Sharp Studio
David Artz, MM2
A native of Central New York and graduate of Syracuse University, David Artz has sung with the Oswego Opera Company, Syracuse Opera Company, Syracuse University Opera Theatre, Operafestival di Roma program, AIMS in Graz program, and Accademia Europea dell'Opera program. Now enrolled at Peabody Conservatory as a Master's Degree candidate in Voice, he is singing with the Peabody Conservatory Opera Theatre.
A high lyric tenor with an extended, leggiero range, David is well at home in the roles of French style (Nadir, Des Grieux, Romeo, Gerald), in the lighter roles of Puccini (Rodolfo, Rinuccio, Prunier), roles in Bel Canto style (Ernesto, Tonio, Almaviva, Arturo, Nemorino), and the lighthearted roles of German-style Operetta and Light Comic Opera (Alfred, Detlef, Barinkay, Danilo, Nanki-Poo).
Roles sung in mainstage productions or in scenes programs while studying at Peabody include Le Remendado in "Carmen," Ottavio in "Don Giovanni," Judge Danforth in "The Crucible," Sellman in Peabody Student Kyle Rotolo's new short opera "Marilyn's Room," Gherardo in "Gianni Schicchi," Monostatos in "Die Zauberfloete," Nadir in "Les pecheurs de perles," Ernesto in "Don Pasquale," Edgardo in "Lucia di Lammermoor," Prunier in "La rondine," and Lysander in "A Midsummer Night's Dream."
Karl Buttermann, BM1
Karl Buttermann, a freshman bass-baritone in the studio of William Sharp, hails from Mahtomedi, Minnesota. In 2011, Karl was accepted into the prestigious Minnesota Opera High School Apprentice Program. In the spring of 2012, Karl performed the role of “Father” in the new chamber opera, “The Giver.” This production was a part of the Minnesota Opera’s Project Opera Program. Karl has sung with his high school choir, Minnesota Opera’s Project Opera Chorus, and the Young Artist Vocal Program at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. He has achieved superior ratings on every regional contest he has participated in, and was a semi-finalist in the 2010 and 2011 Minnesota National Association of Teachers of Singing Competition.
Emma Caffrey, BM2
Emma Caffrey is from New Orleans, Louisiana, where she attended the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts where she studied with Phyllis Treigle. She is currently studying with baritone William Sharp. In spring of 2012, she made her onstage debut as Mercy Lewis in Robert Wards The Crucible, and she was a featured alto soloist in Vivaldi's Gloria, conducted by Edward Polochick. She will be appearing in the Opera Lollapalooza Scenes program in the fall of 2012. Ms. Caffrey will also be participating in a performance of Armando Bayolo's Sacred Cows, in participation with Hexacollective, an organization for which she is an intern. She is looking forward to performing in the chorus of Lakme, by Léo Delibes, in the spring of 2013.
Jeffrey Gates, GPD2
Baritone Jeffrey Grayson Gates is a Texas native who is quickly distinguishing himself as a talented young performer across the United States. Most recently, Mr. Gates was selected as a winner of the Vocal Arts DC Young Artists Competition, and the Washington D.C. District Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, previously having been a Midwest Regional Finalist. Mr. Gates received Third Place in The American Prize in Vocal Performance – Art Song and the Grand Prize Overall Winner at the 2010 Naftzger Young Artist Auditions – the first male vocalist to win the award since 1946. Shortly after, Mr. Gates completed his Bachelor of Music from Oklahoma City University, where he studied under Dr. William Nield Christensen. His operatic highlights include: Don Giovanni (Don Giovanni), Count Almaviva (Le Nozze di Figaro), Germont in (La Traviata), Horace Tabor (The Ballad of Baby Doe), Eisenstein (Die Fledermaus), Reverend Hale (The Crucible), Rambaldo (La Rondine), Keeper of the Madhouse (The Rake’s Progress), Raul Perez (Hotel Casablanca), Painter (Brochocka’s Happy Garden of Life), and Cajus (Die Lustigen Weiber von Windsor). Mr. Gates was an Apprentice Artist with Des Moines Metro Opera in the summers of 2011 and 2012, covering Rambaldo in La Rondine.
Jeremy Hirsch, MM1
Los Angeles born bass-baritone Jeremy Hirsch is quickly becoming a sought-out, young face for the operatic stage. An ardent supporter of new works, in the upcoming season, Hirsch will be creating the role of Dr. Burkley in the premier of Josh Bornfield’s new opera, “Camelot Requiem”. He will also perform the role of Prospero in Doug Buchanan’s 2011 opera “Ariel’s Tempest”.
