Chloé Tardif enjoys a varied career as an orchestral leader, chamber musician, and soloist. A student of William Fitzpatrick and Paul Kantor, she received her Bachelor of Music from Chapman University and her Master of Music from Rice University. Chloé has served as Principal Second Violinist of the Long Beach Symphony since its 2018-19 season. She is a proud new member of New West Symphony, having joined during its 2023-24 season as Associate Concertmaster.

A passionate chamber musician, Chloé has performed widely throughout Southern California with the Kaleidoscope Trio, and was part of an award-winning ensemble during her time at Chapman. Her group, the Chapman Duo, won first prize in competitions including the Francis Walton Ladies’ Musical Club Chamber Division in Seattle, Washington, where they toured the Puget Sound area performing recitals, outreach concerts at local schools, and for a broadcast on KING FM radio. Chloé has enjoyed performing chamber music with colleagues from the Long Beach Symphony. Their most recent performance was in the Mount Wilson Observatory in September of 2023 under the artistic direction of renowned cellist, Cécilia Tsan. In 2023, Chloé performed Vivaldi’s Summer as a soloist with the Long Beach Symphony, as well as Spring from Astor Piazzolla’s “The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires” with the OCSA Symphony Orchestra.

An enthusiastic music educator, Chloé has enjoyed teaching many classes at the Orange County School of the Arts since 2018. From 2018 to 2022, Chloé worked with her teacher, William Fitzpatrick, serving as the Assistant Director of his nonprofit organization, the MusiShare Young Artist Program (MSYAP). She was asked to return to Chapman as a professor in 2021, where she taught private violin students in the Hall-Musco Conservatory string department for two years. Although she is based in Orange County, Chloé also enjoys working as a recording musician in Los Angeles for studios including Disney, Fox, Sony, and Warner Bros.

Best known to millions of TV viewers as a top four finalist during the 2007 season of “American Idol,” LaKisha Jones is ready to reclaim center stage in music, theatre and television.

Her last album, “So Glad I’m Me” was full of Jones’ expressive, full-bodied and arresting vocals, the same voice that electrified “American Idol” viewers with the Dreamgirls showstopper “And I Am Telling You” and later the Broadway stage in the Oprah Winfrey produced, Tony Award-winning musical, The Color Purple.

Having worked with hit-making songwriters and producers including Tony Nicholas (Patti LaBelle, Luther Vandross), Ro & Sauce (Brandy, Ne-Yo) and Greg Curtis (Keyshia Cole, Yolanda Adams), Jones’ album featured a spirited mix of R&B and soul. A few noteworthy songs included the single “Same Song,” penned by award-winning songwriter Dianne Warren, Whitney Houston’s “You Give Good Love,” the gospel song “Just As I Am,” and Jones soaring ballad to her daughter, “Beautiful Girl.”

Her drive and motivation dates back to her childhood in Flint, Michigan. Raised by her mother and grandmother, Jones was exposed to music by legendary singers such as Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin and Patti LaBelle, with her grandmother urging the young girl to “let your voice shine” thereby prompting Jones to sing in church choirs and music programs. Joining various chorale groups and a cappella choruses throughout high school, Jones entered and won the top prize at Flint’s local talent contest, The Super Show in 1997.

A two-year stint studying vocal performance at the University of Michigan left the high school graduate craving to sing more. She relocated to various cities (Dallas, Houston and Virginia Beach) to pursue her dream as a singer.  Jones then went to New York to audition for “American Idol” and made it to the 2007 season, where she became the fourth finalist. She segued from “Idol” to the Broadway stage for The Color Purple where she played two roles: that of a “church lady” and of the pivotal character “Sophia.” The latter role she alternated with R&B icon Chaka Khan, who became her mentor. Jones participated in Khan’s 35th Anniversary Tour. Following her Broadway stint, Jones provided vocal coaching on MTV’s reality competition “Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods,” a show designed to find and hone Broadway’s next star.

A frequent soloist with symphony around the world, Ms. Jones has performed as a guest soloist with the National Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Utah Symphony and Opera, Winnipeg Symphony, Evansville Philharmonic, Jacksonville Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Houston Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Winnipeg Symphony, Windham Chamber Singers, Grand Rapids Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, Calgary Symphony, Battle Creek Symphony, Reno Philharmonic, Oregon Symphony, Long Bay Symphony and the Festival Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic.

