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Mead Witter School of Music Guest Artist Series

Darryl Taylor, countertenor
Thomas Kasdorf, piano
Zou Zou Robidoux, cello

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Program

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Darryl Taylor is a trailblazing countertenor renowned for his captivating performances and exceptional vocal talent. His performances effortlessly traverse genres, from Baroque to contemporary, showcasing his versatility and depth as an artist.

Mr. Taylor has appeared with recital and with orchestras in the USA, Europe, Cuba, and China. These include Orfeo Catala, Musica Angelica Orchestra, Santa Monica Chamber Orchestra, Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic,  San Bernadino Symphony, Bakersfield Symphony, Lyra Baroque Orchestra,  Bach Collegium San Diego, the Johann Strauss Sinfonietta of Vienna, the W.A. Mozart Philharmonic of Cluj, Romania, Camerata Mediterania of Barcelona, and the Aspen Music Festival (Young Artists Series), under the batons of conductors Andreas Mitisek, Anthony Parnther, Martin Hasselböck, Jory Vinikour, Phil Nuzzo, Conxita Garcia, Cristian Florea, Gert Meditz, Gustav Meier, Richard Rosenberg, James Vail, Rebecca Burkhardt, and Bruce Nehring. Among his operatic credits is the premier of the jazzopera by Nathan Davis, Just Above My Head, on the novel by James Baldwin (role of Jimmy), lead roles in operas by Mozart, Verdi, Handel, Britten, and Gershwin. Taylor’s international itinerary includes some 19 tours of Spain, singing to enthusiastic, capacity audiences.

Taylor’s repertoire spans a wide array of roles, from the iconic to the obscure, each brought to life with his unique blend of technical mastery and expressive nuance. Performance highlights include singing the heroic role of Orfeo in Gluck’s Orfeo ed Eurydice for De Utrechtse Spelen at Paleis Soestdijk (Holland) before 70,000 spectators; the title role in Phillip Glass; Akhnaten for Long Beach Opera (a role he learned with a week’s notice prior to performance); Second Witch in Dido and Aeneus for L.A. Opera; Pergolesi and Vivaldi Stabat Mater’s with Lyra Baroque Orchestra of St. Paul, Minnesota; performances with the Carmel Bach Festival; the Bach Collegium San Diego under Richard Egarr; and a first place win in the Alexander International Vocal Competition, culminating in a performance at New York’s Carnegie Hall. He was also heard performing Handel’s Solomon with the City Choir of Washington under Robert Schafer; with further performances at Munich’s Hochschüle für Musik with composer Robert Owens at the piano, for Radio Bavaria; at the historic Maria la Nova Cathedral in Naples, Italy; with jazz great Kenny Burrell at Royce Hall in Los Angeles; and in recital at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC. Recent seasons took him to Cuba, China, Spain, Colorado, and California, including performances with the Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra, the Southeast Symphony, and Shanghai International Choral League and Orchestra.

Darryl Taylor’s New York Recital debut took place at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. In addition to his classical credits, he has been associated with such notable jazz greats as Kenny Burrell, Hubert Laws, Jimmy Owens, and Nathan Davis. Taylor’s recitals have regularly introduced audiences to works of composers like William Grant Still, George Walker, Adolphus Hailstork, John Musto, Deon Nielsen Price, Edward Hart, Richard Thomspon, Ted Wiprud, Leslie Adams, and Hale Smith. Many of these works were written especially for Taylor’s voice. Recent highlights of his performances include a highly successful recital at the famed Liszt Music Academy in Budapest; Merkin Concert Hall in New York, Spanish television and radio broadcasts from Barcelona’s Palau de la Música, and as a featured artist under the sponsorship of the Cultural Committee for the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona and was heard in Messiah at Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC.

Founder of the African American Art Song Alliance, Taylor has debuted numerous works, including Daniel Bernard Roumaine’s Epilogue, 1965 (a performance with the composer on violin and George Shirley as narrator), Erik Santos’ Dreamer: Seven Poems by Langston Hughes, Deon Nielsen Price’s To the Children of War, Theodore Wiprud’s A Georgia Song, Richard Thompson’s Dream Variations, and Edward Hart’s The Caged Bird Sings. His recordings on Naxos and Albany record labels have received lavish praise. Love Rejoices: Songs of H. Leslie Adams was a Number One Critic’s Choice for American Record Guide (John Boyer). Others of his recordings include Dreamer: A Portrait of Langston Hughes, on the Naxos label, which featured William Warfield as narrator, Poetry Prelude: Music of Richard Thompson, Fields of Wonder: Songs and Spirituals of Robert Owens, Louis Moreau Gottschalk: Complete Orchestral Works and Escénas Campestres Cubanas with the Hot Springs Festival Orchestra, Rosenberg, conductor; and the recent How Sweet the Sound – a charm of spirituals, on Albany Records. Naxos Records released a 2-disc recording, Complete Solo Cantatas, by Rosanna Scalfi Marcello, Taylor’s recording with Grammy Award nominee Jory Vinikour. Other releases of two recordings by separate composers, on MSR and Cambria Record labels. Love’s Signature features songs by Juliana Hall (MSR), while Love Radiance focuses on music by Deon Nielsen Price (Cambria). Recently he is heard on Living in the Body, a recording of songs by Lori Laitman on Naxos Records, Rendezvous with Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra, and a forthcoming recording of Christus, an oratorio by Deon Price, recorded at the Mormon Tabernacle.

Beyond his achievements on the stage, Taylor is also a dedicated educator, sharing his knowledge and passion for music with aspiring artists around the world. Through workshops, masterclasses, and mentorship programs, he continues to inspire the next generation of performers to reach their highest potential. Taylor is much sought after as a lecturer on African-American Art Song, having given lecture-recitals/master classes at the Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, the University of Michigan, Florida State University, Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Florida A&M University, Bethune-Cookman College, Virginia Union University, Marygrove College, for the International Alliance for Women in Music, the NATS Convention in Philadelphia, and at Morehouse College, among many others. He has sung and recorded as soloist with some of the world’s most esteemed preservers of Spirituals, including the Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers, the Moses Hogan Chorale, and the Brazeal Dennard Chorale. Giving additional depth to his singing experience is his connection to Gospel via performance with legends Donald Vails, James Cleveland, Thomas Whitfield, and Larry Robinson.

A native of Detroit, Michigan, Darryl Taylor holds degrees from the University of Southern California and the University of Michigan. He is a member of Mu Phi Epsilon Music Fraternity, Pi Kappa Lambda National Music Honors Society, previously served on the Board of Directors for the National Association of Negro Musicians, the Board of Governors for the University of Michigan School of Music, Theater and Dance, and is on the Board of Directors for Videmus, Inc.