He was most recently seen as Bottom and Theseus in Britten’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” with the Halifax Summer Opera Workshop. Other roles include Don Alfonso in a concert production of Così fan tutte, Il Commendatore in the Figaro Project’s, Who Killed Don Giovanni, Francis Nurse in Ward’s “The Crucible”, L’arbre in Ravel’s L’enfant et les Sortilèges and Le Monsieur Barbu in Poulenc’s Les Mamelles de Tirésias.
Hirsch is also a dedicated advocate of art song performance. In the summers of 2010 and 2011, he was a Young Artist at SongFest, where he performed ad coached a wide range of art song with a distinguished faculty of artists. Throughout the season, Hirsch can be found performing song in concert with Baltimore based HexaCollective and in solo recital.Mr. Hirsch is currently studying with baritones William Sharp and Steven Rainbolt.
Jisoo Kim, BM4
Jisoo Kim, Baritone, is gathering attention for his lyrical and powerful voice. His past productions include De Bretigny from Massenet’s Manon, Gendarme from Les Mamelles de Tiresias by Poulenc, L’horloge de comtoise from L’enfant et les Sortileges by Ravel, and the role of John Proctor from Robert Ward’s The Crucible, all with Peabody Opera Theatre. He has won 1st prize as well as the Grand Prix for the Yokohama International Music competition. He was also a Bass soloist for Beethoven’s Mass in C Major with Peabody Concert Orchestra and Peabody-Hopkins Chorus. He is also a member of Concert Artist of Baltimore, a professional choir led by a renowned conductor, Edward Polochick. Mr. Kim is currently a Senior in Peabody Conservatory, studying under a prominent Baritone William Sharp, and Soprano Ah Young Hong.
Elizabeth Merrill, GPD2
Praised for her “vibrant presence” by Tim Smith of The Baltimore Sun, mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Merrill is known for her versatility across genres, from Early Music to standard repertoire, to contemporary compositions. In June 2012, Ms. Merrill sang the role of Clori in Musica Nuova’s pastiche production of Monteverdi’s Il Ballo delle Ingrate. Earlier that year, she was praised by Mr. Smith of the Sun for her "vivid vocalism" in the role of Sesto in Handel's Giulio Cesare in Egitto with the Peabody Chamber Opera. In 2011, Ms. Merrill appeared as the 2nd Knabe in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (Marin Alsop, cond.), Gerina in A. Scarlatti’s La Principessa Fedele with the Amherst Early Music Festival, and as Belinda in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas and Senator Patrick Leahy in Melissa Dunphy’s The Gonzales Cantata. Ms. Merrill has also performed with The Figaro Project, Concerto delle Donne, hexaCollective, the Federal Hill Parlor Series, Vivre Musicale, Intermezzo: The New England Chamber Opera Series, the Hammond Performing Arts Series, and Union Avenue Opera. Ms. Merrill received Master’s degrees in both vocal performance and Early Music: voice performance from the Peabody Conservatory in 2011.
Alexander Rosen, BM3
Bass-baritone Alex Rosen hails from Southern California. He began his musical studies as a pianist, studying with Susan Day, Dr. Karen Owen, and Kevin Fitz-Gerald, and now with with Ellen Mack at Peabody, where he is a double major in the piano and voice departments. As a singer, he made his solo debut as Gherardino in the L.A. Opera production of Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi at age nine. Alex sang in many productions with L.A. Opera, the L.A. Master Chorale, and the L.A. Philharmonic as a part of the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus. At Peabody, Alex has sung the role of Le Comte des Grieux in Manon (2010), Father Trulove in The Rake’s Progress (2011), and Il Commendatore in Don Giovanni at the Lyric Opera House in Baltimore (2012). He sang with the Figaro Project in the spring of 2012, as Leporello in the company’s production of Who Killed Don Giovanni? In the spring, he will premiere the role of Lyndon B. Johnson in The Figaro Project's production of Joshua Bornfield's Camelot Requiem. Alex is a recipient of the Lillian Hirschmann Konowitz Memorial Scholarship, the Richard E. and Margaret Wertheimer Wolf Scholarship, and the Joseph Eugene Drogheo Scholarship Fund for a Baritone in the Vocal Studies Program at the Peabody Conservatory.
