DANIEL SHIRLEY
DANIEL SHIRLEY
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Noted for his diverse repertoire, lyric tenor Daniel Shirley captivates audiences with his commanding stage presence and vocalism rich in color and character. He has been critically lauded for his performances of new operas, musical theater classics, and symphonic masterpieces.
Recent and upcoming: Mr. Shirley debuted the role of John Little in the world premiere of We Shall Not Be Moved, a new hybrid opera by Daniel Bernard Roumain, Marc Bamuthi Joseph, and Bill T. Jones, part of Opera Philadelphia‘s groundbreaking O17 Festival. The work was presented to critical acclaim at Philadelphia’s Wilma Theater and New York City’s historic Apollo Theater. The project traveled to Amsterdam for its European debut with the Dutch National Opera. Last summer he recorded The Dormition Hymns in Russian for the PaTRAM Institute for Eastern Orthodox Music and he joined the Lancaster Symphony Orchestra as soloist in Carmina Burana. This season Mr. Shirley sings with the North Carolina Masterworks Chorale in works by Mozart and Handel; and, records the role of John Little in We Shall Not Be Moved.
Mr. Shirley sings the role of Eurimaco on Boston Baroque’s Grammy-nominated recording of Monteverdi’s Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria (realized and conducted by Martin Pearlman). In the Chicago area, he has been a familiar presence with Music of the Baroque under the baton of Jane Glover, having performed tenor solos in Mozart’s Coronation Mass and Handel’s Israel in Egypt, for which his “articulate delivery was to the Handelian manner born” (Chicago Tribune).
Daniel trained in some of America’s most notable young artist and apprenticeship programs. Among them include The Santa Fe Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Central City Opera, Opera Memphis, and Chautauqua Opera. He has been recognized in recent years by the American Traditions Competition, the William Matheus Sullivan Foundation, the Anna Sosenko Trust, the George London Foundation, and the National Society of Arts & Letters. A native of Jackson, Mississippi, Mr. Shirley is a graduate of the Vanderbilt University Blair School of Music and the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.
The 2017-2018 season also brought important concert engagements throughout his home state of North Carolina; Bach’s Weinachts-Oratorium and Oster-Oratorium with the Raleigh Bach Soloists, Messiah with the Carolina Philharmonic, his debut with the Bach Cantata Series of Duke University Chapel, and a solo recital of Britten and Finzi at East Carolina University.
Mr. Shirley has had principal engagements in recent years with the opera companies of Kentucky Opera, Austin Opera, Madison Opera, Odyssey Opera of Boston, Boston Baroque, Opera Memphis, Michigan Opera Theater, Sugar Creek Opera, Intermountain Opera Bozeman, and New York City Opera. On the concert side, he has been a guest soloist with Seattle Symphony, Omaha Symphony, Milwaukee Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Carolina Philharmonic, Lexington Philharmonic, Music of the Baroque, Firebird Arts Alliance of Charlotte, and Choral Society of Durham. His 2013 Carnegie Hall debut was with Distinguished Concerts International – New York.
More on Daniel Shirley at: www.danielshirleytenor.com
