Gilbert
Lucia di Lammermoor (Lucie de Lammermoor)

How many times have you previously performed the role?
None.

If you have been to Cincinnati before, where is your favorite place to go?
It's not glamorous, but I love to go to the Mac store in the mall, north of town...I'm a big tech geek.

What is your hometown?
North Branch, Minnesota.

Where do you currently reside?
Lexington, Kentucky.

What are your community affiliations?
I sing at Maxwell Street Presbyterian in Lexington.

What is your favorite opera and why?
This is a difficult questions because I have more than one. However, if I had to narrow it down to one, I would say La Bohème. It is such an endearing and yet heart wrenching story and the music is absolutely exquisite...a real testament to Puccini's genius.

What is a favorite role you have sung and why?
I have really enjoyed singing the role of Don Jose in Carmen. He is a complex guy with many levels both emotionally and mentally. There is such a juxtaposition between the way he starts the opera and the way he ends by killing Carmen. The fun part of the role for me is finding convincing ways of going from sanity and contentment in the beginning to desperation and madness at the end.

Where did you make your professional debut?
With Minnesota Opera as Malcolm in Macbeth.

What is the funniest thing that has happened to you during your career?
Being in the chorus for a production of Otello where the tenor came down with a really bad cold and kept blowing his nose without a tissue. Not a pleasant thing to watch!

Are there other jobs you have had in addition to singing?
I also teach private voice and have found that there is a wonderful union between teaching and performing. Since you really have to know your stuff in order to teach a student well, I find that teaching really strengthens one's abilities as a performer and vice versa.

If you weren't an opera singer, what would be your dream job?
I would love to be a professional golfer...or better yet, I would love to be the host of one of those travel shows where they gallivant all over Europe seeing the sights, staying in the best hotels, and eating at the best restaurants. What a job!

Do you sing other styles of music besides opera?
I love to sing soul, gospel, and jazz but I don't get the chance to do it very often.

What are your hobbies?
I play golf and I also enjoy recording classical chamber music. I record concerts from time to time for friends and colleagues.

What is your greatest achievement?
Being the best father I can be to my three beautiful little girls.

What is something few people know about you?
I came very close to never singing at all because I nearly bit my tongue off when I was 2 years old. I gave my mother quite a scare