Meet Tenor Lawrence Brownlee, Italian Girl’s Lindoro 11-12-2008 Photo by Dario Acosta. Lawrence Brownlee has “… a ringing, beautifully focused tenor sound, with ample flexibility to negotiate the composer's virtuoso demands…He soared into the stratosphere with ease, and his phrasing was superlative. Hearing him alone was worth the price of admission!” - Richard Dyer, Boston Globe ”On the brink of a major career, [Brownlee] is, without doubt, the most impressive addition to the American tenor roster in many years.”- Allan Ulrich, San Francisco Chronicle “Listening to Lawrence Brownlee sing…is a little bit like falling into a time warp. Most of the tenors to whom this spectacularly gifted young Ohioan can profitably be compared flourished the better part of a century ago. And I'm not talking about Enrico Caruso… No, Brownlee summons to mind recordings made by the generation before Caruso – Italian tenors such as Fernando de Lucia and Alessandro Bonci, with their Old World suavity, their dazzling and cultivated vocal agility, their caressing emphasis on unbroken lyrical sweetness. At his best, Brownlee sounds as though he has escaped from the hiss of an old Victrola – a real live coloratura tenor in the all-but-forgotten grand manner.”- Tim Page, Washington Post With such high praise, it’s difficult to imagine that Lawrence Brownlee says that he first came to opera by accident. The American tenor hails from Youngstown, Ohio and had his first experience singing when his parents forced him to perform a solo in the church choir his father directed. “I was extremely shy about my voice,” he shared. “I’m not a shy person, but when it came to my voice, I wasn’t yet comfortable. So when it went well, everybody started talking and I knew I was going to have to sing again,” he laughs. It wasn’t until later in life that Brownlee realized what a gift he had and embraced the world of opera. With a Bachelor of Arts degree from Anderson University and a Master of Music degree from Indiana University, Brownlee is a graduate of the young artist program at both the Seattle and Wolf Trap Operas. While he is thankful to all of the mentors in his life, it is OCP’s very own Music Director Corrado Rovaris whom he credits with helping to advance his career. “I got a call from my agent, early on, and he said, ‘Are you sitting down?’ and I waited… and he said, ‘La Scala would like you to come audition for them.’” The invitation was thrilling for the budding young tenor, who would soon prove himself in this world class setting. Conducting at Milan’s La Scala at the time, Maestro Rovaris sat in on auditions and heard Brownlee. Rovaris remembers, “He had the sun in his voice, and a presence that fills the stage. He is very good at moving his voice – very fast – without losing the quality of the voice. It is really quite special.” Recognizing the exceptional talent in the young singer, Rovaris and the artistic team at La Scala encouraged him to study his languages, and it was Maestro Rovaris standing at the podium when Brownlee made his La Scala debut in 2002 in The Barber of Seville and for his return one year later in The Italian Girl in Algiers. Ruxandra Donose and Lawrence Brownlee in the 2006 production of Cinderella. Photo by Kelly & Massa Photography. In this month’s production of Italian Girl, Brownlee joins a cast of voices with whom he partnered for the 2006 Opera Company production of Cinderella – Ruxandra Donose, Kevin Glavin, Daniel Belcher and Kiera Duffy, to name a few. “This is a fun opera,” he shares. “It’s a great ensemble show. I can’t believe that somebody would come to this opera and not laugh!” Mr. Brownlee, most recently named the Seattle Opera’s 2008 Artist of the Year, was the winner of both the 2006 Marian Anderson and Richard Tucker Awards, a feat never before achieved by any artist in the same year. His 2006 Opera Company debut as Don Ramiro in Cinderella prompted Opera magazine to say “Lawrence Brownlee aced Ramiro's stratospheric part with panache, confidence, immaculate style and attractive tone; certain Peruvian superstars might look to their laurels.” Philadelphia Weekly quipped, “Lawrence Brownlee as Don Ramiro (the Prince) seems to be hooked up to some sort of antigravity device as he makes some of Rossini’s more difficult passages sound positively easy.” He reprises the role of Don Ramiro later this season at the Metropolitan Opera. Brownlee follows up his return to the Academy of Music stage with a trip back to Ohio but for a different type of engagement this time: the star tenor will be getting married in December! Congratulations, Larry, from all of your friends at the Opera Company of Philadelphia! To visit Mr. Browlee’s website, click here. To see Lawrence Brownlee interviewed on CBS3, click here. To learn more about Italian Girl and buy tickets, click here.
