Ariel Bybee
Ariel Bybee (January 9, 1943 – March 20, 2018) was a mezzo-soprano who has had a distinguished career as a soloist, voice teacher and university opera director. According to Opera News (June 2000), she was "a prominent mezzo at the Metropolitan Opera for eighteen seasons." She sang over 460 performances at the Metropolitan Opera.
Bybee received a bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University in 1965. She later took advanced musical studies in New York where one of her voice teachers was Cornelius L. Reid.[1] Bybee was an alumna of the Music Academy of the West where she attended in 1969.[2]
Bybee was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and has soloed with the
Performance history
Bybee sang at the Met in every season from 1977 to 1995. She first earned accolades at the Met for her performance as Jenny the whore in Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny when she replaced Teresa Stratas on very short notice. Details of these performances can be found in the MET archives.[5] The review by the NY Times (Harold C. Shonberg), said that “Mahagonny” is not the answer to 20th‐century opera".[6] The themes of pleasure, prostitution, debauchery, particularly with respect to the role of Jenny, were controversial but also resonated with themes of excess and exaggeration expressed by well-known popular musicians such as David Bowie in the 1970s. In the play itself, Jenny is seen waiting on multiple men who have lined up for her services and in other portions of the play, men argue over the price to spend a night with her. Further acclaim came from her performances as Annio in the Met's premiere of Mozart's La clemenza di Tito.
Bybee has sung numerous leading roles at the Met including Hansel in
Bybee's professional talents were discovered by Maestro
She first performed on the East Coast when she sang the title role of Monteverdi's
Teaching history and voice
Before making her debut with the
Starting in 1993, Bybee began teaching private students in her New York studio, as well as teaching both at the
For ten years, she was Artist-in-Residence and associate professor of Voice at the
When she became an emerita professor at UNL, the university endowed the Ariel Bybee Chair of Opera Performance in her honor. In 2008, Bybee moved to the Salt Lake City area where she taught voice at the University of Utah.
Recordings
Bybee can be heard in Franco Zeffirelli's 1983 motion picture of La traviata, singing the role of Flora. As well as being heard on numerous Live from Lincoln Center telecasts, Bybee has recorded two solo albums: O Divine Redeemer and Eternal Day.[citation needed]
Personal life
From 1972 to 1996, she was married to John Neylan McBaine. They divorced in the latter year. Bybee was married to James E. Ford, a professor of English, in 1998. Ford was at the
Bybee proactively used her musical skill to advance the goals of
Publications
- The Modern Singing Master: Essays in Honor of ISBN 0-8108-4241-6
Sources
Notes
- ^ Thomas, Sara (1 May 2008). "Obituaries : Remembering Cornelius L Reid". csmusic.ne. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
- ^ "Alumni Roster". musicacademy.org. Archived from the original on 5 June 2012. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
- ^ ldsfilm bios
- ^ "Newest temple stands on sanctified soil", Church News, April 28, 2008.
- ^ MOoD Detail Page, retrieved 2021-08-22
- ^ NY Times, November 18th, 1979
- ^ Salazar, Francisco (2018-03-24). "Obituary: Metropolitan Opera Mezzo Ariel Bybee Has Passed Away". OperaWire. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
- ^ "Obituary | Ariel Bybee". Nebreska Today.
- ^ Deseret News bio of Bybee, legacy.com; accessed April 4, 2018.
- ^ Profile, deseretnews.com, March 29, 2018; accessed April 4, 2018.