Roy Cornelius Smith

Tenor

American tenor Roy Cornelius Smith has established himself among the ranks of the finest tenors of his generation through his voice of exceptional color and beauty, his compelling dramatic interpretations and outstanding musicianship. He has already been heard on some of the world’s great operatic stages including the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Teatro Colon, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Salzburger Festspiele, Norwegian National Opera, Royal Danish Opera and the Israeli Opera. He has also appeared with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Orchestra del Teatro Carlo Felice, Orchestre Métropolitain du Grand Montréal and the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra.

Highlights of his performances include Otello (Israeli Opera, Oper Leipzig, Royal Danish Opera, Mannheim), Der Kaiser in Die Frau ohne Schatten (Oper Leipzig), Arindal, in Wagner´s first opera, Die Feen (Oper Leipzig), Tristan (Nationaltheater Mannheim), Siegmund/Siegfried in the Der Ring an einem Abend (St. Gallen, Nationaltheater Mannheim), Calaf, opposite Lise Lindstrom and Maria Guleghina (Deutsche Opera Berlin), Dick Johnson opposite Deborah Voigt with Sir Andrew Davis conducting (Lyric Opera of Chicago), and Otello with Krassimira Stoyanova conducted by Dan Ettinger (Nationaltheater Mannheim). Recent house debuts include Doctor Marianus in Mahler´s Symphony No. 8 (Teatro Colon), Canio (Norwegian National Opera, Royal Danish Opera, Opera Las Palmas, Nationaltheater Mannheim), Turiddu in Cavalleria Rusticana (Royal Danish Opera, Nationaltheater Mannheim), Florestan in Fidelio (Vienna), Max in Der Freischütz (Nationaltheater Mannheim), Dionysus in Henze’s The Bassarids, Eléazar in La Juive (Opéra national du Rhin, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen, Nationaltheater Manneheim), and Faust in Boito’s Mefistofele (Trondheim, Lucca and Rovigo).

Born in Big Stone Gap, Virginia,  Smith received both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music from the University of Tennessee and a Doctor of Musical Arts from the American Conservatory of Music. He currently resides in Vienna Austria.