Susanna Phillips (Huntington) is an American singer who has sung leading

lyric soprano A lyric soprano is a type of operatic soprano voice that has a warm quality with a bright, full timbre that can be heard over an orchestra. The lyric soprano voice generally has a higher tessitura than a soubrette and usually plays ingenues and ot ...

roles at leading American and international opera houses.

Early life and education

Phillips was born in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

and grew up in

Huntsville Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in th ...

where she attended

Randolph School Randolph School is an American independent private kindergarten-through-12th-grade college preparatory school chartered in 1959 in Huntsville, Madison County, Alabama. It started in a home on Randolph Avenue in downtown Huntsville with a handfu ...

. She received Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

where she was a student of Cynthia Hoffmann. In 2002 and 2003 she attended the

Music Academy of the West The Music Academy is a classical music training program in Montecito in Santa Barbara County, California. Overview The academy hosts an annual eight-week summer music festival, highlighted by concerts and workshops directed by famous composer ...

summer conservatory. After completing her master's degree in 2004, she became a member of

Santa Fe Opera Santa Fe Opera (SFO) is an American opera company, located north of Santa Fe, New Mexico. After creating the ''Opera Association of New Mexico'' in 1956, its founding director, John Crosby (conductor), John Crosby, oversaw the building of the fir ...

's Apprentice Program for Singers. In March 2005, she joined Lyric Opera Center for American Artists at

Lyric Opera of Chicago Lyric Opera of Chicago is one of the leading opera companies in the United States. It was founded in Chicago in 1954, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox, Nicola Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, with a season that included Maria ...

, now the Ryan Opera Center. During her tenure with the program in Chicago she sang Diana in a new

Robert Carsen Robert Carsen O.C. (born 23 June 1954) is a Canadian opera director. He was born in Toronto and is the son of philanthropist Walter Carsen. Early steps towards directing From an early age "I became obsessed with the theatre" Carsen states and he w ...

production of ''

Iphigénie en Tauride ''Iphigénie en Tauride'' (, ''Iphigenia in Tauris'') is a 1779 opera by Christoph Willibald Gluck in four acts. It was his fifth opera for the French stage. The libretto was written by Nicolas-François Guillard. With ''Iphigénie,'' Gluck took ...

'' opposite

Susan Graham Susan Graham (born July 23, 1960) is an American mezzo-soprano. Life and career Susan Graham was born in Roswell, New Mexico on July 23, 1960. Raised in Midland, Texas, Graham is a graduate of Texas Tech University and the Manhattan School o ...

, and performed Juliette in '' Roméo et Juliette'' and Rosalinde in ''

Die Fledermaus ' (, ''The Flittermouse'' or ''The Bat'', sometimes called ''The Revenge of the Bat'') is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée, which premiered in 1874. Background The original ...

''.

Career

While at the Lyric Opera of Chicago's LOCAA program, she participated in

's 50th Anniversary Arias Gala Concert on August 12, 2006, and sang the role of Pamina in the final two performances of the 2006 season 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 ...

''. Following in the 2007 season she sang the role of Fiordiligi in ''

Così fan tutte (''All Women Do It, or The School for Lovers''), K. 588, is an opera buffa in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was first performed on 26 January 1790 at the Burgtheater in Vienna, Austria. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte w ...

''. She made her

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 ...

debut on 15 March 2008 singing Musetta in ''

La bohème ''La bohème'' (; ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions ''quadri'', ''tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe G ...

'' and has returned to The Met during numerous seasons to sing this role, as well as Pamina (2009, 2010), Donna Anna in ''

Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanis ...

'' (2012), Fiordiligi in ''Così fan tutte'' (2013, 2014), Antonia in ''

Les contes d'Hoffmann ''The Tales of Hoffmann'' (French: ) is an by Jacques Offenbach. The French libretto was written by Jules Barbier, based on three short stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, who is the protagonist of the story. It was Offenbach's final work; he died ...

'' (2015), and Rosalinde in ''Die Fledermaus'' (2014, 2015, 2016). In 2010 she won the Met's

Beverly Sills Beverly Sills (May 25, 1929July 2, 2007) was an American operatic soprano whose peak career was between the 1950s and 1970s. Although she sang a repertoire from Handel and Mozart to Puccini, Massenet and Verdi, she was especially renowned for ...

