Tichina Vaughn
Tichina Vaughn (born 19 September 1965) is an American operatic dramatic mezzo-soprano active internationally in opera, concert halls and recitals. Starting at the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at the Metropolitan Opera, her American career expanded into Europe, as member of the permanent ensembles of the Semperoper in Dresden and the Stuttgart Opera, where she was awarded the title of Kammersängerin in 2006. She has been a regular at the Arena di Verona and other major theaters worldwide, singing a wide repertoire span, with a "voluminous and dark mezzo" voice the dramatic Verdi roles such as Amneris  in "Aida", Eboli in "Don Carlo", Azucena in "Il trovatore" and Ulrica in "Un ballo in maschera", Wagner's Ortrud "Lohengrin", Venus "Tannhäuser", Fricka "Die Walküre", Waltraute in "Götterdämmerung" and Strauss, Herodias in "Salome" and Klytemnestra in "Elektra". According to Opernglas, Vaughn has a natural "great intensity" on stage, with an ample "voice, which flows richly, even in the low registers." The "Neue Zürcher Zeitung" describes her voice as an "enchanting satisfyingly rich mezzosoprano". Bernard Holland of "The New York Times" called hers "A voice of quality", which had "the presence and personality that might well fit the Met... a  mezzo-soprano whose strong upper register gave hints of a dramatic soprano to come". Early life and education. Born in Baltimore, Maryland to Lucinda Vaughn, a single mother, Tichina Vaughn was raised in Winston-Salem, NC where she began singing at 6 years old in the Tots Choir at Shiloh Baptist Church. She studied the clarinet and played in concert and marching bands. At Northside High School for the Performing Arts (currently North Atlanta High School) she began performing as featured singer with the Touring Company graduating in May 1983. In September 1983 Vaughn began formal vocal study with the  mezzo-soprano Florence Kopleff at Georgia State University. In January 1985, Vaughn studied at the University of North Carolina school of the Arts (now UNCSA) under Prof. Fredric Moses. Vaughn also attended the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria, where she was a finalist in the Meistersinger Competition in 1987. She earned her bachelor's degree in Vocal Performance from UNCSA in 1989 and was engaged at Wolf Trap Opera as a Filene Artist in the summers of 1989 and 1990. American career. She began her professional career as a member of The Lindemann Young Artist Development Program  at the Metropolitan Opera after winning The Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in April 1989. She made her stage debut at the Met in 1990 as a member of the Young Artist Program singing under Nello Santi, John Fiore and James Levine. Vaughn's first leading role was Amneris in Verdi's "Aida" at the Seattle Opera in 1992. This success prompted invitations for "Aida" from Detroit Opera (1993), Opera Pacific (1995), Tulsa Opera (1997), and Hong Kong Opera Society (1997), and established her as a young Verdi mezzo-soprano. Additional Verdian leading roles in the early years included Princess  Eboli in "Don Carlos" in Seattle (1993), and the Requiem in Santiago, Chile (1992), Buenos Aires (1992), and San Antonio Symphony (1993). International career. Since the late 1990s Vaughn has worked internationally. Singing mostly mainstream Italian repertoire, Vaughn added numerous roles in German. Boris Gruhl wrote of her Klytemnestra in "Elektra", "The manner in which she expresses (Klytemnestra's) nightmares is deeply harrowing. She has the right timbre for the tragedy of the guilty queen, and her scenes of desperate loneliness make her a tragic partner for Elektra." Vaughn's Venus in "Tannhäuser" at the Hamburg State Opera "bewitched her  minstrel with her charmingly sensual, powerful mezzo and her personal charisma. Even in her short appearance in the third act, one could feel the presence of her strong personality." Her "superbly dramatic Herodias" in "Salome" became a signature role in Stuttgart, Frankfurt and Dresden. From 1998 to 2006 Tichina Vaughn was principal artist in the ensemble of the Staatsoper Stuttgart where she made her European debut as Mrs. Quickly in Verdi's "Falstaff" in August 1996 and was awarded the title of Kammersängerin