Susan Larson (born 1944) is an American

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 ...

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 ...

singer and author. Larson was born in

New Rochelle, New York New Rochelle ( ; in ) is a Political subdivisions of New York State#City, city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately from Midtow ...

and she graduated with a Bachelor of Music from

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

in 1965. She received a Master of Music from the

New England Conservatory The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along Avenue of the Arts (Boston), the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Ha ...

in 1969.

Career highlights

* Charter member,

Emmanuel Music Emmanuel Music is a Boston-based collective group of singers and instrumentalists founded in 1970 by Craig Smith. It was created specifically to perform the complete cycle of over 200 sacred cantatas of J. S. Bach in the liturgical setting for wh ...

, Boston * Appearances with

Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival The Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival is a six-week-long summer Festival of chamber music held annually in July and August and located in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was founded in 1972 and presented its first series of concerts in 1973. Well-known mu ...

, Ravinia, St. Louis and Bethlemehm Bach Festivals, Monadnock Music Festival, Pepsico SummerFare Festival, Theater der Welt Festival * Member, Liederkreis Quartet (Naumburg Foundation Award for chamber music, 1980) *

Peter Sellars Peter Sellars (born September 27, 1957) is an American theatre director, noted for his unique stagings of classical and contemporary operas and plays. Sellars is a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he teaches ...

production of 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 ...

'', Manchester NH 1980, role of Donna Elvira * Peter Sellars production of Handel's ''

Saul Saul (; , ; , ; ) was a monarch of ancient Israel and Judah and, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament, the first king of the United Monarchy, a polity of uncertain historicity. His reign, traditionally placed in the late eleventh c ...

'', 1981, role of Michal *

American Repertory Theater The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) is a professional not-for-profit theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1979 by Robert Brustein, the A.R.T. is known for its commitment to new American plays and music–theater explorations; to ne ...

, Handel's ''

Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

'', 1982, role of Dorinda * American Repertory Theater, Rodgers & Hart's ''

The Boys from Syracuse ''The Boys from Syracuse'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart, based on William Shakespeare's play '' The Comedy of Errors'', as adapted by librettist George Abbott. The score includes swing and other contemp ...

'', 1983 (Best Actress in a Musical, Boston Theatre Critics Circle) * Theater der Welt prize awarded for Sellars' production of ''

Così fan tutte (''Women are like that, or The School for Lovers''), Köchel catalogue, 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 ...

'' 1989 *

Opera Company of Boston The Opera Company of Boston was an American opera company located in Boston, Massachusetts, that was active from the late 1950s through the 1980s. The company was founded by American conducting, conductor Sarah Caldwell in 1958 under the name Bo ...

, Robert DiDomenica's "

The Balcony ''The Balcony'' () is a Play (theatre), play by the French people, French dramatist Jean Genet. It is set in an unnamed city that is experiencing a revolutionary uprising in the streets; most of the action takes place in an upmarket brothel that ...

," (role of Carmen) in Boston and at the Bolsoi in Moscow * She has published two novels: '' Sam (a pastoral)'' and '' The Murder of Figaro'' * Member, Board of Directors
Guerilla Opera

Recordings

* London Records CDs of ''Così fan tutte'' (as Fiordiligi), ''

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 ...

'' (as Cherubino), and ''

Giulio Cesare in Egitto ''Giulio Cesare in Egitto'' (; ; HWV 17), commonly known as , is a dramma per musica (''opera seria'') in three acts composed by George Frideric Handel for the Royal Academy of Music in 1724. The libretto was written by Nicola Francesco Haym w ...

'' as Cleopatra * Liebeslieder Waltzer (Brahms) with Liederkreis Quartet, "A Samuel Chapter" (John Harbison) *

, Schütz motets

Premiere performances

* "Mirabai Songs" ( John Harbison) * "On This Most Voluptuous Night" ( Yehudi Wyner) * Carmen, in Robert DiDomenica's operatic adaptation of

Jean Genet Jean Genet (; ; – ) was a French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. In his early life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but he later became a writer and playwright. His major works include the novels '' The Th ...

's ''

'', with the

(1990).

Filmography

* ''Le nozze di Figaro'' (1990) (TV) Cherubino * ''Giulio Cesare in Egitto'' (1990) (TV) Cleopatra * ''Così fan tutte'' (1990) (TV) Fiordiligi

Books

*
Sam (a pastoral)
' (Savvy Press, 2012) *
The Murder of Figaro
' (Savvy Press, 2019)

Sources

*Dyer, Richard

''

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...

'', February 5, 1987 *Oestreich, James
"Jean Genet's 'Balcony' Makes Debut as Opera"
''

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 ...

'', June 17, 1990

References

1944 births Living people American operatic sopranos Musicians from New Rochelle, New York Indiana University alumni Classical musicians from New York (state) 21st-century American women {{US-opera-singer-stub