Voices Eternal

Hailed by The New York Times as “a beautiful woman who commands the stage” and “a major soprano,” Ailyn Pérez is in demand at the world’s leading opera houses and cultural capitals. As Opera News observes, “The phrase ‘an embarrassment of riches’ might have been invented to describe the combination of talents that belong to Ailyn Pérez … who truly seems to have it all.” Internationally celebrated for her signature artistry, as the winner of the 2012 Richard Tucker Award she became the first Hispanic recipient in the award’s history.

Ailyn’s current season is highlighted by her eagerly awaited debut as Leonora in a new production of Verdi’s Il Trovatore at Houston Grand Opera. She returns to The Metropolitan Opera to reprise her signature role of Mimì in Puccini’s La Bohème, a performance she will also offer at the Wiener Staatsoper and in a new production by Melanie Bacaling at the Lyric Opera of Chicago later in the spring. Additional operatic engagements include Cio-Cio-San in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, the title role in Puccini’s Tosca at Staatsoper Berlin, and Nedda in Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci at the Bayerische Staatsoper. On the concert stage, she performs Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, “Resurrection” with the Jacksonville Symphony and Bizet’s Carmen in concert with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Jader Bignamini, celebrating the opera’s 150th anniversary, as well as a Gala Concert for The Atlanta Opera.

Career highlights include Violetta (La traviata) at Opernhaus Zürich, the Hamburgische Staatsoper, Staatsoper Berlin, Bayerische Staatsoper, San Francisco Opera, Teatro alla Scala, and the Royal Opera House – Covent Garden, where she was hailed as “an ideal Violetta” (Observer, UK). Pérez then went on to appear at Covent Garden in the same season, as the title role in Massenet’s Manon, and for her role debut as Liù (Turandot). Other highlights include Thaïs, Mimì and Musetta (La bohème), and Juliette (Roméo et Juliette) at The Metropolitan Opera; Adina (L’elisir d’amore) for the Bayerische Staatsoper, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Wiener Staatsoper, and Washington National Opera; Contessa Almaviva (Le nozze di Figaro) for Houston Grand Opera (having made her house debut there as Desdemona in Otello); Violetta and title role of Manon on a tour of Japan with the Royal Opera House; Tatyana Bakst in the world premiere of Jake Heggie’s Great Scott (featured on an acclaimed Erato recording release) and Manon for The Dallas Opera; house debuts at the Bolshoi Theatre as Mimì (La bohème) and at Glyndebourne as Alice Ford; Contessa Almaviva (Le nozze di Figaro) and Marguerite (Faust) for Hamburgische Staatsoper; Marguerite (Faust) in Santa Fe and Amelia Grimaldi Simon Boccanegra at Teatro alla Scala and Staatsoper Berlin, and also opposite Leo Nucci at Opernhaus Zürich.

In concert, Ms. Pérez has performed Verdi’s Requiem with the Orchestre Métropolitain in Montréal conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Mozart’s Requiem with Antonio Pappano and the Accademia Santa Cecilia Orchestra in Rome, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Essen Philharmoniker. In recent seasons, Ailyn has made guest appearances at gala concerts for The Metropolitan Opera and the Royal Opera House. Ailyn has also appeared in recital for London’s Rosenblatt Recitals at Wigmore Hall, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center, and with the Santa Fe Desert Chorale. Her debut album, “Poème d’un jour” (a program of French and Italian songs on the Opus Arte label) was released to rave reviews, with the UK’s Independent newspaper awarding it five stars, while International Record Review confessed, “Every so often, a singer comes along who completely bowls you over.”

Ailyn’s triumphant 2023/24 season marked her eagerly anticipated debut as Cio-Cio-San in Madama Butterfly at Teatro di San Carlo, a role she subsequently reprised at Houston Grand Opera and Teatro Real de Madrid. She also made a thrilling role debut as Florencia Grimaldi in a new production of Daniel Catán’s Florencia en el Amazonas at The Metropolitan Opera, where she captivated audiences and critics alike. As the New York Times raved, “Pérez is, appropriately, the uncontested star: wistful, tender and sincere, her voice… generously delivered, her high notes glistening.” She also starred as Micaëla in Carmen at the Met. Further highlights included her Washington Concert Opera debut as Magda in La Rondine and her portrayal of Tosca at Hamburg State Opera. Beyond the opera house, Ailyn paid tribute to Renée Fleming at the Kennedy Center Honors Gala, and performed at the prestigious Richard Tucker Gala Concert at Carnegie Hall. She also commemorated the centenary of Giacomo Puccini’s death with a special concert alongside La Súper in Monterrey, Mexico, under the baton of Abdiel Vázquez.