Award.Itzkoff, Dave (21 April 2010)
"Alabama Soprano Wins Sills Award"
''

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 ...

''. She has held leading operatic roles at numerous companies such as

Oper Frankfurt The Oper Frankfurt (Frankfurt Opera) is a German opera company based in Frankfurt. Opera in Frankfurt am Main has a long tradition, with many world premieres such as Franz Shrek's ''Der ferne Klang'' in 1912, '' Fennimore und Gerda'' by Frede ...

Boston Lyric Opera Boston Lyric Opera (BLO) is an American opera company based in Boston, Massachusetts, founded in 1976. BLO is the largest and longest-lived opera company in New England. BLO employs nearly 350 artists and creative professionals annually—vocalists ...

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 ...

, Opera Birmingham,

Fort Worth Opera Fort Worth Opera is the oldest continually-performing opera company in the state of Texas and among the oldest in the United States, according to the company. While originally presenting operas one at a time over a fall/winter season, it changed ...

Boston Baroque Boston Baroque is the oldest period instrument orchestra in North America. It was founded in 1973 by the American harpsichordist and conductor, Martin Pearlman, to present concerts of the Baroque and Classical repertoire on period instruments, dra ...

Ravinia Festival Ravinia Festival is an outdoor music venue in Highland Park, Illinois. It hosts a series of outdoor concerts and performances every summer from June to September. The first orchestra to perform at Ravinia Festival was the New York Philharmonic unde ...

Aspen Music Festival The Aspen Music Festival and School (AMFS) is a classical music festival held annually in Aspen, Colorado. It is noted both for its concert programming and the musical training it offers to mostly young-adult music students. Founded in 1949, the ...

Verbier Festival The Verbier Festival is an annual international music festival that takes place for two weeks in late July and early August in the mountain resort of Verbier, Switzerland. Founded by Swedish expatriate in 1994, it has attracted international so ...

Gran Teatre del Liceu Gran may refer to: People *Grandmother, affectionately known as "gran" * Gran (name) Places * Gran, the historical German name for Esztergom, a city and the primatial metropolitan see of Hungary * Gran, Norway, a municipality in Innlandet coun ...

Barcelona,

Gulbenkian Orchestra The Gulbenkian Orchestra ( pt, Orquestra Gulbenkian) is a Portuguese symphony orchestra based in Lisbon. The orchestra primarily gives concerts at the ''Grande Auditório'' (Grand Auditorium) of the Gulbenkian Foundation. The orchestra, which was f ...

in Lisbon, and

Hyogo Performing Arts Center The is a performing arts center in the city of Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, next to Nishinomiya-Kitaguchi Station operated by Hankyu Corporation. The Center was opened in 2005 to mark the ten-year anniversary of the Great Hanshin earthq ...

in Japan. Highly in demand by the world's most prestigious orchestras, Phillips has appeared with the

Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra ( sv, Kungliga Filharmonikerna or , literal translations, "Royal Philharmonic" or "Royal Philharmonic Orchestra") is a Swedish orchestra based in Stockholm. Its principal venue is the Konserthuset. Hi ...

under Alan Gilbert,

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...

San Francisco Symphony Orchestra The San Francisco Symphony (SFS), founded in 1911, is an American orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980 the orchestra has been resident at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall in the city's Hayes Valley neighborhood. The San Fr ...

Sydney Symphony Orchestra The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra that was initially formed in 1908. Since its opening in 1973, the Sydney Opera House has been its home concert hall. Simone Young is the orchestra's chief conductor and firs ...

National Symphony Orchestra (Mexico) The National Symphony Orchestra ( es, Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional, OSN) is the most important symphony orchestra in Mexico. With its origins traced back as 1881, along with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, it is the second-oldest symphony orch ...

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription ...

Oratorio Society of New York The Oratorio Society of New York is a not-for-profit membership organization that performs choral music in the oratorio style. Founded in 1873 by conductor Leopold Damrosch and is the third oldest musical organization in New York City. The Society h ...

Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra and Chorus The ‘Santa Fe Symphony' is Santa Fe's professional full-sized orchestra with a volunteer chorus. The orchestra performs regularly at the Lensic Theater in Santa Fe. Beginnings ''The Santa Fe Symphony'' was founded by local musicians under t ...

Santa Barbara Symphony Orchestra The Santa Barbara Symphony is a professional symphony orchestra and register 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in Santa Barbara, California. The orchestra was founded in 1953. Music directors have included Erno Daniel (1960–1967), who also ...

St. Louis Symphony The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) is the second-oldest professional symphony or ...

Music of the Baroque, Chicago Music of the Baroque is an American professional chorus and orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. Most members of the orchestra also perform with other groups, including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Lyric Opera of Chicago. Chorus members h ...

Dallas Symphony Orchestra The Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is an American orchestra based in Dallas, Texas. Its principal performing venue is the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in the Arts District of downtown Dallas. History The orchestra traces its origins to a ...

Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is an American orchestra based in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the only full-time, professional orchestra in the Gulf South. The orchestra performs at the Orpheum Theater. The Louisiana Philharmonic Or ...

Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (MSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The orchestra performs primarily at the Bradley Symphony Center in Allen-Bradley Hall. The orchestra also serves as the orchestra for Florentine ...

Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra The Jacksonville Symphony is an orchestra based in Jacksonville, Florida. Concert hall As one of a handful of American orchestras with its own dedicated concert hall, the Jacksonville Symphony performs the majority of its programs in the Rober ...

Orchestra of St. Luke's The Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) is an American chamber orchestra based in New York City, formed in 1974. Orchestra of St. Luke’s presents over 70 concerts, programs, and events in a variety of diverse musical genres every season, including an ...

, and Santa Fe Concert Association. Phillips works in collaboration with other artists in recital and chamber music performances. Such performances have included those with Paul Neubauer and Anne-Marie Montgomery, at the Parlance Chamber Music Series with Warren Jones, the 2014 Chicago Collaborative Works Festival, the

Emerson String Quartet The Emerson String Quartet, also known as the Emerson Quartet, is an American string quartet that was initially formed as a student group at the Juilliard School in 1976. It was named for American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson and beg ...

in Thomasville, Georgia with Warren Jones and colleagues from the Metropolitan Opera, and at

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...

Fest.

Repertoire

Opera

* ''Carmen'' – Micaëla (Bizet) * ''Les Pecheurs de Perles'' – Leila (Bizet) * ''Midsummer Night's Dream'' – Helena (Britten) * ''Peter Grimes'' – Ellen Orford (Britten) * ''Turn of the Screw'' – Governess (Britten) * ''L'Elisir d'Amore'' – Adina (Donizetti) * ''Orfeo ed Euridice'' – Euridice (Gluck) * ''Roméo et Juliette'' – Juliette (Gounod) * ''Alcina'' – Alcina (Handel) * ''Agrippina'' – Agrippina (Handel) * ''Giulio Cesare'' – Cleopatra (Handel) * ''Rodelinda'' – Rodelinda (Handel) * ''Die lustige Witwe'' – Hanna (Lehar) * ''Manon'' – Manon (Massenet) * ''Thaïs'' – Thaïs (Massenet) * ''Così fan tutte'' – Fiordiligi (Mozart) * ''Don Giovanni'' – Donna Anna (Mozart) * ''Don Giovanni'' – Donna Elvira (Mozart) * ''Idomeneo'' – Ilia (Mozart) * ''La finta giardiniera'' – Sandrina (Mozart) * ''Le Nozze di Figaro'' – Countess (Mozart) * ''Die Zauberflöte'' – Pamina (Mozart) * ''Les contes d'Hoffmann'' – Antonia (Offenbach) * ''Les contes d'Hoffmann'' – Stella (Offenbach) * ''Dialogues des carmélites'' – Blanche (Poulenc) * ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' – Stella (Previn) * ''La bohème'' – Musetta (Puccini) * ''L'amour de loin'' – Clémence (Saariaho) * ''Die Fledermaus'' – Rosalinde (Strauss) * ''La traviata'' – Violetta (Verdi)

