Anthony Dean Griffey
Encyclopedia
Anthony Dean Griffey is an American opera
tic tenor
. With his lyric tenor voice, Griffey has become a regular presence on the stages of opera houses around the world.
He sings a wide repertoire and much of his career has been spent within operas outside the standard repertory, often singing in 20th century operas. In 2008 he sang the title role in the Metropolitan Opera
's production of Benjamin Britten
's Peter Grimes
. That same year he sang Jimmy Mahoney in Kurt Weill
's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny
with the Los Angeles Opera
. This production was recorded on DVD
, and subsequently won the 2009 Grammy Award
s for "Best Classical Album" and "Best Opera Recording." Griffey, who graduated from Wingate University
, the Eastman School of Music
, and the Juilliard School
in New York, has won four Grammy Awards, and is Professor of the Practice at The University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill. Griffey was honored as an inductee into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2011.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
tic tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
. With his lyric tenor voice, Griffey has become a regular presence on the stages of opera houses around the world.
He sings a wide repertoire and much of his career has been spent within operas outside the standard repertory, often singing in 20th century operas. In 2008 he sang the title role in the Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
's production of Benjamin Britten
Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He showed talent from an early age, and first came to public attention with the a cappella choral work A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of his opera Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to...
's Peter Grimes
Peter Grimes
Peter Grimes is an opera by Benjamin Britten, with a libretto adapted by Montagu Slater from the Peter Grimes section of George Crabbe's poem The Borough...
. That same year he sang Jimmy Mahoney in Kurt Weill
Kurt Weill
Kurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...
's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny
Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny
Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny is a political-satirical opera composed by Kurt Weill to a German libretto by Bertolt Brecht. It was first performed in Leipzig on 9 March 1930.-Composition history:...
with the Los Angeles Opera
Los Angeles Opera
The Los Angeles Opera is an opera company in Los Angeles, California. It is the fourth largest opera company in the United States. The company's home base is the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, part of the Los Angeles Music Center.-Current leadership:...
. This production was recorded on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
, and subsequently won the 2009 Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s for "Best Classical Album" and "Best Opera Recording." Griffey, who graduated from Wingate University
Wingate University
Wingate University was founded by Baptists in 1896 as Wingate School, an independent, co-educational institution and became a four-year college in 1977. In 1996, Wingate College became Wingate University....
, the Eastman School of Music
Eastman School of Music
The Eastman School of Music is a music conservatory located in Rochester, New York. The Eastman School is a professional school within the University of Rochester...
, and the Juilliard School
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
in New York, has won four Grammy Awards, and is Professor of the Practice at The University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
at Chapel Hill. Griffey was honored as an inductee into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2011.