Kerry Jennings

Style: Opera; Classical; Musical Theatre

Title: Voice Area Coordinator/Associate Professor of Voice

Bio: Tenor Kerry Lee Jennings holds the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Music, and Master of Music Degrees from the University of Washington and the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Maryland at College Park. His teachers have included Julian Patrick, Carmen Pelton, François Loup, and Gran Wilson. Dr. Jennings enjoys a career that encompasses opera, oratorio, recital, and chamber works. On the operatic stage, performance highlights include over forty lead and supporting roles comprised of early, standard and contemporary repertoire. Recent activities have included recitals, concerts, operatic engagements, and masterclasses in Phoenix, Houston, Norfolk, Columbus, Boston, St. Louis, Chicago, and Sankt Anton Austria, where he performed the role of Ernesto in Don Pasquale. Highlights as a concert soloist have included Puccini’s Messa di Gloria, Bach's Magnificat, Handel's Messiah, Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass and Creation, Mozart's Requiem and Coronation Mass, Schubert's Mass in G Major, The Seven Last Words of Christ by Dubois, The Christmas Oratorio by Saint-Saëns, Kurt Weill's The Seven Deadly Sins, and Fonseca’s Missa AfroBrasileira. An accomplished recitalist, Kerry is a strong advocate for song repertoire. Noted for his “beautiful voice, great diction, and uncanny sense of style and phrasing,” he particularly enjoys success in the performance of English language song. His recording with pianist Amanda Hopson, In My Memory: American Songs and Song Cycles and released by Centaur Records, has been met with acclaim from both the composers and critics alike. The recording features works by Libby Larsen, Tom Cipullo, Lori Laitman, and Richard Pearson Thomas. Libby Larsen has called Kerry’s recording of her cycle My Àntonia “the definitive reference performance for future performances” and has featured it on her website. Lori Laitman also praised the recording, saying “Kerry and Amanda’s sensitive performances of my music, including the premiere of “On A Photograph” (poetry by John Wood), reveal artistry of the highest level. I am thrilled.” He is also featured on recordings of composers David Arbury and Michael John Trotta, and as tenor soloist with the Houston Camerata. He will release his second solo disc of American Song Cycles with works by Juliana Hall and Zachary Wadsworth in 2021. Dr. Jennings was a District Winner and Regional Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. Dr. Jennings' students are regularly winners at the state and regional levels of the Student Auditions sponsored by the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS). In 2020, his students placed 3rd and 1st in their respective categories in the NATS National Student Auditions. Additionally, they have won significant awards from the Metropolitan National Council, Classical Singer, the Orpheus Competition, and other notable voice competitions. Many have gone on to prestigious graduate programs and have also garnered praise for their work on stage in operatic and musical theater performances in summer programs and with professional companies throughout the US and Europe. He is also a respected clinician and adjudicator, having judged competitions such as Classical Singer and NATSAA. Dr. Jennings is the Voice Area Coordinator at DePauw University where he also currently serves as Director of Opera. He has also taught voice and directed for the Austrian American Mozart Academy in Salzburg and is a member of NATS, NOA, The Recording Academy, and Opera America.

Voice Type: Tenor

Music Styles Taught: Opera; Classical; Musical Theatre

Availability: I am available as a performer; I am available as a clinician or presenter; I accept students through a college or university program