Lucia Dunham (died April 3, 1959, Paramus, New Jersey [1] ) was an American voice teacher, classical soprano, and academic writer on singing and diction who is chiefly remembered as a longtime professor of vocal performance at the Juilliard School from 1922-1956. [2]
Born in New York City, she studied voice at the National Conservatory of Music of America and then the Institute of Musical Art (now the Juilliard School) where she earned a diploma in 1909 and was a voice student of Adrian Freni, George Henschel, and Milka Ternina. [3] She became a resident artist at the Paris Opera where she continued training with Alfred Giraudet. [3] She pursued further studies with Lilli Lehmann in Salzburg and at the University of California, Berkeley where she also taught as a member of the voice faculty prior to her post at Juilliard. [4] At Berkeley she collaborated closely with musicologist Charles Seeger, and gave recitals of folk songs that were collected and/or arranged by him. [5] [6] She left California after the death of her husband in 1921 to live close to her remaining family in New York City. [5] She also taught voice part time at Columbia University in addition to teaching full time at the Juilliard School. [7]
As a performer Dunham was mainly active in recitals and concerts in the United States and Europe, but did appear in operas in France, Austria, and California. [3] She was particularly active as a soloist with the San Francisco Symphony and the New York Symphony Orchestra under Walter Damrosch. [2] In her earlier career when she was more active she performed as a soprano, but in later years she performed as a mezzo-soprano. A founding member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing, many of her pupils had successful performance careers both in the United States and abroad, including Charles Bressler, Anne Brown, Ruby Elzy, Nanette Fabray, Elia Kazan, Rosemary Kuhlmann, Carmen Velma Shepperd, and Graciela Rivera among others. [2] [8] [4] [9] She wrote several published monographs on the art of singing and on diction for singers. [3] [4] She died in hospital in Paramus, New Jersey on April 3, 1959. [1]
Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano known for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s.
Mary Violet Leontyne Price is an American spinto soprano who was the first African American soprano to receive international acclaim. From 1961 she began a long association with the Metropolitan Opera, where she was the first African American to be a leading performer. She regularly appeared at the world's major opera houses, including the Royal Opera House, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and La Scala; at La Scala, she was also the first African American to sing a leading role. She was particularly renowned for her performances of the title role in Verdi's Aida.
Eileen Farrell was an American soprano who had a nearly 60-year-long career performing both classical and popular music in concerts, theatres, on radio and television, and on disc. NPR noted, "She possessed one of the largest and most radiant operatic voices of the 20th century." While she was active as an opera singer, her concert engagements far outnumbered her theatrical appearances. Her career was mainly based in the United States, although she did perform internationally. The Daily Telegraph stated that she "was one of the finest American sopranos of the 20th century; she had a voice of magnificent proportions which she used with both acumen and artistry in a wide variety of roles." And described as having a voice "like some unparalleled phenomenon of nature. She is to singers what Niagara is to waterfalls."
Ruby Pearl Elzy was an American operatic soprano. She appeared on stage and in films. She recorded on albums before her death in her 30s from surgery to remove a benign tumor.
Adele Addison is an American lyric soprano who was a figure in the classical music world during the 1950s and 1960s. Although she did appear in several operas, Addison spent most of her career performing in recital and concert. Her performances spanned a wide array of literature from the Baroque period to contemporary compositions. She is best remembered today as the singing voice for Bess in the 1959 movie, Porgy and Bess. Known for her polished and fluent tone, Addison made a desirable Baroque vocal artist. She can be heard on numerous recordings, of which her Baroque performances are perhaps her best work. Many of her recordings were made with the New York Philharmonic under the baton of Leonard Bernstein.
Lilli Lehmann, born Elisabeth Maria Lehmann, later Elisabeth Maria Lehmann-Kalisch was a German operatic dramatic coloratura soprano. She was also a voice teacher.
Sir Isidor George Henschel was a German-born British baritone, pianist, conductor, composer and academic teacher. First trained as a pianist, he was a concert singer who sometimes sang to his own accompaniment. He was a close friend of Johannes Brahms. His first wife Lillian was also a singer. He was the first conductor of both the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. He taught at the Institute of Musical Art in New York City.
