Patricia Risley , hailed by Opera News for “her voice…luscious and agile, her characterization both boisterous and tender,” as well as her beautiful “singing with ease and certainty,” has been frequently sought after on national and international stages. Her operatic performances encompass leading roles in works of Mozart, Rossini, Handel, Gounod, Monteverdi, Strauss, Haydn, and Purcell with companies worldwide including those in New York City, Chicago, Madrid, Berlin, Houston, Santa Fe, Innsbruck, Salt Lake City, Palm Beach, and Denver as well as performances in contemporary
repertoire including world premieres and recent works of Bolcom, Pasatieri, Adès, Machover, Harbison, and Dove. In addition to creating the role of Evvy Powers in Machover’s Death and the Powers, she has appeared as Dinah in Bernstein’s A Quiet Place (New York City Opera); Dido in Dido and Aeneas (Florentine Opera); Margret in Wozzeck (Santa Fe Opera); and Dorabella in Così fan tutte (Palm Beach Opera). Appearances at the Metropolitan Opera include productions of La Traviata, Gianni Schicchi, and Il barbiere di Siviglia. Additionally, she has joined the New York Philharmonic, Boston Baroque, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Grant Park Music Festival, and Oregon Symphony as a concert soloist. The winner of a 2001 Aria Award, she made her German debut at the Staatsoper
unter den Linden as Cherubino in a new production of Le nozze di Figaro. She has sung at music festivals and on concert stages world-wide, including a solo recital under the auspices of the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. Her discography includes Sharon Falconer in Aldridge’s Elmer Gantry and The Dark Woman in Salerni’s Tony Caruso’s Final Broadcast, both on the Naxos label.
mezzo-soprano