John Holiday

Style: Pop; Opera; Jazz; Gospel; Classical; Musical Theatre

Title: Professor

Bio:

John Holiday, recent nominee for “Newcomer of the Year,” by the German magazine Opernwelt and a third prize winner at Plácido Domingo’s 2014 Operalia Competition, has established himself as a singer to watch in the opera world. Singing the role of Cesare in the U.S. Premiere of Catone in Utica by Antonio Vivaldi during the 2015 Glimmerglass Festival, Holiday was greeted with standing ovations and outstanding critical praise.

“… there is a major reason to see this production: the superb young countertenor John Holiday, in the role of Caesar, who displayed an arrestingly powerful, secure, and dramatically high instrument. I had that jolt of excitement once before: exactly 20 years ago, at Glimmerglass, when David Daniels sang the title role in “Tamerlano” and made operatic countertenors something to be reckoned with.” Heidi Waleson, The Wall Street Journal This fall, Holiday reprised his role as Caesar in Catone in Utica with Opera Lafayette with performances in Washington, D.C. and New York City, also to critical acclaim – “Holiday has it all going. His voice is powerful and agile and has an immense range, with seamless registers top to bottom,” from The Washington Post. Also during the 2015-2016 season, Holiday will sing the role of Orpheo in Orpheo ed Euridice by William Gluck with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, a program with Ars Lyrica in Houston, and The Holiday Experience: One Night Only at the Glimmerglass Festival 2016. Holiday will reprise the role of First Male Voice in Huang Ruo's Paradise Interrupted for The Lincoln Center Festival 2016.

Holiday debuted with the Spoleto Festival USA 2015 in the world premiere of Paradise Interrupted, composed by Huang Ruo with visual design and direction by Jennifer Wen Ma. Holiday also substituted in the role of Zaida in Veremonda, l’amazzone di Aragona by Francesco Cavalli during its U.S. Premiere run at the USA Spoleto Festival. Due to last minute cast needs, he learned the role in only one day. Holiday also debuted in 2014 at the Los Angeles Opera in Barrie Kosky’s acclaimed production of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas as the Sorceress and appeared with the Wolf Trap Opera in June 2014 as Caesar in Handel’s Giulo Cesare. During the 2013-2014 season, he was also seen in the title roles of Radamisto at the Juilliard School with the Juilliard Orchestra in Giya Kancheli’s And Farewell Goes Out Sighing... under Anne Manson, and as Sposo in Scarlatti’s La Sposa dei Cantici with Ars Lyrica in Houston. Holiday made his Carnegie Hall debut as a soloist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in 2012 in Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms. John also joined the roster of the Metropolitan Opera to cover Nireno in Giulio Cesare under Harry Bicket in David McVicar’s new production and reprised his roles in Philip Glass’s Galileo Galilei at the Cincinnati Opera, having first performed the work at the Portland Opera for his operatic stage debut. He was an apprentice artist at Santa Fe Opera where he covered the role of Corrado in Peter Sellars’s production of Vivaldi’s Griselda and was seen as the Refugee in Jonathan Dove’s Flight for the Apprentice Scenes Program. John’s recital schedule includes engagements in Saint Paul, Minnesota with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, the Chorus of Westerly in Rhode Island, the Nashville Symphony, and programs with Ars Lyrica and Mercury Baroque in Houston, Texas.

Major competitions and award programs have recognized John’s accomplishments. He is a 2014 recipient of the Catherine Filene Shouse Career Development Grant from the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts and is also a recipient of the Richard F. Gold Career Grant from the Shoshana Foundation and first prize from the Richard Tucker Foundation Sara Tucker award. He was awarded first place at both the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition for 2013 and the Sullivan Foundation for 2012. John also received a first place win at the Dallas Opera Guild Vocal Competition. In 2007, he was the first place winner in his district of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. In addition to his classical repertoire, Mr. Holiday excels in jazz and gospel music having opened for Grammy award winner Jason Mraz in concert. Mr. Holiday recently released his debut jazz album entitled The Holiday Guide.

