Established as one of the most exciting dramatic sopranos of her generation, the success of Elizabeth Byrne’s first integral performances of the role of Brünnhilde in the new Tim Albery production of Wagner’s Ring Cycle at the Scottish Opera was recognized by a Royal Philharmonic Society Award Nomination. Writing of her performances, The Scotsman reported “This epic cycle has made a star out of soprano Elizabeth Byrne who has grown both vocally and dramatically into the role of Brünnhilde with electrifying results. She never fails to create a frisson of excitement whenever she appears on stage – a wily and tense heroine whose power is understated but never in doubt.” And of her appearance in Die Walküre at the Edinburgh Festival, Paul Griffiths of The New York Times wrote that “Ms. Byrne has a voice of flame and accuracy, the voice of a young person keenly in tune with herself, quick and 100 percent in her emotional responses. She also had vitality in her stage presence.” The Ring Cycle was the cornerstone of the 2003 Edinburgh Festival with additional performances in Glasgow and throughout the United Kingdom.

Elizabeth Byrne enjoyed an exciting 2006-2007 season, which included performances at Glimmerglass Opera as Kostelnièka in Jonathan Miller’s production of Jenùfa, thereby adding another twentieth-century opera to her repertoire, as well as performances as Senta in Der fliegende Holländer with Portland Opera. Another highlight of Miss Byrne’s season was her joining for the first time in her career the roster of San Francisco Opera to cover the role of Isolde in Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde.

In her 2005-2006 season, Elizabeth Byrne mainly concentrated on German repertoire: She opened her season at the Staatstheater Stuttgart performing Brünnhilde in Siegfried conducted by Lothar Zagrosek, followed by her role debut as the composer in Strauss’ opera Ariadne auf Naxos with Dallas Opera and Senta in Der fliegende Holländer in her Arizona Opera debut. Miss Byrne wrapped up her season at the Metropolitan Opera covering the role of Leonora in Fidelio.

In 2004-2005, the soprano performed Senta in concert performances of Der fliegende Holländer with James Levine and the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Hall. She also covered the role of Brünnhilde in Die Walküre at the Metropolitan Opera. Prior to the Scottish Opera Ring Cycle, Miss Byrne had performed Sieglinde in concert with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra with Kirk Trevor and Brünnhilde in Die Walküre at the Austin Lyric Opera. Earlier Ring performances include appearances as Gutrune and Gerhilde in the Lyric Opera of Chicago’s first complete Ring Cycle directed by August Everding and conducted by Zubin Mehta. She added the role of Senta in Der fliegende Holländer in performances at Opéra de Massy and also performed the role at the Austin Lyric Opera.

One of Miss Byrne’s first leading roles in the German repertoire was as the title role of Salome at Glimmerglass Opera. Recently she added the role of Leonora in Fidelio to her repertoire at the Scottish Opera, after previously covering the role for the Lyric Opera of Chicago. At the Metropolitan Opera, Philippe Auguin conducted her performance of The Duchess of Parma in Busoni’s Doktor Faust. Additionally she performed the Fourth Maid in Elektra at the Metropolitan Opera in performances conducted by James Levine. At the Lyric Opera of Chicago she performed the role of the Overseer in the Götz Friedrich production of Elektra and made her debut in The Netherlands as Agave in a concert performance of Egon Wellesz's opera Die Bakchantinnen at the Concertgebouw and broadcast throughout Europe.

An excellent musician, Elizabeth Byrne is noted for her performances of contemporary operas as well. In addition to the aforementioned production of Doktor Faust, Miss Byrne gave the world premiere performances of the role of Blanca in James MacMillan’s opera Inés de Castro at the Edinburgh Festival. The work was also performed in Glasgow and in Oporto, Portugal. Jonathan Moore directed the Scottish Opera production, which was broadcast on BBC-TV. The Sunday Express described her performance: “In her tour de force aria, Elizabeth Byrne (Blanca, Pedro’s spurned wife) had the audience captivated and horrified by her magnificently sung, terrifying account of marital rape, torture and miscarriage. Undoubtedly the highlight each night.” Her American debut was performing and recording the leading role of the Step Daughter in Hugo Weisgall’s Six Characters in Search of an Author with the Lyric Opera Center for American Artists. It was followed by her appearance as the Pale Lady in Prokofiev’s The Gambler under the baton of Zubin Mehta.

In concert, Elizabeth Byrne has performed Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 at Royal Albert Hall and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 14 at Canada’s National Arts Centre conducted by Pinchas Zukerman. She made her Avery Fisher Hall debut performing Zemlinsky’s rarely-heard Lyric Symphony with Leon Botstein and the American Symphony Orchestra. She has performed the Verdi Requiem with the Alabama Symphony and the Greensboro Symphony (NC). She has performed Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the symphony orchestras of Utah, Seattle, Richmond (VA) and South Bend Symphony (IN). She has appeared in Opera Highlights concerts at the Buxton Festival and at the Prague Festival, with the New Seoul Symphony in Korea, the Rochester Philharmonic (with Mark Elder), the Fort Wayne Symphony and with the Northwest Indiana Symphony. Her first performances of the Liebestod by Richard Strauss were with the Valdosta Symphony (GA).

Elizabeth Byrne was born in Lancashire, England and is a permanent resident of The United States of America. She lives in Chicago with her husband, James.

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