, the Canadian Art Song Project, the Women's Musical Club of Toronto, Pacific Opera Victoria, the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra, Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra and the CBC. Danika's musical style is marked by an intimate, text-driven approach that blends their intimate knowledge of the classical voice with a modern emotional nuance. Though Danika is largely self-taught, they have also received mentorship in composition from Lori Laitman through the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS).
As a performer, Danika's repertoire encompasses intimate art song, contemporary chamber works, and traditional opera. They regularly perform with the Happenstancers, a leading voice in Toronto's contemporary chamber scene, and have given many Canadian and North American debuts of living composers including Tansy Davies, Shawn Jaeger and Thierry Tidrow. Danika is a skilled interpreter of new music and a keen explorer of extended techniques, with a particular focus on developing the acoustic/unamplified voice through improvisation. This exploration was greatly inspired by Danika's time at Westben's Performer/Composer residency (2024).
Danika is an alum of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium Young Artists and graduate of the Canadian Opera Company's Ensemble studio. They completed a Bachelor of Vocal Performance with J. Patrick Raftery and Master in Opera Performance with Wendy Nielsen, both from University of Toronto. Danika began their music journey at a young age under the guidance of Marilyn Whitehead (voice) and Penny Joynt (piano) in their hometown of Saskatoon, SK.