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    Soprano Breanna Sinclairé Presents World Premiere of Trans Requiem in New York

    By David Perry –

    San Francisco-based soprano Breanna Sinclairé on September 18, 2025, was the featured soloist in the world premiere of cellist-composer and two-time Grammy winner Andrew Yee’s Trans Requiem. The powerful performance, at Trinity Church Wall Street in New York City, continues to gain national acclaim, especially since key moments were shared via Sinclairé’s social media, such as at Facebook: https://bit.ly/46YBVRJ and Instagram: https://bit.ly/4mXBnS2

    The deeply moving piece was written for and inspired by transgender voices. For Sinclairé, it was testimony. She says, “It was about finding beauty in struggle and giving voice to those who have been silenced.”

    Finding Her Own Voice

    Born in Baltimore, Sinclairé received a Bachelor’s of Music at the California Institute of the Arts and earned her master’s degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she became the first trans woman in the opera program under the guidance of Ruby Pleasure.

    “I always knew my path was in music,” she has said. “Opera gave me the language to express who I truly am.”

    Since then, she has built a career that spans both classical and contemporary works, including roles in CarmenThe Magic FluteWest Side Story, and Meredith Monk’s Songs of Ascension.

    Breaking Barriers

    In 2015, Sinclairé became the first transgender woman to sing the National Anthem at a professional sporting event in the United States, performing for the Oakland A’s. She has since appeared at the Kennedy Center, with the San Francisco Symphony, and with opera companies and choruses nationwide.

    But just as significant are her performances with community and LGBTQ+ organizations, from Pride festivals to collaborations with the Gay Men’s Choruses of San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. “Representation matters,” Sinclairé notes. “When a young person sees me on stage, I want them to know there’s space for their voice too.”

    Connection to Most Holy Redeemer

    Here in the Bay Area, Sinclairé has an enthusiastic group of admirers at Most Holy Redeemer, the Roman Catholic church of the Castro. It was there, in the church’s choir, that Sinclairé gained confidence to affirm her gender identity and to further pursue her life as a singer.

    “She is incredibly talented,” says parishioner and former San Francisco Bay Times financial advisor Nanette Lee Miller. “We look forward to when we can again hear her in person in San Francisco.”
    http://breannasinclaire.com/

    David Perry of David Perry & Associates is the author of the novel “Upon This Rock,” a literary thriller set in the hilltop town of Orvieto, Italy.

    Published on October 9, 2025