About

Sébastien Tonnel is a French baritone of Martinican origin. He began his studies at the Conservatoire d’Évry-Courcouronnes in voice and piano. A holder of the Brevet de Technicien des Métiers de la Musique (BTMM), he joined the Maîtrise des Hauts-de-Seine and performed regularly in concert as well as on tour. He was also admitted to the Conservatoire of the 13th arrondissement of Paris in Isabelle Guillaud’s class, where he earned his Diplôme d’Études Musicales (DEM) in lyrical singing. In 2022, he won the Île-de-France regional final of the Concours Voix des Outre-mer, where he was praised by critics (Opéra Magazine): « Sébastien made beautiful music with his Wagner, » and (Music&Opera): « Michel Lambert’s air de cour ‘Sombre désert’ suits Sébastien Tonnel’s voice well, with a strong presence, a well-controlled vocal line, and an elegant timbre. »

In 2022, he joined the Early Music Department of the CRR de Paris in the Concertiste Cycle – Baroque Singing. He trained under conductors Jérôme Correas and Stéphane Fuget, and further honed his craft during masterclasses and projects alongside soprano Sandrine Piau and conductor Hervé Niquet.

He also deepened his training with musicologist Benoît Dratwicki at the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles. At the same time, he joined the national lyrical theatre company L’Arcal, where he refined his artistry with soprano Chantal Santon and conductor Iñaki Encina. He also pursued regular work with baritone Thomas Dolié. In July 2025, he earned his Diplôme de Concertiste, awarded with the Prix du Parcours d’Excellence, and in March 2026 he was a finalist at the Concours des Grandes Voix d’Opéra d’Afrique and received the Special Prize of the Festival de Ternay.

On stage, he stands out in a lyrical repertoire with a particular affinity for baroque works, including: Bass solo (Messiah, Handel), The Narrator (Pyrame et Thisbée, Montéclair), Mercurio (L’Incoronazione di Poppea, Monteverdi), Pallante (Agrippina, Handel), and Huascar (Les Indes galantes, Rameau) under the direction of Stéphane Fuget. As well as the title roles of Irène (Triumph of Peace, William Shirley) and Penthée (Penthée, Philippe d’Orléans), a revival at the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, dir. Fabien Armengaud, praised by critics (Classic Agenda): « Sébastien Tonnel’s fine performances in ‘Penthée’ are worth noting. »

Among his recent role debuts are: Cybelle (Atys en folie, Carolet) dir. Hervé Niquet, Jesus (Le Reniement de Saint-Pierre, Charpentier) dir. Jérôme Correas, recorded for France Musique, Alfesibèo (La Dafne, Cavalli), and Le Seigneur du Village (Le Réciproque, Torri) dir. Stéphane Fuget, praised by the magazine (Baroquiades): « On the male side, we should mention Sébastien Tonnel’s memorable performance, by turns a wild peasant woman in the arms of a dragon during the second act’s feast, and an imposing village lord proclaiming peace and leading the festivities in the third act. » He has performed several times at the festivals « Au cœur de l’Yonne » and « Embarquement Immédiat Valenciennes » with Les Épopées Stéphane Fuget. He recently appeared in the roles of Undertaker and Fisherman (Porgy and Bess, Gershwin) dir. Quentin Hindley, at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées with « Les Grandes Voix » and « Les Voix des Outre-mer. »

His upcoming engagements include: (Porgy and Bess, Gershwin) with the Komische Oper Berlin and Africa Lyric’s Opera on tour, as well as a recital at the Festival de Ternay with conductor Mehdi Lougraïda, next season.