John received a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, a Master of Music in vocal performance from the University of Cincinnati College – Conservatory of Music and the Artist Diploma in Opera Studies from The Juilliard School in New York City. John grew up in Rosenberg, Texas, located near Houston, and attended the town’s public schools. Mr. Holiday, a third prize winner at Plácido Domingo’s Operalia Competition held in August 2014, is quickly establishing himself as a singer to watch in the opera world. Debuting in October 2014 at the Los Angeles Opera in Barrie Kosky’s acclaimed production of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas as the Sorceress, John seduced audiences and critics alike. During the summer of 2015, John debuted at the Spoleto Festival USA in the world premiere of Paradise Interrupted, composed by Huang Ruo with visual design and direction by Jennifer Wen Ma. To great acclaim, John made a house and role debut as Giulio Cesare at The Glimmerglass Festival in Tazewell Thompson's production of Vivaldi’s Catone in Utica. For his performance at The Glimmerglass Festival, Heidi Waleson, of the Wall Street Journal, had this to say about John: "There is a major reason to see this production: the superb young countertenor John Holiday, in the role of Caesar, who displayed an arrestingly powerful, secure, and dramatically high instrument. I had that jolt of excitement once before: exactly 20 years ago, at Glimmerglass, when David Daniels sang the title role in Tamerlano and made operatic countertenors something to be reckoned with." John appeared with Wolf Trap Opera in June 2014 as Cesare in Handel’s Giulio Cesare in Egitto, earning praise from The Washington Post, “a sweet-voiced and physically imposing Caesar with clean, crisp coloratura.” During the 2013-2014 season, he was also seen in the title role of Radamisto at the Juilliard School and with the Juilliard Orchestra in Giya Kancheli’s And Farewell Goes Out Sighing... under the baton of Maestra Anne Manson. He also recorded Scarlatti’s La Sposa dei Cantici with Ars Lyrica in Houston for commercial release. John made his Carnegie Hall debut as a soloist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in 2012 in Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms. John also joined the roster of the Metropolitan Opera to cover Nireno in Giulio Cesare under Harry Bicket in David McVicar’s new production and reprised his roles in Philip Glass’s Galileo Galilei at the Cincinnati Opera, having first performed the work at the Portland Opera for his operatic stage debut. He was an apprentice artist at Santa Fe Opera, where he covered the role of Corrado in Peter Sellars’s production of Vivaldi’s Griselda and was seen as the Refugee in Jonathan Dove’s Flight for the Apprentice Scenes Program. John’s recital schedule includes engagements in Saint Paul, Minnesota with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, the Chorus of Westerly in Rhode Island, and programs with Ars Lyrica and Mercury Baroque in Houston, Texas. Major competitions and award programs have recognized John’s accomplishments. He is a 2014 recipient of the Catherine Filene Shouse Career Development Grant from the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts and is also a recipient of the Richard F. Gold Career Grant from the Shoshana Foundation and first prize from the Richard Tucker Foundation for the Sara Tucker award. He was awarded first place at both the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition for 2013 and the Sullivan Foundation for 2012. John also received a first place win at the Dallas Opera Guild Vocal Competition in 2011. In 2007, he was the first place winner in his district of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. In addition to his classical repertoire, Mr. Holiday excels in jazz and gospel music having opened for Grammy award winner Jason Mraz in concert. Mr. Holiday released his debut jazz album in 2006 entitled The Holiday Guide. John received a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, a Master of Music in vocal performance from the University of Cincinnati College – Conservatory of Music and the Artist Diploma in Opera Studies from The Juillard School in New York City. John grew up in Rosenberg, Texas, located near Houston, and attended the town’s public schools.

Voice Type: Countertenor

Music Styles Taught: Pop; Opera; Jazz; Gospel; Classical; Musical Theatre

Availability: I am available as a performer; I have a wait-list for private lessons; I am currently accepting private students; I am available as a clinician or presenter; I accept students through a college or university program

Contact Information