Program Overview

Voice

We develop young singers through vocal coaching, diction and language, pedagogy classes, and operatic, song, and chamber music study. Students will gain confidence, performance acumen, auditioning skills, and artistry across a broad repertoire. Voice students have many performance opportunities including fully staged opera productions presented in original languages, choral ensembles, and solo appearances with instrumental ensembles. We prepare students for exceptional careers in opera, oratorio, recital, early music, and the music of today. Qualified advanced students may earn the Artist Diploma in vocal studies.

soprano soloist with chamber orchestra
Soprano and Concerto Competition winner Amber Monroe ’17 performs with the Oberlin Chamber Orchestra in Ricky Gordon’s "and flowers pick themselves."
Photo credit: Yevhen Gulenko

Program Facts

  • Program Type: Major, Minor
    • Bachelor of Music (BM)
    • Artist Diploma (ADip)
  • Division: Vocal Studies

Voice Department Chair

Timothy LeFebvre,
Associate Professor of Voice

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opera theater show hansel and gretel with hansel and witch
Oberlin Conservatory students perform in Opera Theater’s Hänsel und Gretel in Hall Auditorium.
Photo credit: Yevhen Gulenko

Performance Opportunities

Oberlin Opera Theater presents two major productions with orchestra each year. Small-scale operas are presented in nontraditional venues during winter term. Recent main-stage productions have included Le nozze di Figaro, Cendrillon, Street Scene, and The Rape of Lucretia. Students enrolled in opera classes also present performances of opera scenes each semester.

Performance Ensembles

Sample Courses

  • LANG 101 - Italian Diction (2 credits)
  • APST 204 - Interpretation of Art Song (4 credits)
  • APST 230 - The Teaching of Singing (4 credits)
  • APST 701 - Oberlin College Choir (2 credits)
Curriculum and requirements

Voice Faculty

“The core of singing is to express emotionally with great authenticity both who that performer is, that particular singer on the stage, but also the character that he or she is embodying.”

Lorraine Manz, Professor of Voice

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Affiliated Faculty

Marilyn Horne

Distinguished Visiting Professor of Voice

Lisa Stidham

Teacher of Vocal Studies

Javier Gonzalez

Collaborative Pianist

Evan Hines

Collaborative Pianist

Elena Loskova

Collaborative Pianist

Daniel Michalak

Vocal Coach/Accompanist

Gregory Ristow ’01

Associate Professor of Conducting
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Upcoming Voice Events

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Voice News

Like Only Oberlin Can

March 30, 2021

Conservatory students reflect on a remarkable fall semester—and stay vigilant through the spring.
Bassist practicing with a pianist.

Mister Rogers’ Neighbor, Francois Clemmons ’67

February 12, 2021

When Mister Rogers invited Officer Clemmons—played by Francois Clemmons ’67—to join him in cooling his feet in a pool of water, the pair was not only spending a refreshing moment together, Rogers was proudly showing his viewers where he stood on civil rights at a time when some public pools prohibited Black swimmers.
Two men sit with their feet in a child's pool.
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