Amber Wagner is an American

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

who has performed internationally to critical acclaim. She has often performed in the operas of composer

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

and

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

Early life and education

Born in Santa Barbara, California but raised in Hillsboro, Oregon, both her parents were musicians and were active in the musical community while she was growing up. She began her opera journey when she auditioned for an on-campus vocal ensemble at Grand Canyon University. Originally an intended sociology major, she auditioned for Dr. Sheila Corley in hopes of earning scholarship money and was quickly encouraged to switch her major to music.

Career

In 2007, Wagner was accepted as one of six to the prestigious Metropolitan National Council Auditions and was consequently featured in the documentary ''The Audition''.

2014-2015

Wagner debuted at the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Leonora in Verdi's '' Il Trovatore'' as well as Elizabeth in Richard Wagner's Tannhäuser. She also debuted with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, L'Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice, and the

Houston Symphony Orchestra The Houston Symphony is an American orchestra based in Houston, Texas. The orchestra is resident at the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts. History The first concert of what was to become the Houston Symphony took place on June 21, 1 ...

. Wagner performed with the

Orquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco The Jalisco Philharmonic Orchestra (Spanish: Orquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco) is a Mexican orchestra. It was established in 1912 by José Rolón as the Guadalajara Symphonic Orchestra in Guadalajara, Jalisco in Mexico. The Orchestra resides at T ...

in an all-Richard Wagner program, the Russian National Orchestra in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 at the Napa Valley Festival del Sole, and as Senta in a performance with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra during the Ravinia Festival.

2015-2016

Wagner debuted at the Bayerische Staatsoper in the role of Ariadne auf Naxos, a role which she reprised later that season at the

Minnesota Opera Minnesota Opera is a performance organization based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was founded as the Center Opera Company in 1963 by the Walker Art Center, and is known for premiering such diverse works as ''Where the Wild Things Are'' by Oliver ...

and Palm Beach Opera. She took the role of Senta and Sieglande in the Oper Frankfurt, Verdi's

Requiem A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

with the Los Angeles Master Chorale and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, as well as a selection of the music of Richard Wagner with the

Minnesota Orchestra The Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded originally as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, the Minnesota Orchestra plays most of its concerts at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall. History Em ...

. Additionally, she performed a selection of Strauss Lieder and Mahler's Symphony No. 4 with the

. She also performed alongside mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton at the Tucson Desert Song Festival and

Arizona Opera Arizona Opera is an opera company which operates in both Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. History Arizona Opera was established in 1971 as the Tucson Opera Company, under founding general director James P. Sullivan, and presented its first productio ...

2017-2018

Wagner debuted in Australia in the role of Sieglande as well as taking the role of Senta in Richard Wagner's The Flying Dutchman at The Metropolitan Opera. She reprised the role of Sieglinde in Richard Wagner's '' Die Walküre'' at the 2017 Edinburgh Festival, and returned to the Lyric Opera of Chicago, taking the role of Turandot which she had previously performed with the Vancouver Opera. With Opera Australia, she debuted as Aida, reprised the role of Senta in Rome with the

Accademia di Santa Cecilia The Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia ( en, National Academy of St Cecilia) is one of the oldest musical institutions in the world, founded by the papal bull ''Ratione congruit'', issued by Sixtus V in 1585, which invoked two saints prom ...

as well as the National RAI Symphony Orchestra. She also performed Verdi's Requiem with the Oregon Symphony.

2018-2019

Wagner took the role of Giorgetta in Puccini's

Il Tabarro ''Il tabarro'' (''The Cloak'') is an opera in one act by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Giuseppe Adami, based on 's play ''La houppelande''. It is the first of the trio of operas known as ''Il trittico''. The first performance was given ...

at The Metropolitan Opera, Turandot with Opera Australia, and Sieglinde in a performance of

Wagner's Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

Die Walküre with Oper Frankfurt as well as at a Tanglewood performance which was met with critical acclaim.

2020-

In the summer of 2022, Wagner took the role of Ruth in ''The Pirates of Penzance'' with the Cincinnati Opera as well as took the role of Brangäne in Richard Wagner's '' Tristan und Isolde'' in the fall of 2022 with the Seattle Opera. In the winter she performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra featuring Act 3 of '' Tannhäuser.'' In March 2023 she performed as Alice in ''

Falstaff Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...

'' with the Palm Beach Opera.

Awards

* Finalist of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions * Winner of the Liederkranz Foundation Competition * Winner of the Richard Tucker Career Grant Award * Winner of the Kirsten Flagstad Award from the George London Foundation * Recipient of Sullivan Foundation Career Grant * First place winner of the Palm Beach Opera and Palm Springs Opera Competitions * Winner of the Lynne Harvey Scholarship of the Musicians Club of Women * Winner of the Union League Civics and Arts Foundation Competition

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wagner, Amber Wikipedia Student Program American operatic sopranos Living people 21st-century American women opera singers Year of birth missing (living people) People from Hillsboro, Oregon Singers from Oregon