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Barbara Bonney

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Barbara Bonney is an American soprano, born in 1956 in Montclair, New Jersey. As a child she played the piano and cello, and after the family moved to Maine she played cello in the Portland Symphony Youth Orchestra. During a year of study at the University of Salzburg she switched from cello to singing. In 1979 she went to the Staatstheater Darmstadt, where she made her debut as Anna in The Merry Wives of Windsor. In the following years she performed in Germany and across Europe, including at Covent Garden and La Scala. In 1987 she made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera in Ariadne auf Naxos by Richard Strauss and at the Vienna State Opera.

Music and breakthrough

Bonney is known for her lyric soprano roles in operas by Mozart and Strauss and for her interpretations of song. She appeared on more than ninety recordings, including fifteen solo programmes of songs. Her recordings include L'elisir d'amore, Die Fledermaus, Die Zauberflöte and Le nozze di Figaro from 1987 and 1988, and La Pasión según San Mateo from 1989. From 1999 she did not perform in opera for two years, in order to concentrate on song recitals. In 2006 she cancelled her appearances. She is a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music, a visiting professor in London and a teacher at the Mozarteum in Salzburg.

Influence

Her voice is light, clear and agile, and suits the high roles of Mozart and Strauss. She is thus one of the singers who show how classical singing can also sound intimate, in the hall and on record.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to an aria from Le nozze di Figaro in the 1988 recording. Notice the clear, light sound of the soprano and how effortlessly she lets high notes float.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists