"Mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse, gifted with both richness of tone and flexibility of technique."
LOS ANGELES TIMES
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"Mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse, gifted with both richness of tone and flexibility of technique." LOS ANGELES TIMES |
Performances of Distinction:
Metropolitan Opera * Glyndebourne Festival Opera * San Francisco Opera * Los Angeles Music Center Opera * Seattle Opera * Opéra de Nice * Theatre del Liceu (Barcelona) * Symphonies of: Boston * Budapest * Dallas * Seattle * Pittsburgh
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Mezzo Soprano Wendy Hillhouse has achieved a rare versatility and mastery of diverse repertoire performances. Miss Hillhouse joined the roster of the Metropolitan Opera in 1986 as Micah in Handel's Samson, and appeared there for 5 seasons in performances and broadcasts of I Puritani, Suor Angelica and Die Walküre. Other career highlights include engagements with the Teatro Liceu in Barcelona in Mozart's Lucio Silla and Rossini's Le Comte Ory with the Opéra de Nice. In the United States, Ms. Hillhouse has appeared with the opera companies of Dallas (The Marriage of Figaro, Eugene Onegin, Die Walküre), Los Angeles (The Magic Flute), San Francisco (Elektra), Philadelphia (Il barbiere di Siviglia, Cosi fan tutte), Cincinnati (Faust), Manitoba (The Marriage of Figaro), Anchorage (Figaro), Columbus (Rigoletto), Pennsylvania Opera Theater (La Cenerentola), Sacramento (Barbiere), Dallas Lyric (Carmen, Ruddigore) and Concert Opera of San Francisco (Lucrezia Borgia and Francesca di Rimini). She sang Aunt Agatha for Millenium Opera in the world premiere of The Money Tree. Miss Hillhouse made her Glyndebourne Festival Opera debut in the opening of the new theatre, singing Marcellina in Le nozze di Figaro and appeared in Seattle’s 1995 Ring cycle. Other seasons have also included appearances with the Washington and New Orleans Operas (Faust, Eugene Onegin and Andrea Chenier).
The concert platform includes many performances of the Verdi Requiem, Mahler’s Second Symphony, Messiah, and recordings of music by Lou Harrison and Alex Post. An accomplished concert artist, she has performed with the symphony orchestras of Boston, Dallas, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Denver, Sacramento, the Pacific Symphony Orchestra, and the Cabrillo and Midsummer Mozart Festivals. Other notable concert appearances have been Bach's St. Matthew Passion with Robert Shaw, William Hall’s Master Chorale of Orange County and the University Musical Society of Ann Arbor, in addition to the Gorecki 3rd Symphony to great acclaim at the Cabrillo Festival.
Miss Hillhouse was the First Place Winner of the Artists Award of the National Association of Teachers of Singing and received the Lauréate in Voice at the Académie Maurice Ravel in France. She has won first prizes in numerous vocal competitions, including the Pavarotti Competition, the Eleanor Steber Competition, The Loren L. Zachary Society Competition, the San Francisco Opera Merola Auditions and the San Francisco Regional Metropolitan Opera Auditions. Miss Hillhouse holds degrees from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the University of California at Berkeley, and the Académie Maurice Ravel in France. She is a resident of Redwood City, California, a member of the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and is on the roster of the California Arts Council Touring Artist Program.
Last year she recorded two Milhaud works,"Suite de Sonnets" and "Cantate pour L’Inauguration du Musé de l’Homme," with Parallèle Ensemble, preceded by performances at Santa Cruz Baroque Festival and Blue Print Festival. She is featured on two newly released CD’s: Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols" (Schola Cantorum) and Cowell’s oratorio Atlantis, followed by the recording of Cowell Songs.
