Back to Singers

Harwood-Management

Lori Hicks
Soprano



Click here to download a soundbite
Ave Maria



http://www.loricelestehicks.com




               
Debuting as Opera Theater of Pittsburgh’s “magnetic” Bess in Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess last season, soprano Lori Celeste Hicks has only begun to leave her mark on the world of classical music. Lori was recently featured in From Mozart to Gershwin with the Brevard Philharmonic in North Carolina. This November, Lori will make her much-anticipated Carnegie Hall debut, singing Robert Ray’s Gospel Mass with Mid America Productions.

Lori made her debut as Bess in 2010 with performances at Opera Theater of Pittsburgh and El Paso Opera, and it is fast becoming one of her signature roles. In 2010, she sang Verdi’s Requiem with the Jackson Symphony Orchestra in Michigan, and also stepped in at the last minute for Leona Mitchell to sing a guest artist recital at Benedict College in Columbia, SC.

The 2008-2009 season brought many engagements, such as the Verdi Requiem with the Holland Symphony Orchestra, Donna Elvira in Mozart’s Don Giovanni with the Arbor Opera Theater, “A tribute to Black Pioneers in Music” Gala Concert in Denver, Colorado singing alongside tenor George Shirley in Act IV of Otello, along with a Holiday Concert at the Lincoln Center Library. Ms. Hicks closed the season with another concert of Verdi’s Requiem in Detroit, and several recitals in Michigan, Colorado, and Ohio.

Internationally, Ms. Hicks was featured in concerts and recitals throughout Italy and France, as well as starring as Alice Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff under the baton of Maestro Joseph Rescigno. A frequent performer in the Midwest area, Lori has sung Mimi in La Boheme, Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte, Rosalinda in Die Fledermaus, Laetitia in Menotti’s The Old Maid and the Thief, and the world premiere of James P. Johnson’s jazz opera Dreamy Kid. An active recitalist and concert performer, Lori’s concert work has included Verdi’s Requiem, Saint-Saëns’ Oratorio de Noël, Bach’s Magnificat, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Handel’s Messiah, and the Wesendonck Lieder by Wagner. She has sung recitals across the Midwest, and recently took part in an African Women’s Composer’s Forum at the University of Dayton.

A native of Detroit, Michigan, Lori holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, a Masters of Music from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, and a Bachelors of Music Education from Kentucky State University. As a music educator, Lori has taught at Ohio University, the University of Dayton, and Central State University. She currently serves on the voice faculty of Claflin University in South Carolina.
7/7/11