Othalie Graham is a Canadian and American dramatic soprano, known for operatic roles such as Turandot in Turandot , Tosca in Tosca , Minnie in La fanciulla del West , Aida in Aida , Elektra in Elektra and Ariadne in Ariadne Auf Naxos .
Othalie Graham is a Canadian and American dramatic soprano, known for operatic roles such as Turandot in Turandot , Tosca in Tosca , Minnie in La fanciulla del West , Aida in Aida , Elektra in Elektra and Ariadne in Ariadne Auf Naxos .
Graham was born in Brampton, Ontario. [1] Her father, a Jamaican-born Canadian, instilled in Graham a strong identification with Jamaican music and culture. [1] When Graham was young, her father sparked her interest in opera by taking her to see a Leontyne Price recital. [1] Her passion in opera grew while attending high school at the Etobicoke School of the Arts. While in Canada, Graham was awarded first place in the Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyriques Competition and received the coveted Jean Chalmers prize in the Canadian Music Competition. [2]
Graham attended the Academy of Vocal Arts [3] after studying under Lois McDonall. [4] At AVA, she studied under Bill Schuman and continues to study with him. [1] Graham has won the Opera at Florham voice competition [5] as well as the Liederkranz Foundations's annual competition, [6] where she made her New York City recital debut. [7] She was also the New Jersey district winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and a finalist in the Palm Beach Opera Competition. [2] Graham also spent a summer training under the widely admired Italian opera singer Renata Scotto at the Renata Scotto Opera Academy at the Music Conservatory of Westchester. [2] [3]
Graham started her professional career in October 2004 in the title role of Puccini's Turandot at OperaDelaware, [8] a roll in which she repeated at the Utah Festival Opera. [9] Her performance was well received, with one reviewer writing she "has a huge, powerful voice that fills the auditorium and navigates the musical difficulties beautifully" [10] another writing, "a statuesque soprano with both power and sweetness in a disciplined voice." [11]
In 2005, she was awarded the prestigious Sullivan Foundation Grant. [2]
In 2006, her performance in the production of "Turandot" at the Sacramento Opera was identified as the single reason that its success was never in question. [12] In July 2006, Graham added title role of Floria Tosca in Giacomo Puccini's opera Tosca. [3]
In 2007, Graham added the role of Odabella in Attila as part of her Sarasota Opera debut, where she "blasted Young-Bok Kim's Attila off his throne" with "a big wagnerian voice." [13]
On September 25, 2007, Her performance of "Aida" at El Paso Opera House was amazing having critic Paul Westman saying "At the end of the scene I was blown out of my seat by the loudest E flat that I have ever heard in my life! The interesting thing is that the note did not "sound HIGH" to my ear as it usually does at end of a cabaletta. It was huge and cut through the opera house like a laser beam!". [14]
 | This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(March 2023) |
Renata Scotto was an Italian soprano, opera director, and voice teacher. Recognised for her sense of style, her musicality, and as a remarkable singer-actress, Scotto is considered to have been one of the preeminent opera singers of her generation.
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. 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.
Spinto is a vocal term used to characterize a soprano or tenor voice of a weight between lyric and dramatic that is capable of handling large musical climaxes in opera at moderate intervals.
Rosa Raisa was a Polish-born and Italian-trained Russian and Jewish operatic dramatic soprano who became a naturalized American. She possessed a voice of remarkable power and was the creator of the title role of Puccini's last opera, Turandot, at La Scala, Milan.
Live from the Metropolitan Opera later renamed The Metropolitan Opera Presents was an American television program that presented performances of complete operas from the Metropolitan Opera in New York City on the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) network.
Andrea Gruber is an American dramatic soprano particularly admired for her interpretations of the works of Puccini, Verdi, and Wagner.
Alessandra Marc, born Judith Borden is an American dramatic soprano who has appeared at many of the world's opera houses and orchestras. Marc is particularly known for her interpretations of the works of Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Giuseppe Verdi, music of the Second Viennese School, and the title role in Puccini's Turandot.
Sylvie Valayre is a French operatic soprano known for her versatile interpretations of lyric, spinto, and dramatic coloratura soprano parts. She sings grueling roles like Abigaille, Lady Macbeth or Turandot as well as lighter pieces like Giordano's Maddalena, Cio-Cio San, or Verdi's Desdemona at major opera houses around the world.