American conductor, Anthony Parnther, is the Music Director and Conductor of the San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra and the Southeast Symphony & Chorus in Los Angeles. He has conducted artists spanning every musical genre, including Joshua Bell, Jessye Norman, Yundi Li, Lynn Harrell, Frederica von Stade, Roderick Williams, Canadian Brass, Jennifer Holliday, Kanye West, Imagine Dragons, Omar Apollo, Ry X, and Alan Walker.

His recent guest conducting engagements include the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Atlanta Symphony, Los Angeles Opera, Mann Center Festival Orchestra, Chineke! Orchestra, Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, Jacaranda – Music at the Edge, Hear Now Music Festival, Pittsburgh Microtonal Festival, Hollywood Chamber Orchestra, BrightworkNewMusic, and the World Opera Forum in Madrid, Spain.

On the scoring stages of Los Angeles, London, Nashville, and San Francisco, Anthony has conducted recording sessions for many international feature film, television, and video game projects, including Encanto, Star Wars: The Mandalorian, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Turning Red, Ice Age: Adventures of Buck Wild, League of Legends, American Dad, The Adam Project, Slumberland, Star Wars: Book of Boba Fett, Tenet, Arcane, Cheaper By The Dozen, Lost City, Little, The Hunt, Fargo, The Way Back, The Night Of, and 4400.

He has premiered or recorded works by Anthony Davis, George Walker, Florence Price, Zenobia Powell Perry, Errollyn Wallen, John Wineglass, Gary Powell Nash, Marian Harrison, Renee Baker, Samuel Coleridge Taylor, James Wilson, Phillip Herbert, Daniel Kidane, Chanda Dancy, and James Newton. In 2015, Anthony was profiled by Los Angeles’ KCET/TV as a “Local Hero” for his extensive community outreach and advocacy for the performance of works by Black, Latino, and Women artists.

In addition to conducting, Anthony is an active bassoonist and contrabassoonist and has recorded on an extensive list of film and television soundtracks by Hollywood’s preeminent composers, including John Williams, Terrence Blanchard, Alexandre Desplat, Danny Elfman, Bruce Broughton, Michael Giacchino, Mychael Danna, Ludwig Goransson, David Newman, John Powell, Alan Silvestri, and Hans Zimmer. Recent projects he has performed on include Star Wars: Episode IX -The Rise of Skywalker, The Simpsons, Animaniacs, Looney Tunes, Family Guy, Lion King, Coming 2 America, Mulan, Empire, The Kominsky Method, Only Murders in the Building, Moana, Suicide Squad, Star Trek Beyond, and countless more.

Anthony studied at Northwestern University and Yale University and resides in Los Angeles.

The 2024-2025 season marks Morihiko Nakahara’s 17th season as Music Director of the South Carolina Philharmonic. He is also Resident Conductor of the Spokane Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, Nakahara serves as Director of Orchestral Studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Added to his wideranging activities with these orchestras, Nakahara also guest conducts with other orchestras throughout the country.

Known for his charismatic presence on and off the podium, innovative and audience-friendly programming skills, and thoughtful interpretations of both standard and contemporary repertoire, recent guest conducting engagements include appearances with the Buffalo Philharmonic, symphonies of Oregon, Jacksonville, Charleston, Chattanooga, Stockton, Lansing, Peoria, and Green Bay, as well as with the Chicago Pro Musica.

Equally at home in a wide variety of musical styles and concert formats, Nakahara has collaborated with Chris Botti, Béla Fleck & the Flecktones, Edgar Meyer, Brandi Carlile, Pink Martini, Sergio Mendes, and Roby Lakatos to name a few. A tireless champion for the music of our times, Nakahara recently led world premieres of works by Joan Tower, Dan Visconti, and John Fitz Rogers, and has led numerous U.S. premieres of works by Japanese composers. A passionate believer in audience development and music education for all, Nakahara is a popular clinician, guest conductor, and lecturer at various educational institutions. As a personable ambassador for classical music, he is regularly featured on local media outlets and speaks about wide-ranging topics including arts advocacy, leadership and management, and economic development at local businesses and service organizations.

