Monica Yunus
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Monica Yunus (; born 1977) is a Bangladeshi-American operatic
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 ...
who has performed with many
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 ...
companies and music ensembles. She is the daughter of Bangladeshi social entrepreneur, banker, Nobel laureate economist and eventual chief adviser
Muhammad Yunus Muhammad Yunus (born 28 June 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, entrepreneur, and civil society leader who has been serving as the Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, Chief Adviser of the Interim government of Muhammad Yunus, interim Yunus ministry, g ...
. About her singing quality reviewers from US dailies, ''
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'', the '' Charleston City Paper'' and the ''
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'' have described her voice as "especially winning", "utterly captivating" and "a voice destined for super-stardom" respectively. Her voice's performance range lies from a low A (A3) to a high F (F6). She performed regularly at the
Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...
in New York City from 2003-2014; appearing in several broadcasts of '' Metropolitan Opera Live in HD''.


Early life and education

Monica Yunus was born in 1977 in
Chattogram Chittagong ( ), officially Chattogram, (, ) (, or ) is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. The city is also the business capital of Bangladesh. It ...
, Bangladesh to
Muhammad Yunus Muhammad Yunus (born 28 June 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, entrepreneur, and civil society leader who has been serving as the Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, Chief Adviser of the Interim government of Muhammad Yunus, interim Yunus ministry, g ...
, an economist and his then wife, Vera Forostenko, the daughter of Russian immigrants to
Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County, New Jersey, Mercer County. It was the federal capital, capital of the United States from November 1 until D ...
. She has one younger half-sister, Dina Yunus. Yunus' parents met in 1967 while attending
Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...
. They were married in 1970. Yunus' parents' marriage ended within months of her birth, and Forostenko returned with Monica to the United States to live with her parents, claiming that Bangladesh was not a good place to raise a baby. Yunus grew up in the home of her Russian grandparents in New Jersey where she learned to speak and write
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
and other
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as well as English. Yunus also speaks and writes fluently in
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
, Spanish, German, and French. Yunus' grandmother was highly influential in encouraging her interest in singing. At a very early age, Yunus' grandmother began taking her to sing in the choir at their
Russian Orthodox Church The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...
, a choir Yunus would sing with throughout her entire childhood. It was while singing in this church choir that Yunus first fell in love with classical music.
/ref> At the age of eleven, Yunus' mother helped her begin studying voice formally through lessons. Shortly thereafter, Yunus became a member of the
Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...
's Children's Chorus for a number of years. At 13, Monica was accepted to the prestigious Tanglewood Music Center in Massachusetts, and this is where she first became interested in becoming a professional opera singer. Beginning at the age of 15, Yunus spent five summers at the Aspen Music Festival honing her craft with some of the world's best music teachers. While at Aspen, Yunus recorded and performed the role of Laurie in the world premiere of Copland's ''The Tender Land Suite'', in which she can be heard on the KOCH International label. In 1997, after attending the prestigious
Lawrenceville School The Lawrenceville School is a Private school, private, coeducational College-preparatory school, preparatory school for boarding and day students located in the Local government in New Jersey, unincorporated community of Lawrenceville, New Jers ...
, Yunus entered the
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 ...
from which she graduated four years later with a Bachelor's in Vocal Performance. During this time Yunus sang in several professional operas (see below) and was a member of Berkshire Opera's Young Artist Program. She also studied at the Bay Area Summer Opera Theatre Institute in the summer of 2000. Yunus remained at Juilliard for graduate studies and earned a master's degree in Vocal Performance in 2002. While in graduate school at Juilliard, Yunus was a member of Pittsburgh Opera's Young Artist Program and she performed the role of Mrs. Hayes in ''
Susannah ''Susannah'' is an opera in two acts by the American composer Carlisle Floyd, who wrote the libretto and music while a member of the piano faculty at Florida State University. Floyd adapted the story from the Apocryphal tale of Susannah and the ...
'' at the Juilliard Opera Center.


