Soprano Kristen Watson, hailed by critics for her "blithe and silvery tone" and "winning stage presence", recently made solo debuts at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Ravinia, and Tanglewood with
Boston Baroque, in their Grammy-nominated performance of Monteverdi’s
Vespers of 1610. She performed with
Opera Boston last season in Osvaldo Golijov’s acclaimed new opera
Ainadamar (Voice of the Fountain), directed by Peter Sellars; and also made her New York City debut with the
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, in a program of Bach cantatas at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Anticipated to “become a valuable presence in the early-music world” (Richard Dyer, Boston Globe), Ms. Watson has garnered acclaim for additional performances with
Boston Baroque as the soprano soloist in Handel’s
Messiah and Purcell’s
Fairy Queen and
King Arthur. She has also appeared as a soloist on numerous occasions with the
Handel and Haydn Society, including Bach’s
Christmas Oratorio, Handel’s
Gloria and
Laudate pueri Dominum; and has been featured on two of their commercial recordings: "All is Bright", a holiday album, and "Peace", which debuted at #5 on Billboard Magazine's Top Classical Charts. Ms. Watson has also made regular appearances with
Emmanuel Music on their weekly Bach cantata series, in Purcell’s
Dido and Aeneas (2nd Lady/2nd Witch) in collaboration with the Mark Morris Dance Group, and was awarded a prestigious Lorraine Hunt Lieberson Fellowship for their 2007-2008 season. Other awards include the
Oratorio Society of NY Solo Competition (Semi-Finalist), the
American Bach Society Vocal Competition (Finalist), the
Louisville Bach Society Competition (3rd Place), and the
Joy in Singing Competition (Semi-Finalist).
Opera audiences have heard Ms. Watson in productions with
Boston Lyric Opera (
Hansel and Gretel/Sandman & Dewfairy;
Thais/Actress & Nun),
Opera Boston (
The Crucible/Sarah Good), the
Boston University Opera Institute (
A Midsummer Night's Dream/Tytania;
Die Fledermaus/Adele;
The Medium/Monica),
Intermezzo Opera (
The Old Maid and the Thief/Laetitia), and the
Opera Theater of Pittsburgh (
The Cunning Little Vixen/Frog & Spirit of the Vixen). She also recently sang in the North American premiere of Peter Eötvös’ opera,
Angels in America, with the
Boston Modern Orchestra Project.
Equally at home as a crossover artist, Ms. Watson was featured as the headlining artist with the
Boston Pops on their "Mozart's Greatest Hits" program as well as their "Holiday Pops" series, both at Symphony Hall under conductor Keith Lockhart. She has performed as a featured artist alongside the internationally renowned crossover tenor,
Mario Frangoulis; as the headlining artist for the July 4th celebration concert in Salem, MA; and has sung back-up for Barry Manilow in a concert at Boston's Tweeter Center. Her regional music theater performances include
Carousel (Carrie) with the
Reagle Players starring Shirley Jones, Nat Chandler, and Sarah Pfisterer;
The King and I (Tuptim) with
East Carolina Summer Theater starring Justin Deas;
Titanic (Eleanor Widener) with the
Merry-Go-Round Playhouse;
Into the Woods (Witch) with
Carnegie Mellon University; and
How to Succeed in Business... (Miss Jones) with
Topeka Civic Theatre. Other favorite roles performed include
Annie (Grace),
The Boy Friend (Dulcie),
Barnum (Joice Heth), and
Hello, Dolly! (Minnie).
Other solo performances include the
Carmel Bach Festival, the
Aston Magna Festival, the
Cactus Pear Music Festival, and the
White Mountain Bach Festival, as well as the
Cape Cod Symphony,
Rhode Island Philharmonic,
Evansville Philharmonic,
New Bedford Symphony,
Topeka Symphony,
Napa Valley Youth Symphony,
Pittsburgh Camerata, and the Columbus Bach Ensemble. An enthusiastic supporter of new music/contemporary classical music, Kristen can also be found frequently premiering works of new composers, such as the members of
Altavoz, a Latin-American consortium of composers living in various cities around North America and Europe.
Kristen Watson is originally from Topeka, Kansas, and holds degrees from Carnegie Mellon University and Boston University.