Photo by Dario Acosta.
Lawrence Brownlee has “… a ringing, beautifully focused tenor sound, with ample flexibility to negotiate the composer's virtuoso demands…He soared into the stratosphere with ease, and his phrasing was superlative. Hearing him alone was worth the price of admission!” - Richard Dyer, Boston Globe
”On the brink of a major career, [Brownlee] is, without doubt, the most impressive addition to the American tenor roster in many years.”- Allan Ulrich, San Francisco Chronicle
“Listening to Lawrence Brownlee sing…is a little bit like falling into a time warp. Most of the tenors to whom this spectacularly gifted young Ohioan can profitably be compared flourished the better part of a century ago. And I'm not talking about Enrico Caruso… No, Brownlee summons to mind recordings made by the generation before Caruso – Italian tenors such as Fernando de Lucia and Alessandro Bonci, with their Old World suavity, their dazzling and cultivated vocal agility, their caressing emphasis on unbroken lyrical sweetness. At his best, Brownlee sounds as though he has escaped from the hiss of an old Victrola – a real live coloratura tenor in the all-but-forgotten grand manner.”- Tim Page, Washington Post
With such high praise, it’s difficult to imagine that Lawrence Brownlee says that he first came to opera by accident. The American tenor hails from Youngstown, Ohio and had his first experience singing when his parents forced him to perform a solo in the church choir his father directed. “I was extremely shy about my voice,” he shared. “I’m not a shy person, but when it came to my voice, I wasn’t yet comfortable. So when it went well, everybody started talking and I knew I was going to have to sing again,” he laughs. It wasn’t until later in life that Brownlee realized what a gift he had and embraced the world of opera.
With a Bachelor of Arts degree from Anderson University and a Master of Music degree from Indiana University, Brownlee is a graduate of the young artist program at both the Seattle and Wolf Trap Operas. While he is thankful to all of the mentors in his life, it is OCP’s very own Music Director Corrado Rovaris whom he credits with helping to advance his career. “I got a call from my agent, early on, and he said, ‘Are you sitting down?’ and I waited… and he said, ‘La Scala would like you to come audition for them.’” The invitation was thrilling for the budding young tenor, who would soon prove himself in this world class setting.
Conducting at Milan’s La Scala at the time, Maestro Rovaris sat in on auditions and heard Brownlee. Rovaris remembers, “He had the sun in his voice, and a presence that fills the stage. He is very good at moving his voice – very fast – without losing the quality of the voice. It is really quite special.” Recognizing the exceptional talent in the young singer, Rovaris and the artistic team at La Scala encouraged him to study his languages, and it was Maestro Rovaris standing at the podium when Brownlee made his La Scala debut in 2002 in The Barber of Seville and for his return one year later in The Italian Girl in Algiers.
Ruxandra Donose and Lawrence Brownlee in the 2006 production of Cinderella. Photo by Kelly & Massa Photography.
In this month’s production of Italian Girl, Brownlee joins a cast of voices with whom he partnered for the 2006 Opera Company production of Cinderella – Ruxandra Donose, Kevin Glavin, Daniel Belcher and Kiera Duffy, to name a few. “This is a fun opera,” he shares. “It’s a great ensemble show. I can’t believe that somebody would come to this opera and not laugh!”
Mr. Brownlee, most recently named the Seattle Opera’s 2008 Artist of the Year, was the winner of both the 2006 Marian Anderson and Richard Tucker Awards, a feat never before achieved by any artist in the same year. His 2006 Opera Company debut as Don Ramiro in Cinderella prompted Opera magazine to say “Lawrence Brownlee aced Ramiro's stratospheric part with panache, confidence, immaculate style and attractive tone; certain Peruvian superstars might look to their laurels.” Philadelphia Weekly quipped, “Lawrence Brownlee as Don Ramiro (the Prince) seems to be hooked up to some sort of antigravity device as he makes some of Rossini’s more difficult passages sound positively easy.” He reprises the role of Don Ramiro later this season at the Metropolitan Opera.
Brownlee follows up his return to the Academy of Music stage with a trip back to Ohio but for a different type of engagement this time: the star tenor will be getting married in December! Congratulations, Larry, from all of your friends at the Opera Company of Philadelphia!
To visit Mr. Browlee’s website, click here.
To see Lawrence Brownlee interviewed on CBS3, click here.
To learn more about Italian Girl and buy tickets, click here.
