William Diard (April 26, 1924 – March 8, 2009) was an American operatic tenor, teacher, musician, and actor.

Birth

William Diard was born in

Floral Park Floral Park is an Administrative divisions of New York State#Village, incorporated village in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York (state), New York, United States, on Long Island. The population as of the US Census of 2010 is 15,863. ...

, New York on April 26, 1924.

Career

He earned degrees in vocal performance from the

Hartt School of Music The Hartt School is the comprehensive performing arts conservatory of the University of Hartford located in West Hartford, Connecticut, United States, that offers degree programs in music, dance, and theatre. Founded in 1920 by Julius Hartt and ...

, 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 elit ...

, and the Naples Conservatory. He made his debut at the

New York City Opera The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through 2013 (when it filed for bankruptcy), and again since 2016 when it was revived. The opera company, du ...

in 1961, as Nanki-Poo in ''

The Mikado ''The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen Gilbert and Sullivan, operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, whe ...

''. His concert debut took place at New York's Town Hall, also in 1961. Diard's career began as a youngster. His great-aunt, the French prima donna, Fatmah Diard, a protegee of Jules Massenet, acquainted him with serious music and the French language. At the age of eight he sang with the Paulist Choir in New York, later becoming tenor soloist with " Chanticleer," touring Europe and the Far East. He recorded for RCA Victor. In 1966, he appeared in the world premiere of

Carlisle Floyd Carlisle Sessions Floyd (June 11, 1926September 30, 2021) was an American composer primarily known for his operas. These stage works, for which he wrote the librettos, typically engage with themes from the American South, particularly the Post ...

's ''

Markheim "Markheim" is a short story by Robert Louis Stevenson, originally prepared for the ''Pall Mall Gazette'' in 1884, but published in 1885 in ''The Broken Shaft: Tales of Mid-Ocean'' as part of ''Unwin's Christmas Annual''. The story was later publi ...

'' at the

New Orleans Opera Opera has long been part of the musical culture of New Orleans, Louisiana. Operas have regularly been performed in the city since the 1790s, and since the early 19th century, New Orleans has had a resident company regularly performing opera in ad ...

(opposite

Norman Treigle Norman Treigle (né Adanelle Wilfred Treigle (March 6, 1927February 16, 1975) was an American operatic bass-baritone, who was acclaimed for his great abilities as a singing-actor, and specialized in roles that evoked villainy and terror. Biograp ...

and

Audrey Schuh Audrey Schuh (born June 11, 1931) is an American operatic soprano. She studied at Loyola University of the South. Schuh was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Her first leading role with the New Orleans Opera Association (at the age of eighteen) was ...

), later retiring to Hadlyme, CT, where the Diards made appearances and taught in their private studio. The following year he joined the voice faculty at the Hartt School where he taught until his retirement in 1988.

Marriage

Diard met his wife, Gloria Aliani, while singing a performance of ''

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 Giusep ...

'' in 1956 in Miami, Florida. Aliani was making her debut as Mimì to Diard's Rudolfo. They married later that year and began concertizing together. In 1960, they were signed with National Artists Corporation. Engagements with symphony orchestras followed. At Hartt, Diard studied with Virginia and Frederich Schorr (renowned bass-baritone of the Metropolitan Opera).

Death

He died in Lyme, Connecticut at the age of 84.

References

1924 births 2009 deaths American operatic tenors University of Hartford Hartt School alumni University of Hartford Hartt School faculty Juilliard School alumni People from Floral Park, New York 20th-century American male opera singers American expatriates in Italy {{US-opera-singer-stub