Recent performances include a return to Cabrillo Music Festival as the Witch in Lou Harrison’s Rapunzel, Beethoven Symphony No.9 in San Jose, Elgar’s rarely-heard oratorio The Music-Makers, and Verdi’s Requiem with San Francisco Choral Society. Following earlier success as Mama Mc Court (Ballad of Baby Doe) for Utah Opera, she returned as Effie Belle Tate in Cold Sassy Tree. She is in great demand to sing contemporary works and premieres and performed excerpts from John Brown and Newport Rivals, two new operas by Kirke Mecam. Last year she sang Hindemith’s "Die Junge Magd" for the San Francisco Symphony Chamber Concert, then returned to Stockton Symphony for the performances of Nuits d'été and Alexander Nevsky followed by Brahms Alto Rhapsody and Beethoven Mass in C with San Francisco Choral Guild. In May she sang Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in Dan Lesher Center and in San Mateo.
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Anna Bolena - - Giovanna Seymour
Ariodante - - Ariodante
Atalanta - - Irene
The Ballad of Baby Doe - - Mama McCort
Un Ballo in Maschera - - Ulrica
Il Barbieri di Siviglia - - Rosina/Berta
Boris Godunov - - Marina
Il Campanello - - Madama Rosa
Carmen - - Carmen
La Cenerentola - - Angelina
Cold Sassy Tree - - Effie Belle
Le Comte Ory - - Isolier
Cosi fan tutte - - Dorabella
La Damnation de Faust - - Marguerite
Dialogues des Carmelites - - Mere Marie
Dido and Aeneas - - Dido/Sorceress
Don Carlo - - Eboli
Don Quixote - - Dulcinée
L'Enfant et les Sortileges - - Mother, Chinese Teacup, Dragonfly
Eugene Onegin - - Olga, Madame Larina
Falstaff - - Dame Quickly/Meg Page
Faust - - Marthe
La Forza del Destino - - Preziosilla
La Gioconda - - Laura
Giulio Cesare - - Cornelia, Caesar
Götterdåmmerung - - Second Norn, Waltraute
Hansel and Gretel - - Mother
Hippolyte et Aricie - - Phédre
L'Incoronazione di Poppea - - Ottavia
L'Italiana in Algeri - - Isabella
Lucrezia Borgia - - Orsini
Madama Butterfly - - Suzuki
Maria Padilla - - Ines
The Merry Wives of Windsor - - Meg Page
A Midsummer Night's Dream - - Hippolyta
The Mikado - - Katisha
Nabucco - - Fenena
Norma - - Adalgisa
Le Nozze di Figaro - - Marcellina
Orfeo - - Orfeo
The Rape of Lucretia - - Lucretia
Rapunzel (Lou Harrison) - - The Witch
Das Rheingold - - Fricka
Rigoletto - - Maddalena
Rinaldo - - Rinaldo
Il Ritorno d'Ulisse in Patria - - Penelope
Ruddigore - - Mad Margaret
Samson - - Micah
Semele - - Juno
Semiramide - - Arsace
Suor Angelica - - La Zia Principessa
Teseo - - Medea
Tristan und Isolde - - Brangåne
Die Walküre - - Fricka, Grimgerde, Waltraute
Werther - - Charlotte
Xerxes - - Xerxes, Arsamenes
Die Zauberflöte - - Third Lady
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Bach, J.S.