A native of Kagoshima, Japan, Nakahara holds degrees from Andrews University and the University of Cincinnati CollegeConservatory of Music. He previously served as Associate Conductor of the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, Music Director of the Holland Symphony Orchestra (Michigan), and served on the faculty at Eastern Washington University and Andrews University. Nakahara, his wife Lesley Hogg, and their cats Rosina and Figaro reside in Northampton, MA.

Stay in touch with Nakahara via Twitter and Instagram.

After decades of performing, Thelma Houston continues to celebrate her long and outstanding career and shows no signs of slowing down! Over the course of many years, promoters have been asking Thelma, when is she going to return to her Motown roots?

After much thought, Thelma has decided that the timing was right to launch a brand new band show called: “THELMA HOUSTON’s MOTOWN Experience” The show features non-stop classic Motown songs (that we all know and love,) along with a tribute to Ms. Houston’s friend, the “Queen of Soul” Aretha Franklin!

Thelma was asked to join a stellar list of artists honoring the illustrious career of the late Donna Summer, who Thelma knew. Thelma recorded covers of Donna’s classic songs: “Last Dance,” Could it Be Magic?” and “I Love You.” Thelma’s 23rd album, “A Woman’s Touch”, was released recently through Shout Factory Records (distributed by Sony/BMG) and offers her rich interpretations of many classic R&B and pop recordings originally made famous by such male vocalists as Luther Vandross, Rev. Al Green, Sting and Marvin Gaye.

A Mississippi native, Thelma started out in the 60’s performing in gospel music with the Art Reynolds Singers. She then signed to Capitol Records (home of the Beatles, Nat King Cole and Nancy Wilson) in 1967 and had her first hit song called “Baby Mine.” Soon Thelma was courted by several record labels and signed with ABC/Dunhill where she recorded and released her first solo album called “Sunshower” which was written, arranged and produced by the legendary Jimmy Webb. After this critically acclaimed album was released, Thelma decided to accept an offer from one of the biggest record companies around, Motown Records.

With Motown Records, Thelma claimed the top of the Pop, R&B and Dance charts with her high-powered rendition of “Don’t Leave Me This Way.” That Gold Record classic gave Thelma the distinction of being the first solo female artist at Motown to win the Grammy Award for “Best R&B Female Vocal Performance.”

Known as a humanitarian for her charitable causes and her tireless efforts in the battle against AIDS, the City of West Hollywood proclaimed January 29th as “Thelma Houston Day” in 2003. She has donated her talents to numerous charities including Devine Design for Project Angel Food, AIDS Project Los Angeles, and the Minority AIDS Project, to which she donated her $20,000 winnings from the TV show Hit Me Baby. She is also very active in the Beverly Hills/Hollywood branch of the NAACP.

Thelma has rocked Rockefeller Center on NBC’s The Today Show and the summer music special “Hit Me Baby, One More Time.”  She dazzled in ABC’s Motown 45 and glittered on ABC’s The Disco Ball. Along with Aretha Franklin and Mary Wilson, she raised the roof on Love, Rhythm and Blues for PBS.  Thelma appeared with Phoebe Snow, Chaka Khan, Mavis Staples and CeCe Peniston as the “Sisters of Glory” in New York City in a rousing performance that received a special request to perform at The Vatican for The Pope.

The legendary Nile Rogers called upon Thelma to be his special guest for a sold out concert at the Hollywood Bowl and she toured with Cher on her Living Proof Concert Tour. Additionally, she headlined at Harrah’s in Las Vegas. Thelma has also been inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame in New York City and honored as an “Apollo Legend” on the syndicated hit TV show, Showtime at the Apollo.