Sondra Dee Radvanovsky is an American and Canadian soprano. Specializing in 19th-century Italian opera, Radvanovsky is widely regarded as a leading interpreter of bel canto, verismo, and works by Giuseppe Verdi. Her repertoire includes the title roles in Médée, Norma, Tosca, and Rusalka, Leonora in Il trovatore, Lady Macbeth in Macbeth, and Donizetti's "Tudor Queens": the title roles in Anna Bolena, Maria Stuarda, and Elizabeth I in Roberto Devereux.
Éva Marton is a Hungarian dramatic soprano, particularly known for her operatic portrayals of Puccini's Turandot and Tosca, and Wagnerian roles.
Maria Agasovna Guleghina is a Soviet-born operatic soprano singer, particularly associated with the Italian repertory.
Lois Jeanette McDonall is a Canadian operatic soprano, especially known for her performances in the operas of Mozart and Donizetti.
James Westman is a Canadian baritone known for his interpretation of the Verdi, Puccini and bel canto operatic repertoire, and particularly his signature role of Germont in La traviata, which he has sung in over 150 performances, with opera companies such as San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Graz Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, Opéra de Montréal, Los Angeles Opera, Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, Canadian Opera Company, Boston Lyric Opera, Cologne Opera, Vancouver Opera, English National Opera, San Diego Opera, Dallas Opera, Utah Opera, and Opera Theatre of St. Louis. On January 29, 2011 Westman created the lead role of Sandy Keith In the world premiere of Bramwell Tovey's The Inventor. In 2017 he played Sir John A. MacDonald in Harry Somers's Louis Riel for the Canadian Opera Company's tribute to Canada's 150th celebrations. As a recitalist, he has performed for the Marilyn Horne Foundation, Aldeburgh Connection, Aldeburgh Festival, Musikverein, Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Morgan Library & Museum, Koerner Hall, Carnegie Hall, Saito Kinen Festival in Japan, Stratford Summer Music, British Broadcasting Corporation, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Westman first came to attention at the age of twelve when he was the first boy soprano to perform and record Mahler 4th Symphony with Benjamin Zander and the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra in 1984. Westman is regularly featured as the Anthem singer for the Toronto Maple Leafs and numerous other NHL franchises. Four of Westman's recordings have been nominated for a Juno Award. Two recordings nominated for a Grammy Award.
Jennifer Wilson is an American soprano known especially for her Wagnerian opera roles. She is the daughter of Newton Wilson and Katherine Still. The daughter, granddaughter and niece of professional singers, instrumentalists and music educators, Wilson grew up steeped in music from opera and oratorio to rock 'n' roll and bluegrass. She began tap dance lessons at age 3, ballet at 8, piano at 10, and solo classical singing at 12. Wilson attended Cornell University for several years, eventually departing on a leave of absence which she filled with advanced training in acting, languages, and vocal studies with former Metropolitan Opera coloratura soprano Marilyn Cotlow. During this time, Wilson supported herself as a news bureau assistant and wire editor for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. The consolidation of US international broadcast services in 1995 caused Wilson to lose her position with RFE/RL, forcing her to find other employment. At this point she took up singing full-time, though her breakthrough to the elusive ranks of international soloist was still several years away.
Anne McKnight was an operatic soprano.
He Hui, is a Chinese operatic lirico-spinto soprano known in the West and on record covers as Hui He.
Amarilli Nizza is an Italian operatic soprano.
Dragana Radakovic is an operatic soprano, conductor and academic. With a flexible voice, she is able to sing bel canto as well as dramatic soprano roles. She has appeared at major opera houses in title and leading roles, including Bellini's Norma, Verdi's Aida, and Puccini's Turandot.
Elena Guseva is a Russian operatic soprano who has performed at major opera houses in Europe. Besides standard repertoire such as Verdi's Aida and Puccini's Mimi, she has focused on roles by Russian composers, such as Tchaikovsky's Lisa and Prokofiev's Polina, a role she performed when Der Spieler was first performed at the Vienna State Opera.
Amber Wagner is an American soprano who has performed internationally to critical acclaim. She has often performed in the operas of composer Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner.