Hailed by the New York Times for her “beautiful tone and a graceful sense of phrasing,” dramatic soprano Lori Guilbeau has sung on some of the world’s most prestigious stages, including the Metropolitan Opera and Carnegie Hall. Among her numerous awards and accolades are the Grand Prize of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, the George London/ Leonie Rysanek Award from the George London Foundation, and first prize in the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition.
After singing at the Metropolitan Opera for several seasons, Mrs. Guilbeau joined the ensemble at Theater Kiel, where she recently concluded three very successful seasons. While there she triumphed in many roles, including the title role of Ariadne in Ariadne auf Naxos, Amelia in Un ballo in Maschera, 3rd Norn in Götterdammerung, Sieglinde in Die Walküre, Valentine in Les Huguenots, Corinna in Il Viaggio a Reims, Liù in Turandot, Micaëla in Carmen, and Euridice in Orfeo et Euridice. During her final season she performed the title role of Arabella to critical acclaim. Der Theater Verlag said “The luscious American Arabella, Lori Guilbeau, who effortlessly brings her youthful glowing dramatic soprano to bloom, would have stood well in the premiere staging of a Queen Isolde.” Other recent highlights include one of her signature roles, Sieglinde, in a concert performance of Die Walküre with the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra, as well as a gala concert with Operafest Røykevik in Gran, Norway.
Mrs. Guilbeau made her Metropolitan Opera debut as the High Priestess in Aida, with Marco Armiliato conducting, and has since reprised the role several times with the company. She has also sung Voce dal Ciel in Don Carlo, and she has joined the Met for their productions of Götterdämmerung and Nabucco. Along with four other up-and-coming singers, she represented the Metropolitan Opera for its Rising Stars concert tour, giving concerts and masterclasses throughout the United States. On the concert stage, she joined the American Symphony Orchestra for Esmerelda in Schimidt’s Notre Dame at Carnegie Hall, as well as for concerts featuring French repertoire by Saint-Saëns, Gounod, Delibes, and Massenet at the Bard Music Festival. The Symphony released the performances of Saint-Saëns’ “Le dèluge, poème biblique," Op. 45 and Schmitt’s Psalm 47, Op 38 as recordings. Among her other concert performances are Strauss’ Vier letzte Lieder with the Monterey Symphony, Verdi’s Requiem with both the Louisiana Philharmonic and East Alabama Arts Association, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Orchester Kiel. She offered a solo recital in New York City with pianist Kevin Murphy, which was co-presented by the Marilyn Horne Foundation and Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall. She later joined bass John Relyea in a recital presented by the George London Foundation at New York City’s Morgan Library with pianist Warren Jones.
She triumphed at the young age of 24 as a grand prize winner of the 2010 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, in which she sang “Give me some music” from Barber’s Antony and Cleopatra and “Toi qui sus le néant” from Don Carlos with the legendary Met orchestra, under the baton of Marco Armiliato. In addition to the highest awards from the George London Foundation and the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition, Mrs. Guilbeau also won first prize in the Alan M. and Joan Taub Ades Vocal Competition at Manhattan School of Music, the Richard F. Gold Career Grant from the Shoshannah Foundation, and a grant from the Wagner society of New York.
Mrs. Guilbeau received both her Master of Music and Bachelor of Music from Manhattan School of Music, at which her performances of the title role of Fauré’s Pénélope garnered great critical acclaim. While there, she presented a recital at the Terrace Theater of the John F. Kennedy Center as part of the Conservatory Project Recital Series, singing songs of Duparc and Marx. She additionally participated in the Merola Opera Program, in association with San Francisco Opera; Summer Opera Tel Aviv; the International Institute of Vocal Arts in Chiari, Italy; Lidal North in Oslo, Norway; and Sherill Milnes’ VOICExperience.
Photo: Kritin Hoebermann