Marvis Lynn Martin is an American

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

tic

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 ...

best known for her concert performances and recitals, including her renditions of

Joseph Canteloube Marie-Joseph Canteloube de Malaret (; 21 October 18794 November 1957) was a French composer, musicologist, and author best known for his collections of orchestrated folksongs from the Auvergne region, ''Chants d'Auvergne''. Biography Canteloube ...

's '' Songs from the Auvergne'' and of Bess in

Bobby McFerrin Robert Keith McFerrin Jr. (born March 11, 1950) is an American folk and jazz singer. He is known for his vocal techniques, such as singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in pitch—for example, sustaining a melody while also rap ...

's touring concert version of ''

Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', itse ...

''.W.J. Fenza, "Mais Oui, ASO Soloist Can Sing More Than Bess", 01 November 1997, ''

The Morning Call ''The Morning Call'' is a daily newspaper in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1883, it is the second longest continuously published newspaper in the Lehigh Valley, after ''The Express-Times''. In 2020, the newspaper permanently closed its Al ...

'', Allentown, PA; available onlin
here
accessed 15 July 2010. Hailed as "a lyric soprano of unusual brightness, evenness and quality" by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' and winner of several competition prizes, Martin is acclaimed for her "beauty of voice and sensitive communication, receiving awards, medals and glowing reviews as a song recitalist, concert singer, and opera performer."Frost Alumni Achievements. Marvis Martin, B.M. '77
Frost School of Music. University of Miami. 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2016.

Early life and education

Martin was born in

Tallahassee, Florida Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, Florida, Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In ...

, but grew up in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

, where she sang professionally by age five.David Nicholson, "Soprano Chooses A More Relaxed Schedule: Talented Classical Singer Will Perform At CNU", 14 October 1993, ''

Daily Press (Virginia) ''The Daily Press Inc.'' is a daily morning newspaper published in Newport News, Virginia, which covers the lower and middle Peninsula of Tidewater Virginia. It was established in 1896 and bought by Tribune Company in 1986. Current owner Tribu ...

''; available onlin
here
accessed 15 July 2010. She trained at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...

Frost School of Music Frost School of Music is the music school at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. From 1926 to 2003, it was known as University of Miami School of Music. Academics and programs The University of Miami's Frost School of Music was on ...

, earning a

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of prescr ...

degree in 1977. She subsequently obtained a master's degree from the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...

. She then studied under

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf Dame Olga Maria Elisabeth Friederike Schwarzkopf, (9 December 19153 August 2006) was a German-born Austro-British soprano. She was among the foremost singers of lieder, and is renowned for her performances of Viennese operetta, as well as the op ...

and was also a protégée of

Alice Tully Alice Bigelow Tully (September 14, 1902 – December 10, 1993) was an American singer of opera and recital, music promoter, patron of the arts and philanthropist from New York. She was a second cousin of the American actress Katharine Hepburn. ...

Career

Martin made her professional debut in 1981 as part of the

Young Concert Artists Young Concert Artists is a New York City-based non-profit organization dedicated to discovering and promoting the careers of talented young classical musicians from all over the world. The competition, founded in 1961, allows artists from all over ...

Series; the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' review called her "promising" and said that "at her best, she displayed a talent and a temperament that could make her an important singer." She debuted with the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

in 1982, singing the role of "Pamina" in a touring production of ''

The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (German: , ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a ''Singspiel'', a popular form during the time it was written that inclu ...

''.Metropolitan Opera Archives Online
accessed 15 July 2010. Over the next few years, she received "awards, medals and glowing reviews as a song recitalist, concert singer and opera performer." At the Met, she performed in operas like ''

Boris Godunov Borís Fyodorovich Godunóv (; russian: Борис Фёдорович Годунов; 1552 ) ruled the Tsardom of Russia as ''de facto'' regent from c. 1585 to 1598 and then as the first non-Rurikid tsar from 1598 to 1605. After the end of his ...

'', ''

Don Carlo ''Don Carlos'' is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French-language libretto by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, based on the dramatic play '' Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien'' (''Don Carlos, Infante of Spain'') by Friedri ...

'', ''

Ariadne auf Naxos (''Ariadne on Naxos''), Op. 60, is a 1912 opera by Richard Strauss with a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. The opera's unusual combination of elements of low commedia dell'arte with those of high opera seria points up one of the work' ...

'', ''

'', and ''

Idomeneo ' (Italian for ''Idomeneus, King of Crete, or, Ilia and Idamante''; usually referred to simply as ''Idomeneo'', K. 366) is an Italian language opera seria by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The libretto was adapted by Giambattista Varesco from a French ...

''. As her career matured, she focused more on recitals and concert performances than opera, claiming, "I love opera, but don't necessarily love all the hubbub." She has also slowed her touring pace, saying, "I don't think that's a healthy way of life ..I love going to the next city, but my jobs are spread out nicely." She has performed with numerous orchestras, including the

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...

and the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

, where music director and principal conductor

Zubin Mehta Zubin Mehta (born 29 April 1936) is an Indian conductor of Western classical music. He is music director emeritus of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) and conductor emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mehta's father was the foun ...

programmed a piece for her. Martin has said she especially enjoys returning to Florida for performances. In 1987, she was named the "Distinguished Alumni" honoree by the

at the University of Miami. In 1988, she was awarded the "Florida Prize," a $10,000 award by The New York Times Company "to a Florida native or resident for outstanding work in the visual and performing arts."

Honors and awards

* Florida Prize.

New York Times Company The New York Times Company is an American mass media company that publishes ''The New York Times''. Its headquarters are in Manhattan, New York City. History The company was founded by Henry Jarvis Raymond and George Jones in New York City. T ...

, regional newspaper group, 1988 * Distinguished Alumna.

, 1987 * Michaels Award of Young Concert Artists.

Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and philanthropist whose donations assist ...

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...

. New York NY, 1981Review/Recital; A Soprano Who Reveals Herself
Donal Henahan. ''

''. April 7, 1988. Retrieved March 3, 2016.

References

External links

Marvin Martin. University of Miami. Frost School of Music. 1987 Distinguished Alumna

Marvis Martin. The Metropolitan Opera
*
Marvis Martin. Broadwayworld.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Marvis 1956 births 21st-century African-American women singers 21st-century American women opera singers Musicians from Miami University of Miami Frost School of Music alumni Manhattan School of Music alumni American operatic sopranos Living people Musicians from Tallahassee, Florida Singers from Florida 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women opera singers African-American women opera singers Classical musicians from Florida