B Minor Mass
St. Matthew Passion
St. John Passion
Magnificat
Easter Oratorio
Christmas Oratorio
Cantatas 4, 11, 12, 34, 44, 78, 79, 82, 106, 112, 135, 176, 182Beethoven
Missa Solemnis
Ninth Symphony
Mass in C majorBerg
Sieben Frühe LiederBerlioz
La Damnation de Faust
La Mort de Cleopatre
Les Nuits d'Eté
L'Enfance du ChristBernstein
Jeremiah Symphony
Chichester PsalmsBrahms
Alto RhapsodyBritten
Phaedra
Rejoice in the LambBruckner
Te DeumBuxtehude
Ihr Lieben Christen freut euch nunCharpentier
Midnight Mass for ChristmasCarissimi
JephthaDuruflé
RequiemDvorak
Stabat Mater
Requiemde Falla
El Amor BrujoGórecki
Symphony No. 3: "Symphony of Sorrowful Songs"Handel
The Messiah
Judas Maccabeus
Samson
Israel in Egypt
Dixit Dominus
Utrecht Jubilate
Chandos Anthem #11Haydn
TheresienmesseHonegger
King DavidKodaly
Te DeumMahler
Das Lied von der Erde
Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Kindertotenlieder
Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen
Symphonies 2 , 3, & 8
Waldmårchen Other LiederMallicone
Flight to the StarsMeechum
Songs of WisdomMendelssohn
ElijahMozart
Concert & Opera arias
C minor Mass
Davidde Penitente
Requiem
Solemn VespersProkofiev
Alexander NevskyPurcell
The Fairie Queen
My Beloved SpakeRavel
ShéhérazadeSchönberg
Lied der Waldtaube (Gurrelieder)Schubert
Mass in A flat
StändchenVaughan Williams
HodieVerdi
RequiemVivaldi
Gloria
Magnificat
Beatus Vir
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Metropolitan Opera
Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Dallas Opera
Opéra de Nice
Los Angeles Music Center Opera
Theatre del Liceu (Barcelona)
San Francisco Opera
Manitoba Opera
Opera Company of Philadelphia
Cincinnati Opera
San Diego Opera
Anchorage Opera
Sacramento Opera
Washington Opera
Seattle Opera
New Orleans Opera
Eugene Opera
Cabrillo Music Festival
Utah OperaBoston Symphony Orchestra
Budapest Concert Orchestra
Dallas Symphony
Pittsburgh Symphony
San Jose Symphony
Pacific Symphony Orchestra
Nashville Symphony
Reno Chamber Orchestra
Oakland Symphony
Sacramento Symphony
Midsummer Mozart Festival
Cabrillo Festival
Colorado Symphony
Lubbock Symphony
Stockton Symphony
Universty Musical Society (Ann Arbor)
New West Symphony
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Bohmler's Cantata Sisters, San Jose Symphonic Choir and Mission Chamber Orchestra, February 8, 2003
"Yekaterinberg gets a romantic score, with exquisite solo work from mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse, for preaching diligent attention to challenges past and present." Colin Symour, SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 2/11/03
Handel's Messiah, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, San Francisco, December 8, 10, 2002
"The scheduled mezzo-soprano...fell ill and was replaced by local luminary Wendy Hillhouse in a wonderfully free and unaffected performance." Joshua Kosman, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE, 12/10/02
San Francisco Conservatory's Blueprint Concert Series, December 6, 2002
"A striking element of the performance was the clarity of the text, even in its most flexible settings, for which both the composer and Hillhouse deserve great credit. Hillhouse's rich mezzo shone in both lyrical passages and in wide, leaping figures that matched the surprising turns in the text."
"Hillhouse returned to the stage for a superb performance of Luciano Berio's Folk Songs...With a voice as varied as it was rich, Hillhouse embodied the spirit of each song...she struck the ideal balance between the earthiness and the transporting beauty of the tunes." Benjamin Frandzel, SAN FRANCISCO CLASSICAL VOICE, 12/10/02
Handel's Messiah, Reno Chamber Orchestra and UNR Symphonic Choir, December 8, 2001
"Wendy Hillhouse's warm mezzo-soprano had the kind of flexibility that enabled her to range, full-voiced, from deepest contralto to higher soprano tones." Naomi Grady, RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL, 12/11/01
The Ballad of Baby Doe, Mama McCourt, Utah Opera, May 7, 2001
"Mezzo Wendy Hillhouse made the best impression among the numerous supporting characters, wisely choosing to make Mama McCourt more than a dowdy cartoon." Catherine Reese Newton, THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 5/7/01
Old First Concerts, San Francisco, February 11, 2000
