Erin Morley is one of today’s most sought-after coloratura sopranos. She has stepped into the international spotlight in recent years with a string of critically acclaimed appearances in the great opera houses of the world.
Erin Morley has been praised for the ‘silken clarity of her voice and the needlepoint precision of her coloratura’ (New York Times). A recipient of the Beverly Sills Award and a graduate of the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program her performances have garnered huge critical acclaim worldwide and she regularly appears on the greatest opera stages such as Wiener Staatsoper, Bayerische Staatsoper, Opéra National de Paris, Glyndebourne Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Los Angeles Opera and of course, Metropolitan Opera where she has now sung more than 100 performances and has been featured in seven “Live in HD” broadcasts.
In the 2023-24 season, Morley makes her highly anticipated debut at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden as Gilda in Rigoletto, and returns to Teatro alla Scala as Morgana in Handel’s Alcina with Les Musiciens du Louvre under the baton of Marc Minkowski. Further concerts include Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Orchestre de Paris under the baton of Andrés Orozco-Estrada, a gala concert with Washington Concert Opera, Poulenc’s Gloria with Houston Symphony Orchestra conducted by Juraj Valčuha, Brahms Ein deutsches Requiem with the Orchestra of St Luke’s at Carnegie Hall conducted by Bernard Labadie, and solo recitals at Cal Performances in Berkeley and at the Kennedy Center, Washington DC.
Highlights of recent seasons include a double appearance at the Metropolitan Opera as Sophie in Robert Carson’s production of Der Rosenkavalier and Pamina in a new production of Die Zauberflöte conducted by Nathalie Stutzmann; at Wiener Staatsoper as Gilda in Rigoletto; Morgana in a tour of Alcina with Les Musiciens du Louvre conducted by Marc Minkowski; Poulenc Gloria in Amsterdam and Vienna with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Lorenzo Viotti; Beethoven Missa Solemnis with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Riccardo Muti; Carmina Burana with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood Festival conducted by Andris Nelsons; and Mozart Mass in C Minor for the Mostly Mozart Festival at the Lincoln Center, conducted by Louis Langrée.
Further recent appearances include the title role in Matthew Aucoin’s Eurydice which was a Metropolitan Opera premiere; her Teatro alla Scala debut with one of her signature roles, Zerbinetta (Ariadne auf Naxos); a role and company debut as Isabelle (Robert le Diable) under the baton of Marc Minkowski at the Opéra National de Bordeaux; her debut at the Staatsoper Berlin as Gilda (Rigoletto), a role she also performed at the Metropolitan Opera; a highly anticipated debut in one of the most iconic coloratura roles, Lakmé, with Washington Concert Opera; and a return to Glyndebourne Festival for her role debut as Norina (Don Pasquale).
Highlights from past seasons include Tytania (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) in Santa Fe; a show-stopping appearance during the Met Stars at Home Gala where she delighted the audiences by accompanying herself at the piano and singing an extraordinary rendition of “Chacun Le Sait” from La Fille du Régiment, Gilda in Rigoletto at Bayerische Staatsoper; Konstanze in Die Entführung aus dem Serail and Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier at Opera de Paris; Gilda in Rigoletto, Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos and Sophie at Wiener Staatsoper; Fiakermilli in Arabella and Gilda at Bayerische Staatsoper; Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor in Nancy; Queen of the Night in Magic Flute, Roxana in Krol Roger, Mme Silberklang in Der Schauspieldirektor and the title role of Stravinsky’s The Nightingale all at Santa Fe Opera; Zerbinetta at Glyndebourne; and Sandrina in La Finta Giardiniera in Lille and Dijon with Emmanuelle Haïm.
Morley has also performed the role of Cunegonde (Candide) in stellar company at LA Opera with James Conlon and actors Kelsey Grammer and Christine Ebersole; with Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the Philadelphia Orchestra with Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan; and at the Carnegie Hall Centenary with John Lithgow. Morley also appeared in the famous televised New Year’s Eve concerts with the Staatskapelle Dresden and Christian Thielemann, performing Princess Mi in Léhar’s Das Land des Lächelns. On the concert platform, Morley joined Christian Thielemann and Staatskapelle Dresden on tour with a programme of Strauss’s Brentano Lieder and the world premiere of a newly discovered orchestral song by Richard Strauss, “Nacht,” completed by composer Thomas Hennig.
Morley’s many recordings include Eurydice in the Met’s GRAMMY-nominated recording of Matthew Aucoin’s Eurydice, Princesse Isabelle in Meyerbeer’s Robert le Diable with Opéra National de Bordeaux for the Palazzetto Bru Zane label, Sister Constance in the Met’s GRAMMY-nominated Les Dialogues des Carmélites, as well as Sophie in the Met’s GRAMMY-nominated Der Rosenkavalier on DVD/Blu-Ray for the Decca label; Mater Gloriosa in the LA Phil’s GRAMMY-winning Mahler Symphony No. 8 with Gustavo Dudamel for Deutsche Grammophon; Princess Mi in the Staatskapelle Dresden’s Das Land des Lächelns with Christian Thielemann for Unitel; Sandrina La Finta Giardiniera with Emmanuelle Haïm in Opéra de Lille’s production for the Erato label; Woglinde Götterdämmerung in the Metropolitan Opera’s GRAMMY-winning Lepage Ring Cycle for Deutsche Grammophon; Marguerite de Valois in Les Huguenots, live from Bard SummerScape for the American Symphony Orchestra; Carl Nielsen’s Symphony No. 3 “Espansiva” with Alan Gilbert and the New York Philharmonic for Da Capo Records; and Sylvie in Gounod’s opéra-comique La Colombe with Sir Mark Elder and The Hallé Orchestra for the Opera Rara label.
Morley spent her early years studying violin and piano, and frequently collaborated with her violinist mother. An undergraduate of the Eastman School of Music, she went on to earn her Master of Music voice degree from The Juilliard School and her Artist Diploma from the Juilliard Opera Center in 2007, where she received the Florence & Paul DeRosa Prize. Morley also trained at the Opera Theatre of St. Louis as a Gerdine Young Artist, the Ravinia Festival Steans Institute, and the Wolf Trap Opera Company as a Filene Young Artist. She won 1st Prize in the Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition in 2002, and 1st Place in the Licia Albanese Puccini Foundation Competition in 2006. She also received the Richard Tucker Career Grant in 2013, the Beverly Sills Award in 2021, and the Opera News Award in 2023.
Erin Morley is represented by MWA Management worldwide.
