Bass-baritone Michael Lion has died at the age of 60. Lion initially studied piano but eventually switched to conducting. He graduated from the Nuremberg University of Music and later completed external vocal studies there. Lion made his debut at the Nuremberg State Theater where he performed his first roles as the First Soldier in Strauss’ “Salome,” Meister Ortel in “Die {…}
(Credit: Manfred Esser) On July 18, 2025, English Conductor Sir Roger Norrington died at the 91. Norrington was born in Oxford on March 16, 1934, and studied at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Dragon School, Oxford, Westminster School, Clare College, Cambridge, and the Royal College of Music. He was a Violin player and worked as a tenor through {…}
Mezzo-soprano Béatrice Uria-Monzon has passed at the age of 61. The French mezzo was born on Dec. 28, 1963, in Agen, Lot-en-Garonne. She studied at the University of Bordeaux before joining the Centre national d’insertion professionnelle des artistes lyriques in Marseille, and the École d’art lyrique of the Paris Opera. In 1987, Uria-Monzon began her career as a singer in {…}
On July 6, 2025, Helena Tattermuschová died at the age of 92. Born on Jan. 28, 1933, in the Libeň district of Prague, she received her earliest vocal training from her school choirmaster, Václav Matoušek. She went on to study vocal performance with Vlasta Linhartová at the Academy of Music in Prague from 1948 to 1953 and also studied at {…}
Countertenor, conductor, and teacher Charles Brett has died at the age of 83. Brett was educated at Winchester College and King’s College and studied singing with Julian Smith and John Whitworth. Brett was a revered professor who held several teaching posts, including Assistant Music Master at Eton College, Director of Music at Malvern College, and at Westminster School. While at {…}
On June 29, 2025, Welsh Tenor Stuart Burrows died at the age of 92. Born on Feb. 7, 1933, in South Wales, Burrows sang soprano as a boy from his bedroom window to neighbours on the street below. He went on to give his first solo performance as a congregation member at the local Bethel Chapel. Burrows was a rugby player who {…}
(Credit: Met Opera / James Heffernan) Soprano Gilda Cruz-Romo has died at the age of 85. Cruz-Romo was born on Feb. 12, 1940, in Guadalajara, Jalisco, and went on to study at the Mexico City Conservatory. In 1962, she made her debut in Mexico City as Ortlinde in “Die Walküre.” In 1969, she made her New York City Opera debut {…}
(Photo credit: Raber Umphenour) John Conklin, a notable theater and opera designer, passed on June 24, 2025. He was 88. Born on June 22, 1937, in Hartford, Connecticut, Conklin studied at Kingswood-Oxford School and Yale University. Throughout his career he designed for such companies as the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, English National Opera, Royal Opera Stockholm, Opéra National {…}
Soprano Beate Ritter has died at the age of 41. Sono Artists, who managed the soprano, released a statement noting, “We are devastated at the loss of soprano Beate Ritter, who was a client of the agency since 2014. Beate was – for me – first of all, the kindest of souls, compassionate, and full of life and love for {…}
On June 4, Soprano Dinah Bryant died. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, on Sept. 1, 1953, Bryant studied at Georgia State University and went on to have a successful operatic career singing more than 50 roles. Throughout her career, Bryant sang at many of the leading opera houses in the world, including the Opera de Bellas Artes, which she opened during {…}
On June 8, 2025, tenor Vladislav Gorai, a soloist with the Odesa National Opera, died while engaged in a volunteer mission in the northern region of Sumy bordering Russia. The Odesa Opera, which was where Gorai performed, said, “Today, June 8, while performing his volunteer mission in the Sumy region, the soloist of the Odesa National Opera, a world-class tenor, {…}