Career

In 1999, Yunus made her professional opera debut at an unusually young age with Palm Beach Opera in the role of Countess Olga in
Umberto Giordano Umberto Menotti Maria Giordano (28 August 186712 November 1948) was an Italian composer, mainly of operas. His best-known work in that genre was Andrea Chénier (1896). He was born in Foggia in Apulia, southern Italy, and studied under Paolo Se ...
's ''
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'' after winning the Palm Beach Opera Competition that same year. Yunus also took first place at the Florida Grand Opera Competition and was awarded the Bori Grant For Study Abroad that year. In 2000, Yunus returned to Palm Beach Opera to perform the role of Oscar in '' Un ballo in maschera'' opposite noted singers Richard Leech and Aprile Millo. She also was a finalist in the Lotte Lenya Competition. In 2001, Yunus sang the role of Nanetta in '' Falstaff'' in her debut with Amato Opera. In the 2002–2003 season, Yunus made her debut with Nashville Opera as Gretel in Engelbert Humperdinck's '' Hänsel und Gretel'', her debut with
Virginia Opera Virginia Opera is an opera company based in the Commonwealth of Virginia which was first organized in 1974 by a group of Norfolk, Virginia community volunteers. In September 1974, Thomas A. Lipton was engaged to produce a fully professional pro ...
as Oscar in ''Un ballo in maschera'', and performed the role of Walter in '' La Wally'' at
Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and Philanthropy, philanthropist whose donations assis ...
with Teatro Grattacielo. She also performed the roles of Servilia in
Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...
's '' La clemenza di Tito'' and Polly in '' Die Dreigroschenoper'' with Pittsburgh Opera as part of her internship there. Yunus was also awarded a career grant from the Lee Schaenen Foundation in 2002. In the 2003–2004 season, Yunus made her debut with Glimmerglass Opera as Fleurette in Offenbach's ''
Bluebeard "Bluebeard" ( ) is a French Folklore, folktale, the most famous surviving version of which was written by Charles Perrault and first published by Barbin in Paris in 1697 in . The tale is about a wealthy man in the habit of murdering his wives an ...
''. This was followed by her Metropolitan Opera debut as Barbarina in Mozart's ''
Le nozze di Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienna ...
'' conducted by
James Levine James Lawrence Levine ( ; June 23, 1943 – March 9, 2021) was an American conductor and pianist. He was music director of the Metropolitan Opera from 1976 to 2016. He was terminated from all his positions and affiliations with the Met on March ...
. Yunus is the only singer born in Bangladesh to have sung at the Metropolitan Opera. Yunus also sung in the Met's productions of ''
Die Frau ohne Schatten ' (''The Woman without a Shadow''), Op. 65, is an opera in three acts by Richard Strauss with a libretto by his long-time collaborator, the poet Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It was written between 1911 and either 1915 or 1917. When it premiered at the V ...
'', '' Le Rossignol'', and '' The Queen of Spades'' that season in minor roles. Following these performances she made her European operatic debut as Oscar in Verdi's ''Un ballo in maschera'' with Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater Schwerin, where she also appeared as a last minute replacement in the role of Amor in '' Orfeo ed Euridice''. Yunus also won the Willam Matheus Sullivan Foundation Singer Award in 2003. In the 2004–2005 season, Yunus returned to Palm Beach Opera for their production of ''Hänsel und Gretel'' as Gretel. She also made her debuts at Anchorage Opera and the Spoleto Festival (USA) as Zerlina in Mozart's ''
Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; full 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 Spanish legen ...
''. Yunus also made her debut with Granite State Opera as Gilda in Verdi's ''
Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play '' Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had c ...
'' and returned to Nashville Opera to perform the role of Adele in ''
Die Fledermaus ' (, ''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 literary source for ' was ...
''. Yunus won the
Mirjam Helin Competition Mirjam is a Dutch language, Dutch, Estonian language, Estonian, Finnish language, Finnish, Swedish language, Swedish, and German language, German feminine given name cognate to Miriam (given name), Miriam. Notable people with the name include: * ...
in 2004. In the 2005–2006 season, Yunus returned to the Metropolitan Opera to reprise the role of Barbarina and also to portray the role of Poussette in '' Manon''. She also made her debuts with Port Opera and Austin Lyric Opera, both in the role of Zerlina in Mozart's ''Don Giovanni''. During the 2006-2007 season, Yunus returned to the Metropolitan Opera in the role of Papagena in Mozart's ''
Die Zauberflöte ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...
''. She also performed the title role in '' Zemire et Amore'' with
Arizona Opera Arizona Opera is an opera company which operates in both Phoenix, Arizona, 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 i ...
and Lucia in the North American premiere of Riccardo Zandonai's '' La farsa amorosa'' with Teatro Grattacielo at Alice Tully Hall in New York City. She also performed at the Spoleto Festival (USA) as Argentine in the American Premiere of
Gluck Christoph Willibald ( Ritter von) Gluck (; ; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire at ...
's '' L'ile de Merlin'' and for a concert performance of Mahler's Symphony No. 4 with New York City's MetroChamber Orchestra. Yunus also appeared in a recital with the Los Angeles Da Camera at
Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...
that was hosted by the Marilyn Horne Foundation. Other recitals that season included performances in the
Berkshires The Berkshires () are highlands located in western Massachusetts and northwestern Connecticut in the United States. Generally, "Berkshires" may refer to the range of hills in Massachusetts that lie between the Housatonic and Connecticut River ...
,
Little Rock Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The city's population was 202,591 as of the 2020 census. The six-county Central Arkan ...
, and at the Russian Consulate Gala concert. In December 2006, Yunus performed at the annual Nobel Peace Prize Concert honoring her father. The event was hosted by
Sharon Stone Sharon Vonne Stone (born March 10, 1958) is an American actress and film producer. Known for primarily playing femmes fatales and women of mystery on film and television, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1990s. She is the ...
and
