Phyllis Bryn-Julson

Known for her lustrous voice and pitch perfect three-octave range, soprano Phyllis Bryn-Julson commands an extraordinary amount of vocal literature spanning many centuries, and is especially known for her performances of twentieth-century repertoire. With the Ensemble InterContemporain under the direction of Pierre Boulez, she has traveled to Canada, Japan, Australia and Russia, as well as throughout Europe. Her unaccompanied recitals have received standing ovations in Paris, at the Warsaw Festival, Salzburg Festival, in Israel, and in the United States.

A versatile musician who has studied piano, organ and violin in addition to voice, she made her debut as a soloist in Berg’s Lulu Suite with the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1966.  Her first operatic performance was in the role of Malinche in the 1976 U.S. Premiere of Roger Sessions’ Montezuma.  In 1993, she took part in a year-long celebration of the 70th birthday of György Ligeti, performing his works in Amsterdam, London, Los Angeles and Paris.  Other recent performances include the New York premiere of Kafka Fragments by György Kurtág at the Guggenheim Museum, and a celebration of the life and work of Milton Babbitt with performances of Philomel and Vision and Prayer in Los Angeles.

Ms. Bryn-Julson has recorded over sixty compact discs and has been nominated for two Grammy awards.  Her recording of Arnold Schoenberg’s Erwartung with Simon Rattle won the 1995 best opera Gramaphone award. The first American ever to give a master class at the Moscow Conservatory (in 1988), Ms. Bryn-Julson currently serves as Chair of the Voice Department at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Maryland.