Kim Barber, Mezzo-soprano

Kim Barber, Mezzo-soprano
	Canadian mezzo-soprano Kimberly Barber was born in Guelph, Ontario, and now maintains an international operatic and concert career, singing with major opera houses and orchestras throughout the world (Paris Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, New York City Opera, Frankfurt Opera, Seattle Opera, Canadian Opera, English National Opera, London Symphony Orchestra, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Chicago, Montreal and Toronto Symphonies, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Mostly Mozart Festival, Eos Orchestra). Known for the expressive power, purity and refinement of her voice, her elegance of phrasing and musical gesture lend intelligence and intensity to her physical portrayals. Her eclectic and varied career combines not only the standard repertoire sung in some of the great opera houses and on some of the great concert stages of the world, but also contemporary and baroque works with smaller, experimental companies. Kimberly Barber’s extraordinary artistic spirit defies categorization. Her operatic repertoire encompasses more than 35 roles, many of them from 20th-century or lesser-known works, and her concert repertoire stems from every genre. Ms. Barber’s frequent collaborations with pianist Steven Blier and the New York Festival of Song, with performances at Wigmore Hall in London, Weill Hall and the 92nd Street Y in New York, have shaped her interest in presenting art song in an accessible format. Her deep attention to text and musical interpretation is a hallmark of her performances as a recitalist. Her concert performances encompass a wide repertoire, ranging from Handel, Monteverdi and Mahler to Stravinsky, Argento and Bernstein. Most recently, she made her debut in the role of The Angel in Edward Elgar’s monumental oratorio, The Dream of Gerontius, with the Richard Eaton Singers in Edmonton, a role she repeated at the 2007 Elora Festival. In March 2007 she premiered a work written specifically for her with the Penderecki String Quartet by Canadian composer Veronica Krausas at Toronto’s Music Gallery, with a repeat performance at the 2007 Open Ears Festival in Kitchener, Ontario. Her discography includes a solo recording of arias by Handel and Hasse (Ensemble Arion; CBC Records), the title role of Handel’s Rinaldo (Naxos Records; Aradia Ensemble; conductor Kevin Mallon) and Ravel’s L’Heure espagnole on DGG with the LSO under André Previn. In addition to her busy performing schedule, Kimberly Barber is increasingly in demand as a guest lecturer, panellist and pedagogue. Since 2002, she has been an assistant professor at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, where she is administrative coordinator of both the voice and opera programs.

Canadian mezzo-soprano Kimberly Barber was born in Guelph, Ontario, and now maintains an international operatic and concert career, singing with major opera houses and orchestras throughout the world (Paris Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, New York City Opera, Frankfurt Opera, Seattle Opera, Canadian Opera, English National Opera, London Symphony Orchestra, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Chicago, Montreal and Toronto Symphonies, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Mostly Mozart Festival, Eos Orchestra). Known for the expressive power, purity and refinement of her voice, her elegance of phrasing and musical gesture lend intelligence and intensity to her physical portrayals. Her eclectic and varied career combines not only the standard repertoire sung in some of the great opera houses and on some of the great concert stages of the world, but also contemporary and baroque works with smaller, experimental companies. Kimberly Barber’s extraordinary artistic spirit defies categorization. Her operatic repertoire encompasses more than 35 roles, many of them from 20th-century or lesser-known works, and her concert repertoire stems from every genre.

Ms. Barber’s frequent collaborations with pianist Steven Blier and the New York Festival of Song, with performances at Wigmore Hall in London, Weill Hall and the 92nd Street Y in New York, have shaped her interest in presenting art song in an accessible format. Her deep attention to text and musical interpretation is a hallmark of her performances as a recitalist. Her concert performances encompass a wide repertoire, ranging from Handel, Monteverdi and Mahler to Stravinsky, Argento and Bernstein. Most recently, she made her debut in the role of The Angel in Edward Elgar’s monumental oratorio, The Dream of Gerontius, with the Richard Eaton Singers in Edmonton, a role she repeated at the 2007 Elora Festival. In March 2007 she premiered a work written specifically for her with the Penderecki String Quartet by Canadian composer Veronica Krausas at Toronto’s Music Gallery, with a repeat performance at the 2007 Open Ears Festival in Kitchener, Ontario.

Her discography includes a solo recording of arias by Handel and Hasse (Ensemble Arion; CBC Records), the title role of Handel’s Rinaldo (Naxos Records; Aradia Ensemble; conductor Kevin Mallon) and Ravel’s L’Heure espagnole on DGG with the LSO under André Previn.

In addition to her busy performing schedule, Kimberly Barber is increasingly in demand as a guest lecturer, panellist and pedagogue. Since 2002, she has been an assistant professor at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, where she is administrative coordinator of both the voice and opera programs.