Susanne Mentzer Mezzo-soprano

"The mezzo's vocally impeccable, emotionally compelling performance proved that she is among the premier art-song interpreters of our day. Her rich, vibrant sound retains its warmth from top to bottom and throughout its broad dynamic range, and she draws the listener into the spirit of each song with a deep internal connection that creates distinctive characters with a minimum of outward display."  Opera News

From an introduction to opera as a teenage usher at the Santa Fe Opera American Susanne Mentzer has become one of today's foremost mezzo-sopranos. Recognized for her generous vocal and interpretive gifts, she is widely admired for her versatility, from the recital and concert stage to the operatic arena. She specializes in the music of Rossini, Strauss, Mozart, Berlioz and Mahler. Performances in the current and upcoming seasons include Larina in Eugene Onegin with the Pittsburgh Opera, Teavee/Josephine in Peter Ash’s The Golden Ticket with the Opera Theater of St. Louis, and Jade Boucher in Jake Heggie’s Dean Man Walking and Marcellina in Le Nozze di Figaro, both with the Houston Grand Opera. Her exciting orchestral appearances include a Mahler 3 with the Florida Orchestra, Mahler 2 with the Indianapolis Symphony, and a performances of Bernard Rand’s Now and Again with the renowned chamber group the Eighth Blackbird.

Susanne Mentzer first began her career with opera and has appeared with the great opera companies, orchestras and festivals in North America (Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Ravinia and Tanglewood Festivals), and Europe (La Scala Milan, Royal Opera Covent Garden, Vienna State Opera, Cologne Opera, Opéra de Paris, Teatro Liceo Barcelona, Salzburg Festival), as well as the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, and on tour to Japan with the Metropolitan Opera, Mostly Mozart and the Bavarian State Opera. As a specialist in trouser roles, most notably for her portrayals of Cherubino (Le Nozze di Figaro), and Strauss’ Der Komponist (Ariadne auf Naxos) and Octavian (Der Rosenkavailer), she is also noted for her bel canto style, lauded for her performances of Bellini’s Romeo in “I Capuleti ed i Montecchi”, Adalgisa in “Norma”, Jane Seymour in Donizetti’s “Anna Bolena” and Rossini’s heroines in “Barbiere di Siviglia” and “La Cenerentola”. To her list of many Mozart roles (Idamante, Cheribino, Zerlina, Sesto, Annio, Dorabella) she recently added the role of Despina in Mozart’s “Cosi fan tutte” first with Santa Fe Opera, then at Florida Grand Opera and in April 2009 with the Colorado Opera. Other interesting projects operatically have been Verdi’s early opera “Un giorno di regno” at Royal Opera Covent Garden, Massenet’s “Don Quixote” (Lyric Opera of Chicago), Mélisande in “Pelléas et Mélisande” at the Opéra de Paris and Dido in Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas” with Chicago Opera Theater.

She recently sang the title role in Ravel’s “L’enfant et les sortileges” with the New York Philharmonic (Maazel) at Carnegie Hall, and appeared on the Metropolitan Opera 125^th Anniversary Gala (her 19^th year there). In 2006-07 she created the role of Mother in the world premiere (and the 2008 reprise) of Tan Dun’s “The First Emperor” with Placido Domingo, directed by Zhang Yimou at the Metropolitan Opera, broadcast live to movie theaters around the world as part of the MET's series of high definition broadcasts and now available on DVD.

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