Nicholas Phan (last name pronounced /ˈPan/; b.

Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, January 3, 1979) is an American

lyric tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below mi ...

who has performed internationally with orchestras including the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...

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

, 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 ...

, the

Philharmonia Orchestra The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI Classics, EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Rich ...

, the

San Francisco Symphony The San Francisco Symphony, 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, San Francisco, Hayes Valley ne ...

, and the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891, the ensemble has been based in the Symphony Center since 1904 and plays a summer season at the Ravinia F ...

. Born to a

Chinese Indonesian Chinese Indonesians (), or simply ''Orang Tionghoa'' or ''Tionghoa'', are Indonesians whose ancestors arrived from China at some stage in the last eight centuries. Chinese Indonesians are the fourth largest community of Overseas Chinese in th ...

father (from

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

) and

Greek American Greek Americans ( ''Ellinoamerikanoí'' ''Ellinoamerikánoi'' ) are Americans of full or partial Greek ancestry. There is an estimate of 1.2 million Americans of full or partial Greek ancestry. According to the US census, 264,066 people o ...

mother (from

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

), Phan grew up in

Ann Arbor Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, where he attended Greenhills School. He studied voice at the

University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance The School of Music, Theatre, and Dance (SMTD) is the undergraduate and graduate school for the performing arts of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. The school was founded in 1880 as the Ann Arbor School of Music ...

and the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music a ...

. Phan is an alumnus of the

Houston Grand Opera Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is an American opera company located in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1955 by German-born impresario Walter Herbert and three local Houstonians,Giesberg, Robert I., Carl Cunningham, and Alan Rich. ''Houston Grand Opera at ...

Studio and the Marlboro Music School. He has been called "one of the world's most remarkable singers" by the Boston Globe. Phan's many opera credits include appearances with the

Los Angeles Opera The Los Angeles Opera, originally called the Los Angeles Music Center Opera, is an American opera company in Los Angeles, California. It is the fourth-largest opera company in the United States. The company's home base is the Dorothy Chandler P ...

, Houston Grand Opera, Glimmerglass Festival, Chicago Opera Theater, Seattle Opera, Portland Opera,

Naumburg Orchestral Concerts Naumburg () is a town in (and the administrative capital of) the district Burgenlandkreis, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, Central Germany. It has a population of around 33,000. The Naumburg Cathedral became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018. ...

, Glyndebourne Opera, Maggio Musicale in Florence, Deutsche Oper am Rhein, and Frankfurt Opera. His repertoire includes the title roles in Acis and Galatea and Candide, Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia, Nemorino in L'elisir d'amore, Fenton in Falstaff, Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, and Lurcanio in Ariodante. Phan's discography includes five studio albums, including two focusing on the works of

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...

, for which he was called "a major new Britten interpreter" by Anthony Tommasini of the

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

. He also recorded the world premier of

Elliott Carter Elliott Cook Carter Jr. (December 11, 1908 – November 5, 2012) was an American modernist composer who was one of the most respected composers of the second half of the 20th century. He combined elements of European modernism and American " ...

's ''A Sunbeam's Architecture'' to commemorate Carter's 103rd birthday. and has been featured in recordings of many orchestral and ensemble works. He has been nominated twice for a

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 ...

: first for his 2010 recording of Stravinsky's ''Pulcinella'' with

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 19255 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war contemporary classical music. Born in Montb ...

and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and most recently in 2017 for ''Gods and Monsters'', his recording of selected German Lieder with Myra Huang. In 2013, he was a soloist with the

, in the Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, in the summer series. Phan is the founding artistic director o
Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago
and on the faculty of the

DePaul University DePaul University is a private university, private Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission, Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from ...

School of Music.

Recordings

*''Clairières: Songs by Lili & Nadia Boulanger'', with Myra Huang, Avie Records (2020) *''Illuminations: Britten, Debussy, Fauré'', with Myra Huang, Telegraph Quartet, the Knights Chamber Orchestra. Avie Records (2018) *''Bach: St. John Passion'', as Evangelist with Apollo's Fire, Jeannette Sorrell, Amanda Forsythe, Terry Wey, Christian Immler, Jesse Blumberg and Jeffrey Strauss. Avie Records (2017) *''Gods & Monsters'', with Myra Huang. Avie Records (2017) *''A. Scarlatti: La Gloria di Primavera''. with

Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra The Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra (PBO) is an American orchestra based in San Francisco. PBO is dedicated to historically informed performance of Baroque, Classical and Romantic music on original instruments. The orchestra performs its subscri ...

Nicholas McGegan James Nicholas McGegan OBE (born 14 January 1950 in Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, England) is a British harpsichordist, flutist, conductor and early music expert. Biography McGegan received his early education at Nottingham High School. He subse ...

, Diana Moore, Suzana Ograjensek, Clint van der Linde, Douglas Williams, Philharmonia Chorale. (2016) *''A Painted Tale'', with Michael Leopold, Ann-Marie Morgan. Avie Records (2015) *''Schubert: Die Verschworenen'', with

Leon Botstein Leon Botstein (born December 14, 1946, in Zürich, Switzerland) is a Swiss-born American conductor, educator, historical musicologist, and scholar serving as the President of Bard College. Biography Botstein was born in Zürich, Switzerland, ...

, Camilla Zamorra, Nathan Stark, Deanna Breiwick, Matthew Tuell, American Symphony Orchestra. (2014) *''St Matthew Passion'' (DVD). with the

Orchestre de chambre de Paris The Orchestre de chambre de Paris (OCP) is a French chamber orchestra based in Paris. The orchestra performs throughout Paris with concerts at the Philharmonie de Paris, where it is a resident ensemble, and also at such venues as the Théâtre des ...

Schola Cantorum of Oxford Schola Cantorum of Oxford is the longest running chamber choir of University of Oxford, and one of the longest established and most widely known chamber choirs in the United Kingdom. The conductor is Steven Grahl. The choir was founded in 1960 b ...

, Maîtrise de Paris, John Nelson, Lucy Crowe, Matthew Brook, Bertrand Grunewald, Werner Güra, Stephen Morscheck & Christine Rice. EuroArts (2013) *''Still Falls the Rain'', with Myra Huang,

Alan Cumming Alan Cumming (born 27 January 1965) is a Scottish actor, writer and presenter. Known for his roles on stage and screen, he has received numerous accolades including a BAFTA Award, two Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, and an Olivier Award. He re ...

, Jennifer Montone, Sivan Magen. Avie Records (2012) *''Carter: 103rd Birthday Concert'' with Ryan McAdams, Marie Tachouet, Stephen Taylor, Charles Neidich, Virgil Blackwell, Peter Kolkay, Jim Pugh, Stephen Gosling, Mike Truesdell, Gordon Gottlieb, Aaron Boyd, Miranda Cuckson & Tai Murray. NMC Digital (2011) *''Britten: Winter Words, Seven Sonnets of Michelangelo'', with Myra Huang. Avie Records (2011) *''Stravinsky: Pulcinella''. with Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Pierre Boulez, Roxana Constantinescu, Kyle Ketelsen. CSO Resound (2010)

References

External links

Nicholas Phan websiteNicholas Phan blogMusical Toronto.org Review: Nicholas Phan Embodies the Perfect Benjamin Britten TenorSF Chronicle: CD review: 'Winter Words,' Britten
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phan, Nicholas 1979 births Living people American operatic tenors University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumni American musicians of Chinese descent Grammy Award winners American people of Greek descent Musicians from Ann Arbor, Michigan Musicians from Hartford, Connecticut American people of Chinese-Indonesian descent