"It is rare to encounter a singer who excels in both opera and recital. Wendy Hillhouse is a rare bird indeed, on the evidence of her recital Friday night for Old First Concerts. Her imaginative programming, her beautiful, opulent voice, her extraordinary sensitivity to musical and verbal nuance, and her expressive use of face and body made a winning combinationÉ Hillhouse brought all her operatic skills to bear: superb timing, a speaking face and gestures, and variety of color and dynamics, from the climactic calling of Teseo's name to the lifeless tone in which Arianna fully realizes her abandonment. Hillhouse's masterful use of varieties of color in her voice was evident also in a group of songs by Henry Cowell&emdash;unpublished songs which she herself transcribed from manuscripts in the Library of Congress. Again, this time in German (Mainacht), Hillhouse combined beautiful sound with subtle attention to words, without falling back on operatic clichés. There you have it: Wendy Hillhouse is everything a singer should be." Anna Carol Dudley, SAN FRANCISCO CLASSICAL VOICE, 2/11/00
Verdi Requiem, Stockton Symphony, November, 1998
"The excellent soloists sang their demanding roles with power, feeling and technical expertise. Hillhouse has a mezzo voice of unusual power and flexibility, and this composition gave her ample opportunity to exploit these qualities." Sherman Spencer, THE RECORD, 11/13/98
Recital with Robert Helps, pianist, San Francisco, November, 1998
The mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse joined Helps for five of Henri Duparc's mélodies. Hers is a sumptuous voice and one that moves seamlessly from place to place throughout its entire range." Michelle Dulak, SAN FRANCISCO CLASSIC, 11/3/98
Handel's Messiah, William Hall Master Chorale, Orange County, CA. March, 1998
"Mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse offered splendid work all afternoon, notably in a controlled, warm and articulate 'Behold, a virgin shall conceive.'" Peter Lefevre, The Orange County Register, 3/31, 1998
Recital entitled "The Hymn Connection"; songs by Ives, Cowell, and Harrison; San Jose, CA, January 1998
..."In [Lou] Harrison's "Sanctus"... the power of faith was born out with soaring melodies (which Hillhouse piped out as mightily as trumpets)...Hillhouse and Gandolfi assembled the evening with fastidious detail and luxuriating artistry. The performance standards throughout were quite faultless....Their rapport is second nature and dually enlightened. Hillhouse's range encompassed far-fetched reaches, from the deep chesty tessitura of Cowell's "Song of Silence" right up to the celestial accent of "General Booth". Hillhouse's operatic belt added cathedral richness...Concerts such as this are too infrequent, if only because they are demanding to pull off-artistry and scholarship working hand in hand, and respectfully; the way it should be." Philip Collins San Jose Metro, January 29, 1998
Verdi Requiem, San Mateo Masterworks Chorale, June 2, 1997
"The soloists were similarly imposing. Wendy Hillhouse was firmly declarative and stern as she focused her voluminous, warmly colored mezzo to sing the words 'Liber scriptus...Hillhouse and Radvanovsky displayed fine bel canto singing in their duet...Other sublime moments followed - the finely crafted, chant-like, unaccompanied octave singing by Hillhouse and Radvanovsky during the 'Agnus Dei'." Cheryl North, San Mateo County Times, June 2, 1997
Mahler Symphony No.2, Lubbock Symphony Orchestra, May, 1997
"The final two movements, which also featured stunning performances by mezzo soprano Wendy Hillhouse and soprano Emilia Simone Westney, guided the performance to a spiritual peak." William Kerns, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, May 10, 1998
Dvorak Requiem, Sacaramento Choral Society, May, 1997
"Kendrick hired four excellent and distinguished soloists - mezzo Wendy Hillhouse - who handles flexibly and strongly Dvorak's somewhat unconventional assignments...Trumpets in harmony, echoed by a gong, prompted a soloand chorus lead beautifully by Wendy Hillhouse for the Tuba Mirum." William Glackin, Sacramento Bee, May 1997
The Mikado, Katisha, Eugene Opera, March, 1997
"Wendy Hillhouse, who plays Katisha - the woman scorned who is after Nanki-Poo's head if she can't have all of him - is loud, vulgar, threatening and vain: in short, a lovable hoot." Michael Souther, The Register-Guard, March 9, 1997
"Wendy Hillhouse was riveting as Katisha." Fred Crafts, The Register-Guard, March 7, 1997