Katherine Runkel, MM2
Soprano Katherine Runkel made her European debut in 2010 at the Schloss Mirabell Concert Hall in Salzburg, Austria after winning The University of Miami at Salzburg Recital Competition.
Throughout her training she has had the honor of singing for International Artists and Pedagogues including the late Richard Miller, Linda Watson, Bo Skovhus, Carol Neblett, Ann Baltz, Carol Kimbell, Ed Berkley, and Irene Gubrud.
Katherine graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2011 from Chapman University where she studied with Margaret Dehning. She performed extended scenes in Opera Chapman’s 25th Anniversary Opera Gala, performing on the same stage in the same production as international artists Carol Neblett and Milena Kitic. In years past she has performed countless scenes with Opera Chapman from Thaïs, La Rondine, Les contes d’Hoffmann, Orpheus in the Underworld, Die Fledermaus, and La Traviata. She was also pleased to perform the role of Miss Sweetsong in The Impresario.
Katherine made her Los Angeles debut at the age of 17 while performing in the Los Angeles Spotlight Awards at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. She was a Grand Prize Finalist earning 2nd place and full tuition to the Aspen Music Festival.
Katherine began her training studying under her mother, Lori Ascani.
Matthew Sullivan
Baritone Matt Sullivan is an early music specialist based in Baltimore, Maryland. At the Peabody Conservatory, Matt has studied with baritones William Sharp and John Shirley-Quirk. He has been coached by harpsichordist Adam Pearl, theorist Richard Stone, and lutenist Mark Cudek of the Baltimore Consort. In concert and opera settings, Matt has worked with conductors Gary Wedow, Scott Metcalfe, Lyle Nordstrom, Teri Murai, Edward Polochick, and JoAnn Kulesza. Matt's most recent masterclass instructors include Julianne Baird, Peter Nilsson, Alexander Oliver and Clara Rottsolk.
Most recently, Matt performed the title role of Monteverdi's Il ritorno d'Ulisse at Opera Studio Nederland's De Doelenzaal with Tim Nelson. Previous roles include Achilla in Händel's Giulio Cesare with the American Opera Theatre, and Frank in Strauss's Die Fledermaus with the Peabody Opera Theatre. In concert settings, Matt has appeared with Mountainside Baroque, the Händel Choir of Baltimore, Peabody Consort, Peabody Renaissance Ensemble, Baltimore Baroque band, Peabody Singers, and the choir of St. John's in the Village. In the summer of 2011, Matt was invited to perform in the Boston Early Music Festival for Early Music America's 25th anniversary.
Eric M. Sweeney, MM2
Eric Michael Sweeney is a versatile performer who has appeared in Musical Theatre, Opera, and in Recital. He has performed the roles of Agwe in Once on This Island (Valley Theatre Company), John the Baptist/ Judas in Godspell (Valley Theatre Company), and Major General Stanley in Pirates of Penzance (Young People’s Theatre Project). He has also been a soloist with the Eugene Symphony in their Christmas Show Yuletide Celebration playing the role of Bing Crosby. Sweeney’s opera repertoire includes Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, as well as Prospero in Ariel’s Tempest, a role he created. Most recently, Sweeney was a member of the acappella quartet The Neptunes aboard the Celebrity Summit.
In addition to his performance credits, Sweeney is a stage director as well as music director. He is a staff music director for the Portland-based theatre company, The Young People’s Theatre Project. He has music directed Peter Pan, Seussical the Musical, and Once on this Island. In addition, Sweeney has been a vocal coach for various musical theatre productions such as Les Misérables and the Drowsy Chaperone at Jesuit High School in Portland, OR.
Sweeney currently attends the Peabody Conservatory and studies with William Sharp and Stanley Cornett.
Joshua Zanze, MM2
Bass-baritone Joshua Zanze hails from California, where he worked closely with Townsend Opera in Modesto, CA, and was the first recipient of Camerata California’s Emerging Young Artist Scholarship Program. Recent opera roles include John Brooke in Little Women, La Voce in Idomeneo, King Balthazar in Amahl and the Night Visitors, the Speaker in Die Zauberflöte, Pritschtisch in The Merry Widow, The Prince of Verona in Romeo and Juliet, and The Imperial Commissioner in Madama Butterfly. In fall 2011, Joshua premiered the role of Prospero in Douglas Buchanan’s opera The Tempest for Peabody Opera Outreach.