Oratorio/symphonic

Bach Cantatas (Various) Christmas Oratorio (Weihnachts-Oratorium), BWV 248 Easter Oratorio (Oster-Oratorium), BWV 249 Magnificat, BWV 243 Masses (Various) St. John Passion (Johannes-Passion), BWV 245 St. Matthew Passion (Matthäus-Passion), BWV 244 Barber Knoxville: Summer of 1915, Op. 24 Beethoven Egmont, Op. 84 Mass in C, Op. 86 Missa Solemnis, Op. 123 Symphony No. 9, Op. 125 Britten Les Illuminations, Op. 18 Spring Symphony, Op. 44 War Requiem, Op. 66 Brahms Ein deutsches Requiem, Op. 45 Bruckner Psalm 150, WAB 38 Te Deum in C major, WAB 45 Copland Eight Songs of Emily Dickinson Canteloube Chants d'Auvergne (Songs of the Auvergne) Dvorák Requiem in B-flat minor, Op. 89, B. 165 Stabat Mater, Op. 58 Te Deum, Op. 103 Gounod Christmas Oratorio St. Cecilia Mass, CG 56 Grieg Peer Gynt, Op. 2 Handel Dixit Dominus HWV 232 Messiah, HWV 56 Haydn Mass No. 10 in C, "Paukenmesse" Mass No. 11 in d, "Nelsonmesse" Mass No. 12 in B flat, "Theresienmesse" Mass No. 14 in B flat, "Harmoniemesse" The Creation The Seasons Mahler Das Klagende Lied Symphony No. 2 Symphony No. 4 Symphony No. 8 Mendelssohn Elijah, Op. 70 Symphony No. 2 "Lobgesang," Op. 52 Messiaen

Poèmes pour Mi ''Poèmes pour Mi'' (Poems for Mi) is a song cycle for dramatic soprano and piano or orchestra by Olivier Messiaen, composed in 1936 and 1937 and dedicated to his first wife, Claire Delbos. The text are poems by the composer based on the New Testa ...

Mozart Concert Arias (Various) Exsultate, jubilate, K. 165 Mass in C, K. 257, "Credo" Mass in C, K. 317, "Coronation" Mass in c, K. 427, "The Great Mass" Requiem, K. 626 Orff Carmina Burana Pergolesi Stabat Mater, P. 77 Poulenc Gloria, FP 177 Stabat Mater, FP 148 Rachmaninoff The Bells, Op. 35 Schumann Scenes from Goethe's Faust (Paradies und die Peri) Strauss, R. Orchestral Songs Four Last Songs, TrV 296 Szymanowski Stabat Mater, Op. 53 Vivaldi Gloria, RV 589 In furore justissime ire, RV626 Laudate Pueri, RV 601

Recital/chamber music

Phillips collaborates with pianists and other instrumentalists for art song recitals and chamber music concerts with a variety of thematic and musical interests.

Discography

* ''Wasting the Night'', Naxos, 2010, CD * ''Paysages'', Bridge, 2011, CD * ''Poul Ruders, Vol. 8'', Bridge, 2012, CD * ''The Opera America Songbook'', Opera America, 2012, CD * ''Colors of Feelings'', Delos, 2012, CD * ''Brass Rail Blues: Music by Patricia Morehead'', Navona Records, 2014, CD * ''An AIDS Quilt Songbook: Sing for Hope'', GPR Records, 2014, CD * ''Dear Theo: 3 Song Cycles by Ben Moore'', Delos, 2014, CD

Awards and recognition

* Operalia International Opera Competition, First Place and the Audience Prize (2005)OperaliaCompetition.org
2005 Winners
* Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions (2005)

Archives
Phillips, Susanna (Soprano)
/ref> * MacAllister Awards (2005) * George London Foundation Awards Competition (2005) * Marilyn Horne Foundation Competition * American Opera Society Competition * Musicians Club of Women Chicago * Sullivan Foundation * Beverly Sills Award (2010) * Space Camp Hall of Fame (2015)

References

External links

Susanna Phillips official websiteTwickenham Fest official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Susanna American operatic sopranos Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Operalia, The World Opera Competition prize-winners Musicians from Birmingham, Alabama Musicians from Huntsville, Alabama Juilliard School alumni Winners of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions 21st-century American women opera singers Music Academy of the West alumni