in 2006. Roles performed included Azucena in Verdi's "Il Trovatore" conducted by Nicola Luisotti, and Arnalta  in Monteverdi's "L'incoronazione di Poppea" conducted by Nicholas Kok, Eboli in Verdi' "Don Carlo", Widow Begbick in Weill's "Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny", Venus in "Tannhäuser", Giulietta in Ogffenbach's "The Tales of Hoffmann", Fricka in Wagner's "Die Walküre", Waltraute in "Götterdämmerung" and Erda in "Das Rheingold" and "Siegfried". Her discography in Stuttgart includes the Stuttgart Opera "Ring" cycle filmed for DVD distribution by Euro Arts and recorded for Naxos. From 2010 to 2018 Vaughn was a principal artist in the ensemble of the Semperoper where she was heard as Azucena conducted by Daniel  Oren, Venus conducted by Asher Fisch, Ortrud in Wagner's "Lohengrin", Herodias, Eboli, Jezibaba in Stefan Herheim's production of "Rusalka", Orlofsky in "Die Fledermaus" by Johann Strauss, Isabella in Rossini's "L'Italiana in Algeri", Suzuki in Puccini's "Madama Butterfly", Grand Vestale in "La Vestale" conducted by Gabriele Ferro, Cornelia in Handel's "Giulio Cesare", the Mother in "Il Prigioniero", Brigitta in Korngold's "Die Tote Stadt" among others. She made her Arena di Verona debut as "Amneris" in 2003 and returned there in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2010, and 2012 working with conductors Marco Armiliato, Placido Domingo, Daniel Oren , Vjekoslav Šutej and Piergiorgio Morandi. She has sung Ulrica in Verdi's "Un ballo in maschera" in many world stages, notably at the San Francisco Opera, and Graz Opera. Teatro Massimo Palermo, Ancona, Verona and Dresden. Vaughn's "full-blooded "Azucena"" in "Il Trovatore"in a Stuttgart performance, "with her room-filling presence, her vocal flexibility and vibrant top is a powerful representation of this role." She appeared as Azucena at the Greek National Opera, Hungarian National Opera, Sacramento Opera, Teatro Verdi Trieste, and Teatro Carlo Felice. Vaughn sang three roles, Serena, Maria and Lily, in Gershwin's "Porgy and Bess , at the Metropolitan Opera with James Levine, the Kennedy Center with Bobby McFerrin, and the English National Opera, Teatro alla Scala, Bregenzer Festspiele, Miscolc Festival, Ravinia Festival, Opera Carolina, Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Dutch National Opera where she also created the role of 'Mother of Aida' in Micha Hamels Caruso in Cuba". Other appearances as a guest artist were at the Los Angeles Opera (Frugola in Puccini's "Il Tabarro" with James Conlon), Finnish National Opera, The Israeli Opera (Verdi Requiem), Korea National Opera (Mrs. Quickly in Verdi's "Falstaff"), and Oper Frankfurt. Concert. Major concerts include appearances in  Santiago de Chile (Verdi Requiem), Atlanta Symphony orchestra, American Symphony, NDR, Teatro Petruzzelli Bari (Aleksander Nevsky) under Julian Kovachev, Berliner Festspiele, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Taipei Symphony under Roberto Abbado, and the Kennedy Center (Missa Solemnis), She frequently performs Lieder and other recitals with partners such as Maris Skuja, Wolfgang Heinz, Lars Jönsson, Nicola Luisotti, and Eytan Pessen at the piano. Vaughn is also a versatile Jazz and gospel performer. Personal life. In December 1992 Vaughn married singer Derrick Lawrence. Their union produced two children and ended in divorce in December 2007. In 2015 Vaughn was chosen as 'Role Model Beyond  Beauty' by OTC beauty magazine, highlighting "women of color who have made significant advances in their careers and who have given back to their communities." Her portrait by Leo Rucker, commissioned by OTC, was part of an exhibition in Winston-Salem, NC and other places. Vaughn has received awards from the Metropolitan Opera National Council, the Richard Tucker Foundation the Opera Index Vocal Competition, Licia Albanese Puccini Foundation, Robert M. Jacobson grants, Heritage Foundation Award, the Foundation Award of the Birgit Nilsson Foundation, and the Consul General's Award for Cultural Diplomacy from the Consulate General Milan. Vaughn is active  as a singing teacher and regularly gives masterclasses in Europe and the United States, including Dresden, Stuttgart, the Metropolitan Opera New York City and North Carolina.