Licia Albanese was an Italian-born American operatic soprano. Noted especially for her portrayals of the lyric heroines of Verdi and Puccini, Albanese was a leading artist with the Metropolitan Opera from 1940 to 1966. She also made many recordings and was chairwoman of The Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation, which is dedicated to assisting young artists and singers.
Florence Quivar is an American operatic mezzo-soprano who is considered to be "one of the most prominent singers of her generation." She has variously been described as having a "rich, earthy sound and communicative presence" as "always reliable" and as "a distinguished singer, with a warm, rich voice and a dignified performing presence." From 1977-1997 she was a regular performer at the Metropolitan Opera where she gave more than 100 performances.
Harolyn Blackwell is an American lyric coloratura soprano who has performed in many of the world's finest opera houses, concert halls, and theaters in operas, oratorios, recitals, and Broadway musicals. Initially known for her work within musical theater during the early 1980s, Blackwell moved into the field of opera and by 1987 had established herself as an artist within the soubrette repertoire in many major opera houses both in the United States and in Europe. Feeling that she was being "type cast" into one particular kind of role, Blackwell strove to establish herself within the lyric coloratura repertoire beginning in the mid-1990s. With the aid of such companies as Seattle Opera, Blackwell successfully made this move and is now an interpreter of such roles as Lucia in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor and Olympia in Offenbach's Les contes d'Hoffman. She has also periodically returned to musical theater performances throughout her career in staged productions, concert work, and recitals. Blackwell is known for her interpretations and recordings of the works of Leonard Bernstein.
Meagan Miller is an American soprano with an active international career in opera, recital and concert.
Regina Sarfaty, later Regina Sarfaty Rickless after her marriage to Elwood A. Rickless in 1963, is an American operatic mezzo-soprano who had an active career during the 1950s through the 1980s. Sarfaty first rose to prominence through her work at the Santa Fe Opera and the New York City Opera during the late 1950s. She later enjoyed international success in the 1960s and 1970s, and had a particularly lengthy career singing with the Zurich Opera.
Clarissa Ocampo is a Filipino-American mezzo-soprano. She is best known for her album Cradle Songs and sings professionally in the United States and Asia.
Shirlee Emmons was an American classical soprano, voice teacher, and author on vocal pedagogy. She began her career in the early 1940s as a concert soprano, eventually becoming one of the original singers in the Robert Shaw Chorale in 1948. She branched out into opera in the 1950s; performing mainly with regional companies in the United States. She achieved several honours as a performer, including winning the Marian Anderson Award in 1953 and an Obie Award in 1956.
Edith WiensOC is a Canadian opera, recital and concert singer with a soprano voice.
Cynthia Clarey is an American operatic singer and educator. In opera, she has sung both soprano and mezzo-soprano roles and is often associated with the role of Carmen.
Carmen Velma Shepperd was an American singer, pianist, and educator, born in Jamaica.
Sarah Robinson-Duff was an American operatic soprano and celebrated voice teacher of many important opera singers, including Mary Garden and Alice Nielsen. She wrote the vocal pedagogy book Simple Truths Used by Great Singers (1919) which was based in the tradition of Robinson-Duff's teacher, Mathilde Marchesi. She is considered one of the most important American voice teachers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Florence Page Kimball was an American soprano who became a celebrated voice teacher at the Juilliard School where she taught for 46 years. She taught hundreds of students, and many of her pupils had successful performance careers. Her most famous student was soprano Leontyne Price. As a soprano Kimball was primarily active as a recitalist. In 1929 she performed Verdi arias in a touring vaudeville production.
Joyce Mathis was an American soprano who was a concert artist, recitalist, and opera singer from the 1960s into the early 1990s. She is considered a part of the first generation of black classical singers to achieve success in the United States; breaking down racial barriers within the field of classical music. She won several notable singing competitions, including the Marian Anderson Award in 1967 and the Young Concert Artists in 1968. In 1970 she recorded the role of the High Priestess in Verdi's Aida alongside Leontyne Price and Placido Domingo. Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Ned Rorem wrote his song cycle Women's Voices for her in 1975. In 1976 she created the role of Celestina in Roger Ames's opera Amistad at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. She appeared frequently in performances with Opera Ebony and the Boys Choir of Harlem in addition to touring widely as a recitalist and concert soprano.
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