In April 2009, Thelma was honored to perform on the #1 rated television show in the USA, Fox’s American Idol, where she tore it up for an estimated audience of over 25 million people. Shortly after, Thelma was called upon to open up the finale of the hit summer show, NBC’s America’s Got Talent, for an estimated TV audience of over 18 million people. Thelma performs at many national dinner receptions for the HRC (Human Rights Campaign) and was honored to perform in Denver when Barack Obama accepted the Democratic nomination. In January 2009, Thelma then was asked to headline the official inauguration dinner for President Barack Obama in Washington, D.C., at the Mayflower Hotel along with her friends, Cyndi Lauper and Melissa Etheridge. HRC President Joe Solmonese says, “It doesn’t get much better than Thelma, as she adds nothing but class to our events.”

2020 looks good as I collaborated with Morrissey on “Bobby, Don’t You Think They Know.” “It was interesting and fun working in the studio,” he said. “I enjoy performing very much. The performance part of my job is what I enjoy the most. When I perform, I like to do all kinds of music and I try to incorporate that in my show. For me, to do one kind of thing all the time is boring. Morrissey heard the song and a few years later, he asked me to do this song on his album. It was very easy to work with Morrissey in the studio,” she said.

Also released in early 2020 is the the dance single “Turn Your World Around” (on Radikal Records) with Bimbo Jones. “I’ve worked with Lee Dagger from Bimbo Jones before. He has done some remixes for me. That’s how the song came about. We wrote the song a few years ago and it was a lot of fun.” The song was worked on the Billboard Dance Charts and went all the way to #7.

With appearances from Tokyo to Las Vegas to London and beyond, Thelma continues to bring audiences to their feet with her dynamic, energetic Motown show. This Diva logs over 200 performances annually and the singer/songwriter is enjoying every moment of her success. “I still feel a tremendous excitement about performing,” states the upbeat songstress. “I have so many more things I want to do and I have NO plans to retire anytime soon.”

Thelma’s makes her main home in Los Angeles, CA.

The Brooklyn-born and raised singer/actor, Capathia Jenkins, most recently released her single “I Am Strong” and her critically acclaimed CD Phenomenal Woman the Maya Angelou Songs with her collaborator Louis Rosen, sold out the world-famous Birdland Theatre in NYC for 3 nights. She starred as ‘Medda’ in the hit Disney production of Newsies on Broadway. She made her Broadway debut in The Civil War, where she created the role of Harriet Jackson. She then starred in the Off-Broadway 2000 revival of Godspell, where she wowed audiences with her stirring rendition of ‘Turn Back, O Man’ which can still be heard on the original cast recording. She returned to Broadway in The Look of Love and was critically acclaimed for her performances of the Bacharach/David hits.

An active concert artist, Ms. Jenkins has appeared with numerous orchestras around the world including the Cleveland Orchestra, Houston Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony (with Marvin Hamlisch), National Symphony, Cincinnati Pops (with John Morris Russell), Philly Pops, San Francisco Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Utah Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Toronto Symphony, San Diego Symphony, the Hong Kong Philharmonic, and many others.  She was also a soloist with the Festival Cesky Krumlov in the Czech Republic multiple times.  Capathia had the great honor of performing in the ‘Broadway Ambassadors to Cuba’ concert as part of the Festival De Teatro De La Habana. She will be returning to Carnegie Hall with the New York Pops for Get Happy: That Nelson Riddle Sound and also sang in a Tribute to Marvin Hamlisch at the Library of Congress.

The multi-talented Matthew Johnson is an actor, singer, dancer, and musician who has performed with the likes of Pharrell, John Legend, Jennifer Lopez, Childish Gambino, and Stevie Wonder. His musical theater roots were cultivated at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center, and through his mentor, Debbie Allen, who helped mold him into the triple threat performer he is today. Matthew has done vocal arrangements for the Grammy Awards as well as performed at the Emmys and the Billboard Awards.  He honed his skills as a vocal chameleon on some of the world’s most watched television shows such as American Idol, The Voice, X Factor and Late Night with James Corden.

Inbal Segev is “a cellist with something to say” (Gramophone). Combining “thrillingly projected, vibrato-rich playing” (Washington Post) with “complete dedication and high intelligence” (San Francisco Classical Voice), she makes solo appearances at leading international venues and with preeminent orchestras and conductors worldwide. Celebrated for her fresh insights into music’s great masterworks, the Israeli American cellist is equally committed to reinvigorating the cello repertoire, and has commissioned and premiered major new works from an international who’s who of today’s foremost contemporary composers.

