Lyric Tenor Lenard Whiting has sung professionally for the past two and a half decades. Over the course of his distinguished career he has worked with the Canadian Opera Company, Opera in Concert, Vancouver Opera Company, Toronto Operetta Theatre, Summer Opera Lyric Theatre, Opera Anonymous, Opera York, Maritime Concert Opera in Nova Scotia and Opera Mississauga.
His many oratorio performances included Bach’s St. Matthew (English) and St. John Passion (German/English), Weihnachts Oratorium and Magnificat, Britten’s St. Nicholas, Dvorak’s Stabat Mater, Handel’s Messiah and Ode on the Death of Queen Elizabeth, Haydn’s Creation and various Masses, Mendelssohn’s Lobgesang and Elijah, Mozart’s Requiem, Masses and Vespers, Puccini’s Messa di Gloria and Vaughan William’s Hodie and Serenade to Music.

Among his memorable appearances were at an evening celebrating English composers, most notably Benjamin Britten, at an Opera Anonymous/TrypTych Productions performance in Toronto, and at a highly successful presentation of Sir Edward Elgar's Dream of Gerontius, one of the greatest choral works to come from a British composer since Purcell, brought to Toronto audiences by the Pax Christi Chorale with Lenard singing the part of Gerontius.

Equally at ease with lieder recitals, particularly with his interpretation of Franz Schubert's Die Winterreise and Schumann's Dichterliebe and Liederkreis, Lenard represented Canada at a four-continent-wide Chamber Music Festival, Lebensstürme, which had a most successful inauguration in May 2001 in Austria and which immediately resulted in an invitation for Lenard to participate again in 2002 in Austria, Australia, Canada, and Japan. Most recently Lenard was featured as guest artist with the Summer Institute of Church (SICM) 2007 where he performed Vaughan Williams’ “Songs of Travel” and Finzi’s “Dies Natalis”.
Lenard's repertoire includes Bruckner's Mass in F minor, recitals in Eastbourne, Chichester and Portsmouth, England, the Festival in Austria, and a concert series with Princess Caroline Murat of Monaco, performances at Place des Artes, Montreal. In July 2002 Lenard was a featured soloist in a gala concert presented to Pope John Paul II during his visit to Toronto. Most recently he performed in the Toronto International Chamber Music Festival, where, among other things, he sang the Canadian premiere of Andrew Ager's Campfire in the Sun song cycle. Lenard recently made his Nova Scotia debut at the inaugural concert and consequent concerts with the newly-formed Maritime Concert Opera, in a programme of opera arias and duets performed in Liverpool, Lunenburg and Halifax to very enthusiastic audiences! Consequent performances have included Cavellaria Rusticana, and working with Opera Nova Scotia. Recent performances have included performing the role of Evangelist in both Bach's St. Matthew and St. John Passions including performances in March 2006 at St. James' Cathedral Toronto with members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Choirs of St. James' Cathedral, University of Toronto at Scarborough Concert Choir and Ensemble TrypTych Chamber Choir in the dual roles as Evangelist and Conductor. This past October Lenard participated in the International Bach Symposium in the Conducting Masterclasses under the esteemed direction of Maestro Helmuth Rilling.

Lenard was born in Kenora, Ontario, and educated at the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto. He lives in Toronto where he is also active as a conductor, music educator (both privately and with the University of Toronto), Co-founder/producer of TrypTych Productions, "Canada's Advocates of the Vocal Arts", and church organist and choir director at Trinity Presbyterian Church, Toronto. Lenard enthusiastically shares his passion of music with all with whom he comes in contact.

REPERTOIRE