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Kathleen Battle (born August 13, 1948, Portsmouth, Ohio, USA) is an African-American lyric soprano known for her agile and light voice and possessing a silvery, pure tone. Michael Walsh of Time magazine called her the best lyric coloratura in the world. [1] One of the most prominent recitalists and opera singers of her generation, she is particularly known her wide ranging recital repertoire and performances of the operas of Handel and Mozart. Battle initially became known for her work within the concert repetoire through performances with major orchestras during the early and mid 1970s. She transitioned into opera performances in the late 1970s and became a favorite at many of the world's best opera houses during the 1980s and early 1990s. Although she no longer appears in operas, Battle remains active in concert and recital performances.[2]
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Battle is the youngest of seven children. Her father was a steelworker, and her mother was an active participant in the gospel music of the family's African Methodist Episcopal church. It was through Battle's musical experiences with her mother and at church that she first grew to love music.[3]
Battle attended Portsmouth High School where her music teacher and mentor was Charles P. (Phil) Varney. In a Time Magazine interview with music critic Michael Walsh, he told of his wonder at first hearing the eight-year old Battle sing, describing her as "this tiny little thing singing so beautifully." "I went to her later," Varney recalled, "and told her God had blessed her, and she must always sing." [4]
Battle was a good student and was awarded a scholarship to the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music where she studied voice with Franklin Bens and also worked with Italo Tajo.[5] She majored in music education rather than performance in undergraduate school and went on to get a master's degree in Music Education as well. In 1971 Battle embarked on a teaching career in Cincinnati, even though she was encouraged to seek a vocal career. Battle took a teaching position at a Cincinnati inner-city public school. She taught music to students aged 10 through 12 and thus fulfilled her desire to give back to the African-American community. While teaching 5th and 6th grade music, she studied voice privately.[6]
In 1972, Kathleen Battle began her professional career singing as the soprano soloist in Brahms' Ein deutsches Requiem at the 1972 Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, Italy with Thomas Schippers conducting. Battle first auditioned for Schippers while teaching in Cincinnati public school system and continuing voice lessons with Franklin Bens. In her second year as a teacher, a friend and fellow church choir member phoned her and informed her that Thomas Schippers was holding audition. [7] [8]
During the next several years, Battle would go on to sing in several more orchestral concerts in New York, Los Angeles, and Cleveland.[9] In 1974 conductor James Levine selected Battle to sing the Mater Glorioso in Mahler's Symphony No. 8 at the Cincinnati Symphony's May Festival. This was the beginning of a close professional association between Battle and Levine. that would last for years.[10] In 1975, Battle made her professional operatic stage debut in Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia as Rosina with the Michigan Opera Theatre in Detroit. She made her New York City Opera debut the following year as Susanna in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro. In 1977, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut as the Shepherd in Wagner's Tannhäuser, under the baton of James Levine whom she openly acknowledges in shaping her Met career.[11]. Battle and Levine formed a friendship and musical partnership that resulted in several recordings and frequent performances in recital and concert performances as well, including engagements in Salzburg, Ravinia, and Carnegie Hall. In 1979 Battle made her debut at the Glyndebourne Festival.[12]
Throughout the 1980s, Battle performed in recitals and choral work and opera roles. In addition, her work continued to take her to performance venues around the world including Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden, Salzburg, and St. Peter's Cathedral. In 1982, she made her Salzburg debut in an All Mozart Program. In 1985, she was the soprano soloist in Mozart's Coronation Mass at St. Peter's Cathedral at the Vatican. On January 1, 1987, Karajan invited Battle to sing Johann Strauss' Voices of Spring for the Vienna's New Year's Day concert the only time Karajan conducted the internationally televised annual event and the first time a singer had been engaged for such a contribution.[citation needed]. In opera she sang a variety of roles including Oscar (Chicago Lyric Opera), Despina (Salzburg Festival), Zerbinetta (Royal Opera), and Semele (Carnegie Hall). She returned to Salzburg various times to sing Susanna, Zerlina, and Despina, Mozart roles that she also sang at other opera houses. Other opera houses where she performed included San Francisco Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera, Royal Opera, London, English National Opera, Grand Théâtre de Genève, Vienna State Opera, and Deutsche Oper Berlin.
During this period, for both her recital, solo work with symphony, and Opera work, she received three Grammy awards, one for the album, Kathleen Battle Sings Mozart (1986) and the other for Salzburg Recital (1987), and one for the album Ariadne auf Naxos (1987). And for her stage performance of the same opera at the Royal Opera House, she received the Laurence Olivier Award (1985).
Critical response to Battle's performances has rarely varied throughout the years following her debut. In 1985, Time Magazine, pronounced her "the best lyric coloratura soprano in the world".[13] When she sang the title role of Handel's Semele in 1985 in Carnegie Hall, her performance was highly acclaimed; in addition, she would later record the work and win another grammy for her performance eight years later. [14]
The early 1990s saw Kathleen Battle continuing her opera, recital, and recording projects. In 1990 she performed in a series of solo recitals in California, as well as appearing at the Hollywood Bowl with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in An Evening in Old Vienna, where according to the Los Angeles Daily News, she "held the whole of the Hollywood Bowl in her hands".[15] On March 18, 1990, she appeared in Spirituals In Concert at Carnegie Hall with Jessye Norman, conducted by James Levine. The concert was televised on PBS,[16] and the live recording was later released by Deutsche Grammophon. She also gave several joint performances with flautist Jean-Pierre Rampal, most notably in Alice Tully Hall in 1991 (the live recording of which was released by Sony Classical in 1993). Two studio recordings were also made in this period. In 1992, Sony Classical released Baroque Duet, a recording of baroque arias in collaboration with trumpeter Wynton Marsalis. In 1993 Battle sang the title role in the Deutsche Grammophon recording of Semele which subsequently won a Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording of 1993.[17]
Battle's Carnegie Hall solo recital debut came on April 27, 1991; the recital was part of the Centennial Festival celebrating the 100th anniversary of Carnegie Hall. The recording of the recital earned Battle her fourth Grammy award. Another first came in January 1992 when Battle premiered Andre Previn's song cycle Honey and Rue with lyrics by Nobel Laureate in Literature Toni Morrison. The piece was comissioned by Carnegie Hall and was composed specifically for Battle.[18] And in 1993 Battle won her fifth grammy singing the title role in a recording of Semele. [19]
On the Opera stage, she performed the operas of Mozart, Rossini, and Donizetti. Between 1990 and 1993, she performed various roles at the Metropolitan Opera: Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia (1990), Pamina in Die Zauberflöte (1991 and 1993), and Adina (with Pavarotti) in L'elisir d'amore (1991, 1992, and the Met's 1993 Japan Tour).[20] Battle also sang her first Marie in Donizetti's La fille du régiment at San Francisco Opera in 1993.[21]
Although Battle gave several critically praised performances at the Metropolitan Opera during the early 1990s, her relationship with the company's management showed increasing signs of strain during these years.[22] This culminated in February 1994, when Metropolitan Opera General Manager Joseph Volpe dismissed Battle from the upcoming production of Donizetti's La Fille du Régiment for "unprofessional actions" during rehearsals. Volpe called Battle's conduct "profoundly detrimental to the artistic collaboration among all the cast members" and indicated that he had "canceled all offers that have been made for the future."[23] At the time of the dismissal, The New York Times reported that a number of people involved with the production said that Battle had been "difficult" and "uncooperative even after rehearsal schedules were changed to accommodate her demands, and that she had upset other members of the cast." [24] Battle was replaced in La fille du régiment by Harolyn Blackwell.[25] In a statement released by her management company, Columbia Artists, Battle said: "I was not told by anyone at the Met about any unprofessional actions. To my knowledge, we were working out all of the artistic problems in the rehearsals, and I don't know the reason behind this unexpected dismissal. All I can say is I am saddened by this decision." [26]
After her dismissal from the Met, Battle did not appear in opera performances. However, she continued to appear in concerts and recitals, as well as lending her voice to recordings and television appearances.
She has continued to pursue a number of diverse projects including the works of composers who do not traditionally compose classical music, performing the works of Vangelis, Stevie Wonder, and George Gershwin.
In August 2000, she performed an all-Schubert program at Ravinia. [27]. In June 2001 she and frequent collaborator Soprano Jessye Norman, performed Vangelis' Mythodea at the Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens, Greece. In July 2003 she performed at the Ravinia Chicago Symphony Orchestra Gala with Bobby McFerrin and Denyce Graves. In 2006 she and James Ingram sang the song They Won't Go When I Go in an Tribute to Stevie Wonder[28] and she began including Wonder's music in her recitals. [29] On July 2007 she debuted at the Aspen Music Festival performing an all-Gershwin program as part of a season benefit.[30] In October 2007, at a fundraiser for the Keep a Child Alive Charity, Kathleen Battle and Alicia Keys performed the song Miss Sarajevo written by U2's Bono. [31].