Segev is personally responsible for commissioning, premiering, recording and championing new works by important contemporary composers from the U.S., Israel and beyond. Most recently, she launched the “20 for 2020” project, commissioning new chamber works from 20 of today’s most compelling composers, including Vijay Iyer, Viet Cuong and John Luther Adams, for a music video series and four-volume Avie Records set to document the challenging year. Other recent projects include Anna Clyne’s concerto DANCE, which Segev co-commissioned and premiered under Cristian Măcelaru’s leadership at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in California (2019), before recording the work alongside Elgar’s iconic concerto with Marin Alsop and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Released by Avie, the album was an instant success, topping the Amazon Classical Concertos chart and inspiring glowing praise from The Guardian, BBC Radio 3 and other outlets; DANCE’s opening movement was named among NPR Music’s “Favorite Songs of 2020,” receiving more than five million listens on Spotify.

Segev has also brought to life a host of other new works. It was she who gave the world premiere performance of Timo Andres’s concerto Upstate Obscura at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art (2018); premiered Dan Visconti’s Cello Concerto with the California Symphony (2017); commissioned and premiered Gity Razaz’s multimedia piece Legend of Sigh at Brooklyn’s National Sawdust (2015); premiered and recorded Lucas Richman’s Declaration with the composer conducting the Pittsburgh Symphony (2015); co-commissioned and premiered Avner Dorman’s Cello Concerto with the Anchorage Symphony (2012); and commissioned and premiered Paola Prestini’s Oceano at Columbia University (2002). She also gave the overdue U.S. premiere of Sir Arthur Sullivan’s long-lost, posthumously reconstructed Cello Concerto, and joined the Albany Symphony for the first performance of Christopher Rouse’s Violoncello Concerto since its premiere 24 years earlier by Yo-Yo Ma.

The cellist’s premiere recordings crown a rich and wide-ranging discography. Having studied Bach’s solo cello suites for many years, she recorded the complete cycle over a six-month period with Grammy-winning producer Da-Hong Seetoo at New York City’s Academy of Arts and Letters for release by Vox Classics in 2015; documenting this process behind the scenes, a companion film by Nick Davis Productions was screened at Lincoln Center and in Maine and Bogotà. Segev’s other recordings include a Romantic program of Schumann, Chopin and Grieg with pianist Juho Pohjonen (Avie, 2018); Dohnányi serenades with the Amerigo Trio (Navona, 2011); and cello sonatas by Beethoven and Boccherini with pianist Richard Bishop (Opus One, 2000). The cellist can also be heard playing music by Peter Nashe on the soundtrack of Bee Season, a 2005 feature film starring Richard Gere and Juliette Binoche.

A prodigy who first played for the Israeli president at just eight years old, Segev came to international attention ten years later when she made concerto debuts with both the Berlin Philharmonic and Israel Philharmonic under the baton of Zubin Mehta. Since then she has appeared as soloist with such leading orchestras as the London Philharmonic, Orchestre National de Lyon, Dortmund Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, Baltimore Symphony and St. Louis Symphony, collaborating with Marin Alsop, Stéphane Denève, Lorin Maazel, Cristian Măcelaru, Zubin Mehta and other of the world’s foremost conductors. She co-curated the Baltimore Symphony’s New Music Festival from its inception in 2017.

Segev has given solo performances of Bach’s cello suites at international venues from New York’s Lincoln Center and Metropolitan Museum of Art to the Shanghai Concert Hall and Jerusalem Theatre. Her other recital highlights include appearances at New York’s Alice Tully Hall and Merkin Concert Hall, Brooklyn’s National Sawdust, Los Angeles’s Walt Disney Concert Hall, Chicago’s Harris Theater and Bogotá’s Teatro Mayor. Also a dedicated chamber artist, she has undertaken international tours with Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and collaborated with such esteemed musicians as Emanuel Ax, Jeremy Denk, Anthony McGill, Jason Vieaux and the Vogler Quartet. With former New York Philharmonic concertmaster Glenn Dicterow and violist Karen Dreyfus, she is a founding member of the Amerigo Trio.

Besides holding regular interactive live-streamed masterclasses and Q&A sessions at the CelloBello resource center, Segev has been featured in a live Q&A session at Lincoln Center’s Kaplan Penthouse and a dedicated episode of The Musical Life podcast series. Available at her YouTube channel, the cellist’s popular masterclass series, Musings with Inbal Segev, has thousands of subscribers around the world and almost two million views to date.

A native of Israel, Inbal Segev began playing the cello at the age of five. At 16 she was invited by Isaac Stern to the U.S., where she continued her cello studies with Aldo Parisot, Joel Krosnick, Harvey Shapiro and Beaux Arts Trio co-founder Bernard Greenhouse, earning degrees from Yale University and the Juilliard School. Today she lives in New York City with her husband, their three teenage children and her cellos, made by Francesco Ruggieri (1673) and Carl Becker & Son (1958) respectively.

Liv Redpath is one of the most promising young soprano leggero on the opera and concert stage today. During the disrupted 2020-21 season, Ms. Redpath was scheduled to open the Los Angeles Philharmonic season at Disney Hall, sharing a program with Lang Lang under the direction of Gustavo Dudamel before traveling to New York to open the Carnegie Hall season with the same program; join Alan Gilbert to make her debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra singing Nielsen’s Symphony #3; sing Poulenc’s Gloria and a world-premiere new composition by Peter-Jan Wagemans conducted by Karina Canellakis with the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest; perform Handel’s Messiah with the New York Philharmonic and National Symphony, both conducted by Fabio Biondi; return to the Metropolitan Opera to cover Rosina in Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia under Roderick Cox and sing the role of the fifteen-year old girl in Berg’s Lulu led by Sebastian Weigle; take on the title role of Haydn’s Armida with the Bregenzer Festspiele, and make her debut with La Monnaie singing Madame Herz in Mozart’s Der Schauspieldirektor conducted by Alain Altinoglu in performances at the Palais des Beaux-Arts.

During the 2019-20 season, Ms. Redpath made her role and house debut at Deutsche Oper Berlin singing Marguerite de Valois in David Alden’s production of Meyerbeer’s Les Huguenots under the baton of Alexander Vedernikov and covered the role of Sophie in Robert Carsen’s production of Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss at the Metropolitan Opera conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. Concert appearances included singing the role of Crobyle in Massenet’s Thaïs with Toronto Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Andrew Davis that was recorded for release on the Chandos label; Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 with conductor Yaniv Dinur and the New Bedford Symphony; and an evening with the Bakken Trio in her native Minnesota to sing Boulanger’s Clairières dans le ciel, Fauré’s La Bonne Chanson, and André Previn’s Four Songs.

Soprano Laquita Mitchell consistently earns acclaim on eminent international opera and concert stages worldwide.  In her compelling début as Bess in Porgy and Bess with the San Francisco Opera, Opera News said “Laquita Mitchell, in her first outing as Bess, dazzled the SFO [San Francisco Opera] audience with her purity of tone and vivid theatrical presence.” She has since reprised the role with The Atlanta Opera, The Tanglewood Festival, Madison Symphony, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Toledo Opera, Springfield Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Santa Barbara Symphony, Jacksonville Symphony, Sheboygan Symphony, Traverse City Symphony, the Margaret Island Open-Air Theatre in Budapest for their summer festival, and as the season opener for the Energa Sopot Classic Festival with the Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra. Additionally, PBS invited Ms. Mitchell to perform a solo recital including excerpts from Porgy and Bess with pianist Craig Terry for the Television Critics Association Press Tour in Los Angeles in preparation for the broadcast and DVD release of SFO’s Porgy and Bess.

Her performance as Bess is constantly received with critical acclaim, Opera News hailed that her “fine voice has a lovely tonal sheen and soaring high notes” and the Boston Globe wrote “Laquita MItchell showed off a supple and refined soprano as Bess, infusing the role with a touching vulnerability and innocence.” This season, Ms. Mitchell reprises the role of Bess in Porgy and Bess with Grange Park Opera in the UK, Lithuanian State Symphony and Harrisburg Symphony and performs as a soloist in Sanctuary Road and Porgy Suite with the Columbus Symphony.  She will also perform in Colorado Symphony’s Valentine’s Day concert and make a long-awaited role debut as the title role in Aida for Virginia Opera.

