Voice & Opera
A supportive, inspiring atmosphere
Our Voice and Opera program collaborates to create a supportive and inspiring atmosphere for growth, challenging students to improve as musicians and encouraging them to unfold as artists.
Part of a dynamic and vibrant university, the School of Music has a distinguished history of success in preparing singers for various paths in their professional lives. Unique aspects of vocal studies at the School of Music include hour-long voice lessons for all majors, regardless of degree program or year; an opera program open to singers in all vocal degree programs, from freshmen on up; the possibility for students to graduate with a double major, combining other interests with a comprehensive focus in music; and an Area of Specialty in Voice for M.M. candidates in other School of Music degree programs.
Our Voice and Opera faculty combine significant performing careers with individual passions for opera, musical theater, early music, contemporary music, Nordic repertoire, and pedagogical research. With invaluable expertise in the most practical aspects of the musical world, faculty members are dedicated educators, offering outstanding instruction and career advice. We provide our students with the training and experience necessary to fully explore the role music will play in their futures, and to carry their voices into the world with confidence.
Related Resources
Degrees offered
Click here for Undergraduate degree options
- Bachelor Music-Performance
- Bachelor of Music-Education
- Bachelor of Arts
- Bachelor of Science
Admission Requirements
Please see information on the School of Music Application Process.
Please click here for Voice audition procedures for 2025-26 application cycle.
Audition repertoire:
- Two classical selections to be sung by memory (may include an appropriate opera or oratorio aria). One song must be in English; the second song may be in English but a foreign language is preferred. In addition to the two required classical pieces, an optional third selection may be submitted in any style that demonstrates the applicant’s interests.
Admissions
Please see the Graduate Admissions page for detailed information on application requirements. Be sure to review the “Graduate Application Guide” as well as the additional information for the Voice & Opera area.
You are welcome and encouraged to set up sample lessons with the Voice faculty before your audition!
Degree Requirements
For detailed information on coursework, exams, recitals, etc., please visit the Graduate Advising KnowledgeBase. Be sure to check out the Voice degree worksheet for specifics.
The Area of Specialty in Voice is available to students enrolled in a Master’s program.
Curriculum (Total: 6-7 credits)
664-405 One semester of private voice lessons (2 credits)
664-499 Recital, including voice lessons that semester (2 credits)
660-749 Vocal Pedagogy -OR- 660-792 Vocal Literature -OR- another semester of voice (2-3 credits)
Audition Requirements
4-5 pieces, including English and at least two other languages (a total of four languages is encouraged). 3 selections must be classical, and you may include an aria from opera or oratorio, along with at least two art songs. Remaining repertoire may be the singer’s choice (CM, musical theatre, jazz, classical, other)
The voice faculty expects a high level of accomplishment in the audition, as the required recital would be within one or two semesters of starting the area of specialty. We highly recommend auditioning as soon as possible for consideration, as lessons and classes will depend on available space.
Recital Requirements
The recital should include 45 minutes of music, at least half being classical repertoire and the rest representing the student’s area/s of interest. The entire recital may be classical repertoire. At least three languages, including English, must be represented.
Admissions
Please see the Graduate Admissions page for detailed information on application requirements. Be sure to review the “Graduate Application Guide” as well as the additional information for the Voice & Opera area.
You are welcome and encouraged to set up sample lessons with the Voice faculty before your audition!
Degree Requirements
For detailed information on coursework, exams, recitals, etc., please visit the Graduate Advising KnowledgeBase. Be sure to check out the Voice degree worksheet for specifics as well as a 3-year timeline and explanation of doctoral milestones.
Doctoral Minor – Required for all Doctoral programs
The purpose of the doctoral minor is to add breadth and depth to the D.M.A or Ph.D. degree. To insure coherence a minor program must be approved by the appropriate department, a student’s advisor, and the Director of Graduate Studies, and must include courses at the 300-level or above. Typically, a minor requires 12 credits of work.
Students have a variety of options, including completing an internal minor within the School of Music (e.g., a D.M.A. conducting student who minors in ethnomusicology or a Ph.D. in music theory who minors in clarinet performance), completing a minor in a department outside the School of Music (e.g., a D.M.A. in horn performance who minors in Women’s Studies or a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology who minors in East Asian studies).
Students may, in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies, devise a distributed minor that brings together courses from a variety of departments around a particular topic or area of interest. For example, a D.M.A. student in voice devises a minor in vocal health that includes courses in communicative disorders, or a Ph.D. student in musicology devises a minor in Medieval History that includes courses in art history, history, and languages.
Faculty
Hone your performance skills
A plethora of opportunities to hone performance skills are available. Individual lessons are supplemented by weekly studio classes held in one of our performance halls, providing constructive evaluation in a supportive, inspiring and encouraging peer environment. Possibilities to perform in public master classes, present solo and joint recitals, and to audition for oratorio and opera roles are abundant.
University Opera is a cultural service of the School of Music whose mission is to provide comprehensive operatic training and performance opportunities for our students and operatic programming to the community. Students sing principal, supporting, and chorus roles in main stage productions, one-act operas, and programs of opera scenes. In addition, we offer training for directors, conductors, and pianists, and, when possible, provide opportunities for student designers, actors, and dancers. Showcases for faculty, alumni, and guest artists are presented when appropriate.
University Opera welcomes students of all levels and degree programs, from doctoral candidates to freshman music education majors, to participate in operatic classes and performances. We present an annual season of two fully staged operas, as well as evenings of opera scenes and one-act operas.
Auditions take place in April for the following school year. Admission to University Opera and Opera Workshop is by permission of the instructor on a semester-by-semester basis. If you would like to be considered, please contact Professor David Ronis at ronis@wisc.edu.
Alumni
Our graduates are performing in major opera, musical theater and concert venues, teaching at large and small universities throughout the United States and educating the next generation of musicians in public schools.