A highlight of her discography, Ailyn joined forces with Chinese guitarist Xuefei Yang for the 2019/20 release of Mi Corazón. The digital album, available exclusively on Apple Music and iTunes, is a heartfelt exploration of Ailyn’s rich musical heritage, featuring beloved Spanish and Portuguese songs, as well as works by Manuel de Falla, Manuel Ponce, and Heitor Villa-Lobos.

Ailyn Pérez is a graduate of Philadelphia’s Academy of Vocal Arts and Indiana University. She serves as an Artistic Advisor and on the faculty for the Vincerò Academy and is an Opera for Peace Ambassador. Her many accolades include the Metropolitan Opera’s Beverly Sills Artist Award (2016), George London Foundation’s Leonie Rysanek Award (2006), Shoshana Foundation Career Grant (2007), 2nd place in the 2006 Operalia Competition, and honors from the Loren L. Zachary Foundation, Opera Index, and the Licia Albanese-Puccini Foundation.

American composer Jake Heggie is best known for Dead Man Walking (2000), the most widely performed new opera of the last 20 years, with a libretto by Terrence McNally, and his critically acclaimed operas Moby-Dick (2010), Three Decembers (2008), Intelligence (2023), and It’s a Wonderful Life (2016), all with libretti by Gene Scheer. In addition to 10 full-length operas and numerous one-acts, Heggie has composed more than 300 art songs, as well as concerti, chamber music, choral, and orchestral works. His compositions have been performed on five continents, and he regularly collaborates with some of the world’s most beloved artists as both composer and pianist. 

Heggie actively seeks out projects that invite a wide range of perspectives and possibilities. In the 24/25 season, he re-teams with choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and Urban Bush Women for the world premiere of Earth 2.0, a monodrama commissioned by Fort Worth Symphony, featuring countertenor Key’mon Murrah with Robert Spano conducting. Heggie’s acclaimed collaboration with Margaret Atwood, Songs for Murdered Sisters, appears at Carnegie Hall and Marian Anderson Hall with The Philadelphia Orchestra under the baton of Yannick Nézet-Séguin. A new commission for fast-rising countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen also appears at Carnegie Hall before touring to Houston and Washington, D.C. Following the highly acclaimed Met premiere of Dead Man Walking, the Metropolitan Opera welcomes a stunning Leonard Foglia production of Moby-Dick. 

Mr. Scheer’s work is noted for its scope and versatility. With the composer Jake Heggie, he has collaborated on many projects, including the critically acclaimed 2010 Dallas Opera world premiere, Moby-Dick, starring Ben Heppner as Captain Ahab; Three Decembers (Houston Grand Opera), which starred Frederica von Stade; and the lyric drama To Hell and Back (Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra), which featured Patti LuPone. Other works by Scheer and Heggie include Camille Claudel: Into the fire, a song cycle premiered by Joyce di Donato and the Alexander String Quartet. Mr. Scheer worked as librettist with Tobias Picker on An American Tragedy, which premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in 2005 and on Therese Raquin which was produced by the Dallas Opera in 2001. Other collaborations include the lyrics for Wynton Marsalis’s It Never Goes Away, featured in Mr. Marsalis’s work Congo Square.  With the composer Steven Stucky, Mr. Scheer wrote the oratorio August 4, 1964, for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. The work was nominated for a Grammy in 2012 for best classical composition. In 2015, Mr. Scheer collaborated with Joby Talbot on the opera Everest, based on the doomed 1996 Everest expedition. With Jennifer Higdon, Mr. Scheer wrote an operatic adaptation of Cold Mountain, which premiered in the summer of 2015 at the Santa Fe Opera. This work won the International Opera award, presented in London, for the best World premiere in 2015. Recently, along with Ms. Higdon, Mr. Scheer was nominated for a Grammy for his work on Cold Mountain for best classical composition. In December of 2016 Mr. Scheer and Jake Heggie premiered an operatic adaptation of It’s a Wonderful Life for the Houston Grand Opera. Also a composer in his own right, Mr. Scheer has written a number of songs for singers such as Renée Fleming, Sylvia McNair, Stephanie Blythe, Jennifer Larmore, Denyce Graves, and Nathan Gunn.  The distinguished documentary filmmaker, Ken Burns, prominently featured Mr. Scheer’s song “American Anthem” (as sung by Norah Jones) in his Emmy Award-winning World War II documentary for PBS entitled The War.