Anjelica Huston Anjelica Huston ( ; born July 8, 1951) is an American actress, director and model. She is best known for playing Morticia Addams in the ''The Addams Family'' and '' The Addams Family Values'', as well as often portraying eccentric and distincti ...
and featured performances by Yusuf Islam (formerly Cat Stevens),
Lionel Richie Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. (born June 20, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He rose to fame in the 1970s as a songwriter and the co-lead singer of the Motown group Commodores; writing and recor ...
,
John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He began his musical career working behind the scenes for other artists, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Every ...
,
Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...
,
Paulina Rubio Paulina Susana Rubio Dosamantes (; born 17 June 1971) is a Mexican singer, songwriter and television personality. Referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, The Golden Girl", she first achieved recognition as a member of the successf ...
, Wynonna,
Simply Red Simply Red are an English soul music, soul and pop band formed in Manchester in 1985. Band leader, singer and songwriter Mick Hucknall was the only original member left by the time Simply Red initially disbanded in 2010. They have released thir ...
, Hakim,
Renée Fleming Renée Lynn Fleming (born February 14, 1959) is an American soprano and actress, known for performances in opera, concerts, recordings, theater, film, and at major public occasions. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, Fleming has been nom ...
, and Morten Abel as well as Yunus. In the 2007–2008 season, Yunus appeared as Norina in
Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian Romantic composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the ''bel canto'' opera ...
's ''
Don Pasquale ''Don Pasquale'' () is a Gaetano Donizetti opera buffa, or comic opera, in three acts, with an Italian libretto completed largely by Giovanni Ruffini as well as the composer. It was based on a libretto by Angelo Anelli for Stefano Pavesi's oper ...
'' with Syracuse Opera, reprised the role of Papagena at the Metropolitan Opera, sang at the Al Bustan International Festival of Music and Arts in
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
,
Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
, and gave a recital in
Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...
. Yunus also performed in concert with
Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French, ...
and Julia Migenes at the
Cairo Opera House The Cairo Opera House (, ''Dār el-Opera el-Masreyya''; literally "Egyptian Opera House"), part of Cairo's National Cultural Centre, is the main performing arts venue in the Egyptian capital. Home to most of Egypt's finest musical groups, it is ...
. In the 2008–2009 season, Yunus returned to the Metropolitan Opera for several performances including singing at the company's ''125th Anniversary Gala'' and appearing as Poussette in ''Manon'', Zerlina in ''Don Giovanni'', and Yvette in '' La Rondine''. In addition, she appeared in concert at the Tilles Center in New York and at the Francisco Marroquín University in
Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...
. She has since returned to the Met as the Novice in '' Suor Angelica'' (2009), Papagena in ''
The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...
'' (2010), Alice in '' Le comte Ory'' (2011), Yvette in '' La rondine'' (2013), the unborn in ''
Die Frau ohne Schatten ' (''The Woman without a Shadow''), Op. 65, is an opera in three acts by Richard Strauss with a libretto by his long-time collaborator, the poet Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It was written between 1911 and either 1915 or 1917. When it premiered at the V ...
'', and a member of the Quartet in the world premiere of '' The Enchanted Island'' (2011-2014). Other recent appearances by Yunus include the roles of Countess Almaviva in ''
The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienn ...
'' with Omaha Opera (2010), Gilda in ''Rigoletto'' with Montana Lyric Opera (2010), Lauretta in '' Gianni Schicchi'' with Opera Santa Barbara (2016), Pamina in ''
The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...
'' with Omaha Opera (2013), Susanna in ''
The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienn ...
'' with Opera Memphis (2016), and Yum-Yum 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 ...
'' with Opera Memphis. In 2017 she is scheduled to appear as Musetta in ''
La bohème ''La bohème'' ( , ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions '':wikt:quadro, quadri'', ''wikt:tableau, tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto b ...
'' with Opera Colorado. Yunus' other concert and recital appearances include solo recitals at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall,
Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and Philanthropy, philanthropist whose donations assis ...
, the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, and
Steinway Hall Steinway Hall (German: ) is the name of buildings housing concert halls, showrooms and sales departments for Steinway & Sons pianos. The first Steinway Hall was opened in 1866 in New York City. Today, Steinway Halls and are located in cities suc ...
, in New York, at the Manuel de Falla Hall in Granada, Spain, and at Madrid's Auditorio Nacional with Her Majesty Queen Sofia in attendance. She has also performed in recital at Steinway Hall. Chamber works performed include Delage's Four Hindu Poems in concert in Alice Tully Hall, and Mozart's Exsultate Jubilate at St. Anselm's Church in New York.


Personal life

In 2004, Yunus reconnected with her father Muhammad Yunus, a
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...
recipient, whom she had not seen since her early childhood. Yunus and her father took a trip together to Bangladesh in 2005, the first time Yunus had been in the country since she was four months old. She is married to another opera singer, tenor Brandon McReynolds, whom she met at Juilliard. Yunus was inspired by the events of 9/11 to co-found Sing For Hope, an organization that harnesses the power of the arts to create a better world.


References


External links

* *
Monica Yunus Interview
by impactmania {{DEFAULTSORT:Yunus, Monica 1979 births Living people People from Chittagong Juilliard School alumni Lawrenceville School alumni Bengali singers Bangladeshi emigrants to the United States American people of Russian descent American operatic sopranos Aspen Music Festival and School alumni American musicians of Bangladeshi descent Singers from New Jersey 20th-century American women opera singers 21st-century American women opera singers Classical musicians from New Jersey Muhammad Yunus