Hila Plitmann (; born August 9, 1973) is an Israeli-American two-time

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

-winning

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

tic

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical 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 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

, songwriter, and actress specializing in the performance of new works.

Career

Education

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

of Music: Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees with high honors

Performances

In 1998, one year after graduating from the Juilliard School, Plitmann premiered Pulitzer Prize winner David Del Tredici's ''The Spider and the Fly'' on only two weeks notice with The New York Philharmonic under the baton of Kurt Masur. Her theatrical acting debut was in the role of Sharon in the Fountain Theater's production of '' Master Class'' by

Terrence McNally Terrence McNally (November 3, 1938 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," M ...

. Other notable performances include the world premiere of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Del Tredici's ''Paul Revere's Ride'' with the Atlanta Symphony under Robert Spano; and the world premiere of

Esa-Pekka Salonen Esa-Pekka Salonen (; born 30 June 1958) is a Finnish conducting, conductor and composer. He is the music director of the San Francisco Symphony and conductor laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philharmonia Orchestra in London and the Sw ...

's ''Wing on Wing'' with the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic (LA Phil) is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. The orchestra holds a regular concert season from October until June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from ...

at Disney Hall; the premiere of Eric Whitacre and David Norona's groundbreaking '' Paradise Lost: Shadows and Wings'' in Los Angeles; John Corigliano's ''Mr. Tambourine Man'' with the Brooklyn Philharmonic; the world premiere of Andrea Clearfield's ''The Long Bright'' with Orchestra 2001; the premiere of a new song cycle written for her by composer Aaron Jay Kernis; the Naxos world premiere recording of John Corigliano's ''Mr. Tambourine Man'' with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, JoAnn Falletta, conductor; and David Del Tredici's ''Final Alice'' with the National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of

Leonard Slatkin Leonard Edward Slatkin (born September 1, 1944) is an American conductor, author and composer. Early life and education Slatkin was born in Los Angeles to a Jewish musical family that came from areas of the Russian Empire now in Ukraine. His fat ...

.Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music article
In 2009, Plitmann created the role of Mrs Clayton in the Opera Santa Barbara production of Stephen Schwartz's opera ''

Séance on a Wet Afternoon ''Séance on a Wet Afternoon'' is a 1964 British crime thriller film, directed by Bryan Forbes, and starring Kim Stanley, Richard Attenborough, Nanette Newman, Mark Eden and Patrick Magee (actor), Patrick Magee. Based on the 1961 novel by Mark ...

'', and in 2015 she created the role of Yan in Mark Adamo's '' Becoming Santa Claus''.

Awards

In 1996, Plitmann won the Sony ES Prize for outstanding contribution to the vocal arts. In 2007, for her role of Exstasis in Eric Whitacre's electro-musical ''Paradise Lost: Shadows and Wings'' at the Boston Court Theatre in Pasadena, Plitmann was nominated for "Best Lead Actress in a Musical" at the Los Angeles Ovation Awards and the L.A. Ticketholder Awards. In February 2009, Plitmann was awarded the

for Best Classical Vocal Performance for her 2009 performance of ''Corigliano: Mr. Tambourine Man: Seven Poems of Bob Dylan''. Plitmann won her second

for Best Classical Vocal Performance in 2022 for ''

Mythologies Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

'', an album inspired by Ancient Greece with original compositions by Danaë Xanthe Vlasse, recorded with Vlasse and soprano Sangeeta Kaur.

Acting and Film Music

Plitmann can be heard as a featured vocal soloist on many film scores and soundtracks. * The Da Vinci Code * Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides * Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End * Hail Caesar! * Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice * Ghostbusters (2016) * Argentina, 1985 * New York, I Love You Plitmann has appeared in acting/singing roles both live on stage and filmed, including Hershey Felder's musical films ''Dante and Beatrice'' and ''Mozart and Figaro in Vienna'', and in Eric Whitacre's electro-musical ''Paradise Lost: Shadows and Wings''.

Recordings

*''Ms. Inez Sez'', song cycle by David Del Tredici, CRI label *''Lament for the Death of a Bullfighter'', song cycle by David Del Tredici (featuring the composer at the piano) Music & Arts label *''Paul Revere's Ride'' by David Del Tredici with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Robert Spano conducting, Telarc label *''Emily Dickinson Songs'' by Robert Beaser with the American Academy, Rome label *

Hans Zimmer Hans Florian Zimmer (; born 12 September 1957) is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, five Grammy Awards, and has been nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards, Emmy Awards and a Tony ...

's soundtrack to the Hollywood film, '' The Da Vinci Code'' Decca label *''Vintage Alice/Dracula'' by David Del Tredici with the Cleveland Chamber Symphony, INNOVA label (2008) * John Corigliano: ''Mr. Tambourine Man: Seven Poems of Bob Dylan'' – Hila Plitmann (JoAnn Falletta; Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra) *''The Palm Trees Are Restless: Five Poems of Kate Gale,'' song cycle by Mark Abel, Delos label * Richard Danielpour: ''The Passion of Yeshua'' (UCLA Chamber Singers, Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus and Orchestra, JoAnn Falletta), Naxos label * John Corigliano: ''Conjurer/Vocalise'' (Albany Symphony, David Alan Miller), Naxos label *''The Ancient Question … a voyage through Jewish songs'', Signum Classics label * George Benjamin: ''Into the Little Hill'' ( London Sinfonietta), Nimbus Records label * Richard Danielpour: ''Toward a Season of Peace'' (Pacific Symphony and Chorale, Carl St. Clair, John Alexander), Naxos label *

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American guitarist, composer, and bandleader. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa composed Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, jazz fusion, orchestra ...

: ''200 Motels'', The Suites (Los Angeles Philharmonic & Master Chorale, Esa-Pekka Salonen), Zappa Records label * Andrea Clearfield: ''Women of Valor'' (Los Angeles Jewish Symphony, Noreen Green), Albany Records label * Mark Abel: ''Time and Distance'', Delos label * Mark Abel: ''The Cave of Wondrous Voice'', Delos label * Paola Prestini: ''Oceanic Verses'' (Decoda Orchestra, The Choir of Trinity Wall Street, Julian Wachner), VIA Records label * Paola Prestini: ''Body Maps'' (VisionIntoArt Ensemble, Stephen Gosling, Jeffrey Zeigler), Tzadik label * Jeff Beal: ''The Paper Lined Shack'' (The Eastman Philharmonia, Leonard Slatkin), Supertrain Records label * Danaë Xanthe Vlasse: ''Poème'', MSR Classics label * Danaë Xanthe Vlasse: ''

'', Cézanne Records label

Personal life

From 1998 to 2017 she was married to composer Eric Whitacre. Plitmann holds a black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

References

External links

* *
"A Heavenly Voice Keeps 'Da Vinci' Humming"
Steve Inskeep on NPR about ''The Da Vinci Code'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Plitmann, Hila 1973 births Living people American operatic sopranos Juilliard School alumni Israeli emigrants to the United States Musicians from Jerusalem Grammy Award winners 20th-century American women opera singers 21st-century American women opera singers