Kelly Markgraf

Baritone Kelly Markgraf has been hailed by the New York Times for his "heart-stirring" singing and "charismatic" stage presence, and has enjoyed collaboration with some of the world’s most esteemed conductors, including Gustavo Dudamel, Charles Dutoit, Alan Gilbert, Giancarlo Guerrero, Michael Tilson Thomas, David Robertson, Robert Spano, and Edo de Waart. He has performed with the nation’s leading symphony orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Under the baton of Michael Tilson Thomas, he made his San Francisco Symphony debut as Bernardo in a live concert recording of West Side Story which was later nominated for a GRAMMY Award. Mr. Markgraf recently bowed again with San Francisco Symphony in their lauded multimedia production of Ravel’s L’Enfant et les Sortileges, under the baton of Michael Tilson Thomas.

As a perfervid pedagogue, Mr. Markgraf maintains a select studio of collegiate level students in Houston. Through his ardent interest in archaic treatises, his teaching makes centuries-old bel canto concepts accessible to the modern singer. Mr. Markgraf is the founder & lead mentor of THE LEGATO PROJECT, a mentoring platform giving guidance to aspiring young vocalists seeking entry into university music programs and conservatories.

Respected as a singing actor of depth and versatility, he has performed music from the Baroque to that composed expressly for him. In the summer of 2017 he created the role of Paul Jobs in Mason Bates’ premiere The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs at the Santa Fe Opera, which later received a 2019 GRAMMY Award for Best Opera Recording. He also created the role of Hannah-Before in Laura Kaminsky’s opera As One, one of the most frequently performed new operas in the United States today. Since its widely acclaimed premiere at BAM, Mr. Markgraf has reprised the role multiple times, including recent productions with Opera Colorado and San Diego Opera.

Recent appearances include Marquis d’Obigny in La Traviata alongside Angel Blue at Houston Grand Opera under the baton of Matthew Aucoin, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Tucson Symphony (José Luis Gomez), and Mozart’s Requiem with Nashville Symphony (Giancarlo Guerrero). Mr. Markgraf also premiered Marc Neikrug's chamber opera A Song by Mahler at Chamber Music Northwest and toured the production to the La Jolla, Santa Fe, Lake Champlain, and Toronto chamber music festivals. Other recent highlights include his South American debut in Saõ Paolo, Brazil in Mozart's Requiem.

The 2018-19 season marked the release of his recent world premiere recording with Giancarlo Guerrero and The Nashville Symphony of John Harbison’s Requiem on the Naxos label, and also the release of the premiere recording of As One. In yet another world premiere, Mr. Markgraf created the role of Ring Lardner in Joel Puckett's THE FIX at Minnesota Opera. The bass-baritone’s 2017-18 season featured his debut with the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo for concerts of West Side Story under Paavo Jarvi, encore productions of As One with Chautauqua Opera, Hawaii Opera, and San Diego Opera, and performances of Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti with the Tucson Symphony. In the summer of 2018 he collaborated with the Fry Street Quartet for performances of Barber's Dover Beach at Chautauqua Institute and reprised the role of Sam in Trouble in Tahiti, this time at the National Concert Hall in Taiwan.

As a frequent chamber music collaborator, Mr. Markgraf has appeared at Alice Tully Hall with The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and acclaimed pianist Wu Han, as well as the OK Mozart, Chamber Music Northwest, and Music@Menlo festivals. He has twice performed in recital with the Marilyn Horne Foundation at Carnegie Hall, and has collaborated in recital with pianists Gil Kalish and Ken Noda. Committed to unique collaborations and creating new works, Mr. Markgraf gave the US Premiere of Shostakovich’s War Front Songs at Symphony Space NYC, presented rare songs of Holocaust composer Viktor Ullmann at Alice Tully Hall, portrayed the role of Allazim in Mozart’s unfinished opera Zaide at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall, and bowed as Mamoud in John Adams's The Death of Klinghoffer, conducted by the composer.

An artist of unusual versatility, Mr. Markgraf was lauded for his agile dancing in his portrayal of Dick McGann in Street Scene at Opera Theater of St. Louis, and can be seen on DVD with the San Francisco Symphony at Carnegie Hall in choreographed excerpts from West Side Story, alongside Thomas Hampson and Yo-Yo Ma.

His discography includes several world-premiere recordings: The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs (GRAMMY-winner for Best Opera Recording), John Harbison’s Requiem with the Nashville Symphony (Naxos), Ricky Ian Gordon’s The Grapes of Wrath, and Carlisle Floyd’s Wuthering Heights, as well as the new definitive recording of West Side Story with the San Francisco Symphony (GRAMMY-nominated), and two albums of chamber music and lieder from the Music@Menlo Festival. Mr. Markgraf has been seen on PBS's nationally televised Great Performances from Carnegie Hall and heard on NPR’s Performance Today. He holds degrees from Boston University, the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, and the Juilliard School