On April 16, 2008 she sang an arrangement of The Lord's Prayer for Pope Benedict XVI on the occasion of his Papal State visit to the White House. This marks the second time she sang for a pope. (She first sang for Pope John Paul II in 1985 as soprano soloist in Mozart's Coronation Mass.) [32]
Battle has portrayed the following roles on stage:
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Major oratorio, choral, and symphonic works in which Battle has performed as a soloist:
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Battle's classical repertoire encompasses the music of Bach, Barroso, Brahms, Bishop, Dowland, Charpentier, de Falla, Fauré, Gounod, Granados, Handel, Michael Head, Valdemar Henrique, Liszt, Martinů, Mendelssohn, Mompou, Mozart, Obradors, Ovalle, Poulenc, Purcell, Rachmaninov, Rameau, Roussel, Saint-Saëns, Schubert, Richard and Johann Strauss, Turina, and Villa-Lobos. Her jazz and musical theatre repertoire includes the compositions of Ellington, Gershwin, Bernstein, and Previn. She is also known for her performances African-American spirituals.
Among the noted conductors with whom Battle has worked are Herbert von Karajan, Riccardo Muti, Zubin Mehta, Seiji Ozawa, Claudio Abbado, Georg Solti, Carlo Maria Giulini, and Battle's fellow Ohioan James Levine, music director at New York's Metropolitan Opera. She has performed with many prominent orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic, and the Orchestre de Paris. She has also appeared at the Salzburg Festival, Ravinia Festival, Tanglewood Festival, Blossom Festival, the Hollywood Bowl, Mann Music Centre Festival and the Caramoor Festival, and at Cincinnati May Festival.[41]
In recital, she has been accompanied on the piano by various accompanists including Margo Garrett, Martin Katz, Warren Jones, James Levine, Joel Martin, Ken Noda, and Ted Taylor. Collaborations with other classical artists include flautist Jean-Pierre Rampal, sopranos Jessye Norman, Frederica Von Stade, and Florence Quivar, violinist Itzhak Perlman, baritone Thomas Hampson, tenors Luciano Pavarotti and Plácido Domingo, trumpeter Wynton Marsalis and guitarist Christopher Parkening.
On the less classical side, she has worked with vocalists Al Jarreau, Bobby McFerrin, Alicia Keys, and James Ingram, jazz saxophonist Grover Washington, Jr., jazz pianists Cyrus Chestnut and Herbie Hancock. Battle also lent voice to the song "This Time" on Janet Jackson's album janet. and sang the title song, "Lovers," for the 2004 Chinese action movie, House of Flying Daggers.[42] She also performs the music of Stevie Wonder. [43]
| Year | Title | Genre | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | The Best of Kathleen Battle | Classical | Deutsche Grammophon |
| Mozart: Exsultate Jubilate/Arias (with Andre Previn) | Classical | EMI Classics | |
| 2002 | Classic Battle: A Portrait | Classical and romantic, Spanish and American folksongs, Jazz |
Sony |
| 1995 | Battle & Domingo Live | Classical | Deutsche Grammophon |
| So Many Stars | Folk songs, Lullabies, Spirituals | Sony | |
| 1992 | Kathleen Battle (with Wynton Marsalis) | Classical | Sony |
| 1991 | Kathleen Battle and Jessye Norman: Spirituals in Concert | Spirituals | Polygram |
| 1990 | Kathleen Battle Sings Mozart | Classical | EMI Classics |
| A Christmas Celebration: Kathleen Battle | Spirituals | EMI Classics | |
| 1989 | Live In Tokyo 1988 (with Plácido Domingo, James Levine and Metropolitan Opera Orchestra) |
Classical | Deutsche Grammophon |
| 1985 | Mozart: Requiem (with Ann Murray, David Rendall, Matti Salminen and D. Barenboim) |
Classical | EMI Classics |
| Year | Title | Cast | Conductor, Orchestra |
Studio/Live | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Verdi: Un ballo in maschera |
Battle, Pavarotti, M. Price, C. Ludwig, et al. | Georg Solti, National Philharmonic Orchestra |
Studio | Decca |
| 1986 | Mozart: Don Giovanni |
Battle, Tomowa-Sintow, Varady, Baltsa, Ramey, Furlanetto, Winbergh, et al. | Herbert von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic |
Studio | DG |
| 1987 | Mozart: Die Entführung aus dem Serail |
Battle, Gruberova, Winbergh, Zednik, Talvela, et al. | Georg Solti, Vienna Philharmonic |
Studio | Universal Int'l |
| Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro |
Battle, M. Price, A. Murray, Allen, Hynninen, Rydl, et al. | Ricardo Muti, Vienna Philharmonic |
Studio | EMI |
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Battle, Kathleen |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | American opera singer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 13, 1948 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Portsmouth, Ohio |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |