New Zealand baritone Barry Mora has died at the age of 81.

Born in Palmerston North, Mora went to Taikorea School and then on to Palmerston North Boys’ High, where his musical interests began. In 1971, He then began his career in New Zealand as Valentin in “Faust.” From there, he studied in London with Otakar Kraus and John Matthews and joined the Geksenkirchen City Opera in Germany in 1976 until 1980. From 1980 to 1987, Mora became a member of Oper Frankfurt.

After his work in Frankfurt, he went on to perform as a guest artist with the De Nederlandse Opera, the Edinburgh Festival, La Monnaie, the Royal Opera House, the Scottish Opera, Theater Aachen, the Vancouver Opera, and the Welsh National Opera among others. He also performed in such countries as New Zealand, Germany, United Kingdom, Wales, Australia, Denmark, Canada, Spain, and Argentina.

Outside of his performance career, the baritone worked with young singers and was a vocal tutor at the New Zealand Opera Training School in Whanganui. He also became a member of the board at The NBR New Zealand Opera.