Rachel Beausoleil was once told by an audience member that she “becomes a giant on
the stage.” This big voice is no accident. Rachel has done more than her 10,000 hours
of practice… She treats her voice like a living instrument, honing and refining her game
constantly.

Rachel studied voice, interpretation and improvisation with:

♪ Acclaimed bass-baritone Ingemar Korjus
♪ JUNO winner Jeri Brown
♪ Bossa nova legend Rosa Passos

Rachel’s vibrant stage presence engages her audiences immediately.

“Beausoleil’s joy in her music was readily communicated to the audience… I don’t speak
Portuguese, but Beausoleil’s expressive voice, face and gestures told me what I needed
to know.” – L.T.

Her powerful voice, with its three and a half octave range, can skip nimbly through
quick passages and plumb the depths of raw emotion. A singing storyteller, she draws
listeners in with her unique interpretations and clear diction. She performs seamlessly in
6 languages.

Noteworthy venues where Rachel has performed include:

♪ the Molson Stage at Toronto’s Harbourfront
♪ the Canadian Prime Minister’s residence, in Ottawa
♪ Le Casino de Hull in Gatineau, Canada
♪ Le Balcon, in Montreal, Canada
♪ Almanaque Café, in Campinas, Brazil
♪ Madeleine Bar, in São Paulo, Brazil

Rachel completed a PhD on Brazilian popular song, and a master’s degree on jazz vocal
improvisation. She maintains that her academic studies have made her a better
musician. She says: “My studies lead me to travel and perform with a variety of
musicians. They also forced me to delve into my own life, perspective and energy, in
ways that percolate into my music.”

Rachel went to Brazil in 2012, to perform, teach and do research. She gave a lecture-
recital at the Department of French Letters at the University of São Paulo (USP), Latin
America’s largest university. USP then invited her to return in 2013 to participate in a
musical tour called the Panamérica Canção Project. Rachel toured the State of São
Paulo with 8 Brazilian musicians and a producer, sponsored by USP. She also produced
a series of workshops, lectures and shows with the same group in Ottawa the same
year. Rachel returned to Brazil for six weeks in 2015 to perform, teach and finalize her
research.

While in Brazil, Rachel conducted vocal masterclasses, gave lectures, conferences, and
performances at several locations, including restaurant/bars, private music schools, and
universities. She also studied with Rosa Passos, who gave her a thumbs-up. Rachel
attended Passos’s concert. Passos stopped between songs and mentioned Rachel,
telling the audience that Rachel is a “Canadian singer who sings samba just right.”

Rachel’s forays into Brazil met with enthousiastic appreciation. And the reviews her
2020 album Brazz has received in Brazil, the US, and the UK have been nothing but
stellar.

“Her rich timbre with its gentle vibrato is a perfect fit for the idiom” – Gordon Jack,
JazzJournal.co.uk

“[Beausoleil’s] vocals are so endearing, enchanting, and entrancing (she’s hypnotic on
every track…) – Tony Frankel, StageAndCinema.com

Since the days of Ottawa’s After Eight Jazz club in the early 1990s, Rachel has
performed with many groups that performed in the Ottawa-Toronto-Montreal corridor:

♪ C’est What? a capella jazz sextet
♪ Calixa Lavalée chamber choir, University of Ottawa
♪ Vox Eclectica women’s chamber choir
♪ The Juliet Singers women’s voice trio
♪ The Capital Voices mixed vocal quartet
♪ Caoba Latin jazz group
♪ Sonic Circle jazz combo
♪ Beausoleil Trio, with guitarist Garry Elliott and percussionist Liz Hanson.
♪ Sol da capital Brazilian jazz project with co-composer and co-founder, guitarist
Evandro Gracelli

Discography:

Sol da Capital (2022). Sol da Capital is a long-awaited full-length album of original jazz
songs by award-nominated Canadian producer and singer-songwriter Rachel Beausoleil,
and Brazilian guitarist-composer Evandro Gracelli. Brazilian jazz grooves are sung in
English, French and Portuguese, with an emphasis on the interplay between voice and
woodwinds. Supported by the Ontario Arts Council, and selections featured in Encore
Ottawa 2021, by the Ottawa Music Industry Coalition (OMIC).

Brazz (2020). Nominated for best production and arrangements by the Capital Music
Awards. Rachel invites the listener on a journey into the vast ocean of Brazilian popular
song with jazz covers of classic tunes. A contingent of Brazilian and Canadian musicians
perform in duet, trio and quintet formation. Brazz has received praise on three
continents.

Close to My Heart (2001). Classic jazz ballads, French chansons, and Latin boleros come
together for an intimate, ambiance-setting, small combo sound. Canadian jazz legend,
Roddy Ellias appears as guitarist, producer and arranger. Fraser Hollins (double bass)
and Matt Pencer (drums) also back Rachel Beausoleil’s debut album. Now available on
digital platforms.

The Dawning (2009). This album of jazz covers features songs from the United States,
Belgium, France, Russia, Canada, Brazil and New York’s Puerto Rican quarter. The first
track, Aquarius, inspired the album title. Rachel creates an intimate trio sound with
pianist Yves Laroche and bassist Tom Posner.

Trille des voix (2012). A passion project of 91 songs arranged by seasons for the school
year. Popular demand forced Rachel to reissue the double-CD in 2020. She is also
featured as conductor and vocalist on Elise Letourneau’s Requiem for Fourteen Roses
(2014).

Other music-related activities:

She maintains a thriving private teaching studio in Ottawa. She is sought-after for her
expertise in world musics, and vocal technique and interpretation as a faculty member
of CAMMAC Music Centre, serving Ontario and Québec.

Rachel has authored a book entry on Quebec song-writer Félix Leclerc. She wrote an
article on Canadian indigenous throat singing for CAMMAC’s Toronto Region newsletter.
And she is currently working on her own manuscript on voice technique and
interpretation.