Opera Program

The voice faculty at Northern Kentucky University is committed to upholding the highest standards of teaching and nurturing singers through student-centered learning. Our involvement with students is founded on a caring environment where students can feel comfortable and free to experiment. It is our belief that each student is, first and foremost, an individual. Every singer has a different personality, background and style of learning. As educators, it is our responsibility to determine the needs of the individual and establish a meaningful level of communication. While each student is unique, the only path to success is through dedication and discipline. It is our goal to instill in our students a love and respect for their art. We want each student to leave NKU as a vital and active participant in the musical world, whatever their chosen profession.

Opera Workshop
Opera Workshop presents staged operas and operatic scenes both with piano and orchestral accompaniment. Any student studying voice is eligible to audition. The primary focus is education, giving singers the opportunity to coordinate vocal skills with the ensemble acting requirement of operatic literature. Students participate in classes with masters in makeup techniques, sword-play, dancing, stage and acting techniques, and body movement. Past performances have included staged productions of Henry Purcell's Dido and Aeneas and W.A. Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro.

Alexander Technique Study
What one learns in Alexander Technique lessons is a unique and practical means of stopping and changing habits. This learning process allows one's sense of coordination to regain its natural "perspective." The Alexander Technique teacher takes the student through basic movements giving gentle hands-on guidance. Through this guidance, the student experiences more natural and easy coordination without the on-going interference of habits and thus is able to make lasting habit changes.

Master Classes
NKU hosts regular voice master's classes on our campus where students can observe and receive instruction from professional singers and teachers of national and international renown. Past visitations have featured such famous names as Kathleen Battle, Eileen Farrell, Phyllis Curtain, and vocal pedagogy pioneer Ralph Appelman.