Notable engagements include her creation of the role of Josephine Baker in Tom Cipullo’s Josephine for Opera Colorado, Coretta Scott King in I Dream with Opera Grand Rapids, Toledo Opera and Opera Carolina, Violetta in La traviata Opera Memphis, New York City Opera, and Edmonton Opera, and Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with Florentine Opera and Portland Opera. Recent concert engagements include the soprano solo in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Berkeley Symphony, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with Missoula Symphony, the world première of Moravec’s Sanctuary Road at Carnegie Hall with Oratorio Society of New York and her return to the Philadelphia Orchestra to perform in their Academy Ball alongside Steve Martin and led by Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

In her role début as Violetta in La traviata with New York City Opera, she was labeled “extraordinary,” thanks to her “wide expressive range and big-hearted sound that contains just a hint of sexy smokiness. Her ‘Sempre libera’ was enlivened by a rhythmic clarity that made it seem almost danceable.” Other appearances include Leonora in Il trovatore in South Carolina as well as with Nashville Opera; Countess in Le nozze di Figaro with Toledo Opera;  the role of Sharon in Terrance McNally’s Master Class at the Kennedy Center; Musetta in La bohème in a return to the Los Angeles Opera; Mimì in La bohème with Cincinnati Opera, and at the Utah Symphony and Opera; Donna Anna in Don Giovanni with Florentine Opera, Portland Opera, and Opera New Jersey; Clara in Porgy and Bess with Los Angeles Opera, Washington National Opera, Opéra Comique in Paris and on tour in Caen and Granada, Spain; and Micaëla in Carmen with New York City Opera, Opera Pacific, and most recently, Cincinnati Opera, where the Cincinnati Enquirer hailed “Mitchell shone in the role of Micaëla, the peasant girl who loves Don José. She was a natural actress, and sang with expressive beauty whenever she was onstage.”

An active concert artist, Ms. Mitchell recently performed Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Philadelphia Orchestra at Saratoga Performing Arts Center; Over the Rainbow – an evening honoring Harold Arlen at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall; Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 with the Louisville Orchestra; a début with the New World Symphony in Alberto Ginastera’s Cantata para la América Mágica; the world première of composer Steven Stucky’s August 4, 1964 with Dallas Symphony Orchestra; her Boston Symphony Orchestra début as the soprano soloist in Wynton Marsalis’ All Rise under the direction of Kurt Masur; and the soprano solo in Tippett’s A Child of our Time with the Washington Chorus at Kennedy Center. She has also performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, Princeton Symphony Orchestra, the New York Symphonic Ensemble at Alice Tully Hall, and with Branford Marsalis and the Garden State Philharmonic. Additionally, she performs in recitals annually at Harare International Festival of the Arts in Zimbabwe.

Ms. Mitchell is an alumna of the Houston Grand Opera Studio, where she performed a variety of roles including stand-out performances in contemporary operas such as Orquidea in Daniel Catán’s Salsipuedes (world première), Myhrrine in Mark Adamo’s Lysistrata (world première), Barena in David Alden’s production of Jenůfa, and The Water in Rachel Portman’s The Little Prince (world première) directed by Francesca Zambello and conducted by Patrick Summers. Ms. Mitchell was previously a member of the San Francisco Opera’s world-renowned Merola Program. She then joined Wolf Trap Opera in performances as Alice Ford in Antonio Salieri’s Falstaff, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, and presented a recital with renowned pianist Steven Blier.

A native of New York City, Ms. Mitchell was a 2004 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Grand Prize Winner and was awarded a Sara Tucker Award. She was also the First Prize Winner of the Wiener Kammer Oper’s Hans Gabor Belvedere Competition, making her the first American to win this competition in over twenty years. Additionally, Ms. Mitchell was the First Prize Winner of the Houston Grand Opera Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers, as well as the winner of the Audience Choice award. Ms. Mitchell holds a Master of Music degree and the Professional Studies Certificate at the Manhattan School of Music and completed undergraduate studies at Westminster Choir College.