Concert: Cowell Unpublished Songs; Chausson Chanson Perpetuelle, March 23, 1997 Chamber Music Society of Sacramento
"Hillhouse, whose rich mezzo voice and convincing stage presence have been enjoyed here on previous occasions, delivered another welcome and unusual." William Glackin, Sacramento Bee, March 25, 1997
Handel's Messiah, Seattle Symphony, December, 1996
"New to Seattle was mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse, one of those rare singers with enough heft in the lower register to be heard even in the low A's of 'O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion.' Warm and opulent, Hillhouse's voice restored the alto solos to their necessary prominence, and her clear diction also underscored the texts." Melinda Bargreen, The Seattle Times, December 17, 1996
Henryk Gorecki's Symphony No. 3, The Cabrillo Music Festival, August, 1996
"Wendy Hillhouse, mezzo-soprano, beautifully voiced the heart-wrenchingly sad texts as the piece delved introspectively into the emotions. Her voice, powerful with a shimmering vibrato, soared above the pulsating orchestral background." Phyllis Rosenblum, Santa Cruz County Sentinel, August 13, 1996
"Mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse's warm, clear voice fulfilled the work's dramatic needs and her nurturing phrase work suffused the Mission in radiance from end to end." Philip Collins, Metro, August 15-21, 1996
"Jeremiah" Symphony No. 1, Colorado Symphony, April, 1995
"In the Bernstein, Wendy Hillhouse's gleaming mezzo-soprano conveyed Jeremiah's words from the Bible with both mournful grace and, in the "Depart ye unclean!" section, searing drama." Jeff Bradley, The Denver Post, April 22, 1995
"Same with the opening Jeremiah, which ended with mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse's sensitive treatment of the words of that ancient prophet." Marc Shulgold, Rocky Mountain News, April 22, 1995
"Eugene Onegin, Madame Larina, New Orleans Opera, April, 1995
"...Wendy Hillhouse's Madame Larina were standouts, both for opulence of tone and projection." David Coco, The Advocate, April 7, 1995
"Wendy Hillhouse...discharge the roles of Madame Larina...nicely." Theodore P. Mahne, The Times-Picayune, April 7, 1995
Faust, Marthe, Washington Opera, November, 1994
"Mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse stands out both as a singer and as an actress in the small but richly characterized role of Marthe, Marguerite's busybody neighbor who has a brief flirtation with the devil." Joseph McLellan, The Washington Post, November 7, 1994
AIDS Memorial Concert, Brahms' Alto Rhapsody, Master Chorale of Orange County, October, 1994
"Hillhouse is not only blessed with a large, rich mezzo sound, she can craft long musical phrases in a way that allows Brahms' music to radiate its fullest character." Scott Duncan, The Orange County Register, October 17, 1994
"As the entreating protagonist of the Rhapsody, Wendy Hillhouse used her rich, unfailing mezzo to create a dark mood at once lonely and uplifting." Susan Bliss, Orange County Calendar, October 17, 1994
Górecki Symphony No. 3, Symphony of Sorrowful Songs, Stanford Symphony, January, 1994
"The symphony is immensely moving. Guest soloist Wendy Hillhouse wept before singing her first note, and she rendered the three solos with depth, feeling, and a masterful lyricism." Paul Hertelendy, San Jose Mercury News, Jan. 15, 1994
Bernstein's Symphony No. 1, Jeremiah, Cabrillo Music Festival, August, 1993
"Wendy Hillhouse intoned the words of the prophet broadly but with conviction." Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle, August 3, 1993
"Mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse vocalized that work's Lamentation finale with ringing fervor." Sentinel, August 3, 1993
Passion According to St. Matthew, Master Chorale of Orange County, March, 1993
"Mezzo-soprano Wendy Hillhouse, gifted with both richness of tone and flexibility of technique, produced similar accomplishments in her arias, especially in Können, trånen meiner Wangen." Daniel Cariaga, Los Angeles Times, March 23, 1993
Messiah, San Jose Symphony, December, 1992
"...a sublimely touching mezzo, (Wendy Hillhouse, whose aria He Was Despised and Rejected belongs on a CD)." Paul Hertelendy, San Jose Mercury News, December 14, 1992
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Associates
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