VISI Faculty: Tracy Dahl
Coloratura
soprano, Tracy Dahl, has established herself as an important artist on
the international concert and opera stages. Her flair as an actress,
as well as her outstanding vocal abilities, have received high praise.
She has performed with the Metropolitan Opera, the San Francisco Opera,
Canadian Opera Company, Washington Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Los Angeles
Music Center Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, the
Châtelet in Paris, and the Aix-en-Provence Festival. Described
as “a bright bird of her species” by the Vancouver Sun, “her
extreme high notes” according to the Boston Globe, “are both
easy and spectacular.”
Ms. Dahl starts season 2006/07 in her native country, Canada, singing
Mozart’s C-minor Mass with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra and following
it up with a tour in Mexico as a soloist in Bach’s Christmas
Oratorio to be performed with the Xalapa Symphony in Xalapa, Veracruz and Mexico
City. Later this season, Ms. Dahl returns to Vancouver Opera for the
role of Zerbinetta in a production of Strauss’ Ariadne auf
Naxos. Ms. Dahl has been engaged by Arizona Opera to sing the title role in
Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, the opening production of season
2007/08. In the 2005/06 season, Ms. Dahl made her debut at La Scala in
the role of Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, as well as sang the role
of Lucie Ashton in Lucie de Lammermoor with Boston Lyric Opera, and Mme.
Mao in Nixon in China with Portland Opera. In addition, she performed
with Orchestre Symphonique de Quebec, Phoenix Symphony and Los Angeles
Chamber Orchestra.
In addition, she’s recently performed Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier with Vancouver Opera, singing operatic arias with Opera Lyra Ottawa and Manitoba Opera, Gershwin songs with Vancouver Symphony, Britten’s Spring Symphony and Orff’s Carmina Burana with Montreal Symphony, “Last Night of the Proms” with the Toronto Symphony and the role of Marie in The Daughter of the Regiment with the Michigan Opera Theatre.
In previous seasons, she performed Norina in Don Pasquale with Opera Lyra Ottawa, Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia with Vancouver Opera, Valencienne in The Merry Widow with Metropolitan Opera, Nellie Forbush in South Pacific with Edmonton Opera, and Madame Mao in Nixon in China with Opera Theatre of St. Louis. In the summer of 2004, Ms. Dahl returned to New York Philharmonic performing “A Little Light Opera.”
In the past seasons, Ms. Dahl appeared in Die Fledermaus in Tampa Bay and Regina, in Don Pasquale with Calgary and Edmonton Operas, in La Fille du Régiment with Opera Hamilton, in Lucia di Lammermoor with Manitoba Opera, as Blöndchen in a concert version of Die Entführung aus dem Serail with the New York Philharmonic (Sir Colin Davis), in Del Tredici‘s Dracula with Vancouver Symphony, and in Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Oregon Symphony.
Ms. Dahl has performed with every major Canadian orchestra, including Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and Toronto Symphony under Andrew Davis in Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 and Strauss’ Daphne in solo concert appearances. Other orchestral engagements have included a New Year’s Eve Gala concert with the Philadelphia Orchestra under David Zinman and appearances with Atlanta Symphony Orchestra during the Atlanta ’96 Olympics Arts Festival. Ms. Dahl performed with American Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of David Del Tredici’s Child Alice at Carnegie Hall. She appeared with the San Francisco Symphony in Handel’s Messiah, the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra for performances of Haydn’s The Creation, and with the Saint Louis Symphony under Leonard Slatkin. She also performed with maestro Slatkin at the Hollywood Bowl, joined the Tonhalle Orchestra/Zurich under Zinman for a gala New Year’s Eve concert, and made her United Kingdom debut with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.
Ms. Dahl has appeared regularly with Washington Opera in such roles as La Fée in Cendrillon and as Marie in La Fille du Régiment. She debuted with San Francisco Opera as Olympia opposite Plácido Domingo in Les Contes d’Hoffmann and returned as Oscar in Un Ballo in Maschera and Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor. Her Metropolitan Opera debut was as Adele in Die Fledermaus and she has returned to the Metropolitan as Zerbinetta and as Florestine in the world premiere and revival productions of The Ghosts of Versailles. Other recent operatic engagements include Marie in La Fille du Régiment with Opera Lyra Ottawa, Arizona Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, and Manitoba Opera; Despina in Cosí Fan Tutte with the Dallas Opera; and Eurydice in Orpheus in the Underworld with Michigan Opera Theater and Houston Grand Opera, where she also sang Oscar. Ms. Dahl was Gretel in Hansel and Gretel with the Cleveland Opera. With L’Opéra Français de New York, she has performed Orpheus in the Underworld as well as the title role of Catherine in Bizet’s La Jolie Fille de Perth. She appeared as Servilia in New York City Opera’s production of La Clemenza di Tito. Ms. Dahl debuted with Los Angeles Music Center Opera in Orpheus in the Underworld and returned to sing Amor in Orfeo ed Euridice. European debuts include performances as Olympia at the Châtelet, Blondchen in Die Entführung aus dem Serail at the Aix-en-Provence Festival, and Zerbinetta at the Hamburg Opera. She was Iris in Semele and Fiakermilli in Arabella at Santa Fe Opera, Marie in La Fille du Régiment with Calgary Opera, Norina in Don Pasquale with Manitoba Opera, as well as her first Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte.
Equally at home in recital, Ms. Dahl has performed solo recitals across North America, in France, and in joint recital with tenor Richard Margison, produced by Calgary Opera and subsequently by the Edmonton Symphony.
Her discography includes A Disney Spectacular with the Cincinnati Pops (Telarc), Glitter and Be Gay with the Calgary Philharmonic (CBC), A Gilbert and Sullivan Gala with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra (CBC), and Love Walked In, a Gershwin collection with the Bramwell Tovey Trio (Red Phone Box Company). Ms. Dahl also has made numerous television appearances on the internationally acclaimed children’s program, Fred Penner’s Place.