American soprano Sara Duchovnay has been hailed by The San Francisco Examiner as “clarion voiced” and OperaWire described her as “dynamic and expressive”, further adding that she “sang with warmth and luster” and “moved with elan, thus matching her vocal vibrancy”. Of her role debut as Nedda in Pagliacci, the Roanoke Times praised her “nuanced portrait of an unhappy woman” and “her high notes [which] rang out with ease at the swelling climaxes in both her first act aria and in her love duet with Silvio.”

Notable performances from the 2025/2026 season, include Sara’s Slovakian debut with the Slovak Philharmonic as the soprano soloist in the Verdi Requiem under the baton of Sascha Goetzel; her Romanian debut with the Filarmonica Banatul Timișoara as the soprano soloist in the Messa per Rossini under the baton of Gabriel Bebeșelea, and her role debut as Liù in Turandot with the Pacific Opera Project.

Highlights from recent seasons include Sara’s debut with the Grand Teton Music Festival, covering Cio-Cio San and singing Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly under the baton of Sir Donald Runnicles. She also made her Swiss debut performing Alma Mahler's Fünf Lieder with the Musikkollegium Winterthur Orchestra under the baton of Kalena Bovell, performed Strauss' Vier Letzte Lieder and Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time with the Shenandoah Bach Festival under the baton of Deanna Tham, and made her Madison Symphony Orchestra debut as the soprano soloist in Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis under the baton of John DeMain.

In November of 2025, Sara debuted her recital program "Silenced Songs: Rediscovering the lost music of Jewish composers" with Maxhaus Düsseldorf, and in March and August of 2026, performed “Silenced Songs” with Opera Baltimore as part of her “Voices in Solidarity” Artist in Residency. This program and the extensive research required to unearth some of the rarer compositions is a true labor of love and something that she hopes to make her musical legacy. Sara has also been honored to serve as Artist in Residence for the Görlitz/Zgorzelec Jewish Remembrance Week, performing concerts in Germany and Poland. As the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, these are projects which are very near to her heart.

Sara’s notable operatic roles include Elisabeth (Tannhäuser), Cio-Cio San (Madama Butterfly), Nedda (Pagliacci), Donna Anna and Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), Alcina (Alcina), and Liù (Turandot).

Sara lives in Berlin with her husband, tenor Clay Hilley, and holds degrees from The Hartt School and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. In her spare time, you can find her at a flea market or antique mall, looking for treasures to add to her collection of vintage clothes and antique jewelry.