Long-time NATS member Daniel Ferro, who taught some of opera’s most legendary voices and counted among his students many who have become successful teachers at leading conservatories and universities worldwide, passed away November 18, 2015, at the age of 94. He is survived by his wife, Joy, by his sons Matthew and Jesse, and by five grandchildren.

A memorial will be held April 10, 2016, in New York, and in Greve in Chianti, Italy on July 15. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Daniel Ferro Vocal Program, Inc., 575 Madison Avenue, Suite 1006, New York, NY 10022, which will be dedicated to continue to pass on to the next generation Ferro’s legacy and lifelong commitment to the vocal arts. For more information, visit http://ferrovocalprogram.org.

Born in New York in 1921, Daniel Ferro studied at the Juilliard School of Music, then went on to graduate studies in voice at Columbia University. As a Fulbright Fellow, he studied in Europe for seven years, and was a member of the Graz Opera Company in Austria and toured with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.

Returning to the States in 1956, he served as chairman of the voice department at Butler University in Indianapolis and then as chairman of the voice department at Manhattan School of Music, 1969 to 1977. He joined the voice faculty at Juilliard in 1972, retiring in 2006, at which point he received emeritus status, and continued to give master classes there. Ferro joined NATS in 1968. 

In addition to his work at Juilliard, Ferro taught at festivals and schools around the world, including: the Conservatoire de musique, Montréal, Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Royal College of Music, Stockholm and the Accademia Chigiana. In France, he taught at the Opéra de Paris, Paris Conservatory and Fondation Royaumont ; in 1988 was made an Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government for his services to music. In 2001, he received the distinction of Honorary Citizen of Greve in Chianti, Italy; and in 2002 he received an Award of Appreciation from the Republic of Korea for his years of teaching and dedication.

He founded the Spoleto Vocal Institute and, in 1995, the Daniel Ferro Vocal Program, of which he was also the artistic director up to the time of his death. 

Ferro has worked with numerous international artists, including: Kathleen Battle, Barbara Hendricks, Evelyn Lear, Ruggero Raimondi, Régine Crespin, Anna Moffo, Neil Shicoff, Lucille Beer, Alan Titus, Neil Rosenshein, Richard Stilwell, Patricia Brooks, Thomas Stewart, Sándor Kónya, Ruth Welting, Berit Lindholm, Judith Raskin, Florence Quivar, Spiro Malas, Michael Devlin, Susanne Mentzer, Ning Liang, Kevin Short, Gail Dobish, Hei-Kyung Hong, Arthur Woodley, Robert Smith, Carolyn Sebron, Darynn Zimmer, Theresa Santiago, Ying Huang, Martin Bruns, Ricardo Herrera, Don Frazure, Peter Castaldi, Daniel Ihn-Kyu Lee, Dusica Bijelic and Alexander Hajek. 

His singers continue to distinguish themselves in opera houses worldwide and in major competitions such as the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, the Walter W. Naumburg Competition and the Licia Albanese-Puccini International Vocal Competition.