Famed composer Carlisle Floyd, who was considered one of the greatest American opera composers in history, has died at the age of 95. Born on June 11, 1926, in Latta, South Carolina, he was the son of a Methodist minister. He began his musical studies in 1943 when he entered Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and studied piano under {…}
Australian Director Andrew Sinclair has died. Born in Melbourne, Sinclair was an internationally recognized opera stage director who worked at some of the most important opera houses in the world including the Royal Opera House, New York City Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Seattle Opera, Washington National Opera, Opera de Montreal, and Opera Australia. He also directed {…}
British opera bass-baritone Norman Stanley Bailey has died at the age of 88 in the city of Rexburg, Idaho. Bailey was born on March 23, 1933 in Birmingham, England and after an early career in Austria and Germany, he settled in England and became a major player with the English National Opera. From there, he emigrated with his parents to {…}
On September 2, 2021, leading Greek composer Michail “Mikis” Theodorakis passed away at the age of 96. He is remembered for his prolific body of works, as well as his involvement in the political struggle of Greece. Born on July 29, 1925, in Chios, Theodorakis was drawn to music at an early age, being influenced by Byzantine liturgical music. After {…}
Soprano Carmen Balthrop has died at the age of 73. Born in Maryland, the soprano went on to win the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and made her Met debut in 1977 as Pamina in Mozart’s “Die Zauberflöte.” She went on to have a distinguished career at major opera houses including San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Washington National Opera, Canadian {…}
(Credit: Metropolitan Opera Archives) On August 28, 2021, Soprano Teresa Żylis-Gara died at the age of 91. Żylis-Gara was born on January 23, 1930, in Landwarów, Second Polish Republic. She studied at the Łódź Music Academy for nine years. In 1954, the soprano won first prize at the Polish Young Vocalists Contest in Warsaw which brought her engagements to sing {…}
Conductor Michael Morgan died August 20 at Oakland Kaiser. He was 63-years-old. Morgan, who had been the Music Director of the Oakland Symphony since 1991, had been admitted to the hospital last week for an infection. He had undergone kidney transplant surgery in May and had gone back to work shortly thereafter. Morgan was born in Washington, D.C. and showed {…}
Former chairman of the Royal Opera Sir Colin Southgate has died on July 26, 2021 at the age of 83. Southgate led the Royal Opera House Board during and following its major redevelopment in the late 1990’s and ensured the survival of the opera house. He also helped in appointing Michael Kaiser and Tony Hall to lead the administration and {…}
Charles Burles has died at the age of 85. Born on June 21, 1936 in Marseille, France, Burles went on to study voice with Léon Cazauran. In 1958, he made his stage debut in Toulon and went on to appear at the Opéra de Marseille, as Almaviva in “Il barbiere di Siviglia.” In the following years, he would sing exclusively {…}
(Credit: Amy Charles / Opera North) Dr. Keith Howard OBE, president and greatest benefactor of Opera North, founder and owner of Emerald Publishing passed away on August 12, 2021. He was 89. Throughout his career, Howard was an inspiring, respected and committed leader in the publishing industry, who built Emerald into a global company, with more than 450 colleagues around {…}
(Credit: © /Quentin Driftwood) On July 29, 2021, Austrian heldentenor Peter Svensson died at the age of 57 due to COVID-19 complications. Svensson was born on June 2, 1964 in Vienna, Austria, and began his singing career as a soloist with the Vienna Boys’ Choir. After graduating from high school, he studied at the Vienna Music High School and graduated {…}