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The English tenor, Oliver Mercer, obtained his Master of Music degree from Florida State University, and was a Choral Scholar at Trinity College Cambridge.
In the summer of 2009 Olivrer Mercer participated in Glyndebourne Festival Opera’s 75th season in their acclaimed production of Purcell’s The Fairy Queen under the baton of William Christie. Other past engagements include Performances of J.S. Bach’s St. John Passion (BWV 245) in Korea and Japan with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Evangelist in J.S. Bach’s Saint Matthew Passion (BWV 244) at Saint Thomas Fifth Avenue and soloist in various J.S. Bach cantatas at the Oregon Bach Festival under Helmuth Rilling.
Hailed by the New York Times as “excellent” and “particularly impressive,” Oliver Mercer garners praise and attention for the clarity and beauty of his tenor voice. The 2009-2010 season included several solo debuts, including Alice Tully Hall under Kent Tritle with Musica Sacra, Houston’s Wortham Center with Le Voix Baroque and 5 Boroughs Music Festival. He also returned as featured soloist with the Sacred Music in a Sacred Space concert series, Saint Thomas Fifth Avenue and the Clarion Music Society. A highlight of 2010 was his participation in multiple performances of Monteverdi’s Vespro della beata Vergine. The New York Times wrote of his appearance under Steven Fox with Clarion Music Society: “The vocal soloists were generally splendid. The tenors, especially: Oliver Mercer, who lent so much backbone to the performance by the Saint Thomas Choir of Men & Boys in March, did likewise here…”(April 2010). He also presented a solo recital at the Byrd Festival in Portland, Oregon.
Highlights of 2011-2012 include a solo debut at Carnegie Hall in George Frideric Handel's Israel in Egypt, a recital of Opera Arias at Lincoln Center with American Modern Music Ensemble, J.S. Bach's Saint John Passion (BWV 245) in Poland with Trinity Baroque, and the role of Ferrando in W.A. Mozart's Cosi fan Tutte with the Savannah Philharmonic. In fall of 2011, he joined the English National Opera, covering the role of Castor in Rameau's Castor & Pollux. He marked his Glyndebourne Opera main stage debut in the new production of G.F. Handel's Rinaldo as the Herald, under the baton of Ottavio Dantone and directed by Robert Carsen and played the title role in La decente d'Orphee aux enfers by Marc-Antoine Charpentier with the Glyndebourne Jerwood Studio.
The 2013 season marked several notable debuts, including Orfeo with Opera Theatre Company of Ireland, Grétry's L’amant Jaloux with Bampton Classical Opera, Messiah with Irish Baroque Orchestra and Charleston Symphony Orchestra, and a concert with Apollo's Fire in Cleveland, Ohio. He appeared once again in the title role of Monteverdi's Orfeo with Silent Opera in London, had his debut with the Bach Festival of Charleston, a Carmina Burana at the Barbican in London, and a concert of J.S. Bach's Coffee Cantatas (BWV 211) with the Early Opera Company, conducted by Christian Curnyn. In the summer of 2013, he returned to Glyndebourne Opera Festival for Jean-Philippe Rameau's Hippolyte et Aricie, under the baton of William Christie.
Previous seasons included a performance of Sergei Rachmaninov's Vespers at the Quebec International Festival of Sacred Music and Choir of Trinity Wall Street, his debut with Boston Early Music Festival, the role of Don Pelagio in La Cantarina with Bampton Classical Opera, a Christmas Concert with Apollo's Fire in Cleveland, his debut with Mid Wales Opera in the title role of Acis and Galletea, and his debut with Iford Opera Festival in Monteverdi's The Return of Ulysses. In May of 2018, he performed with Madonna at the Met Gala.
His 2019 season included a performance at the Supreme Court for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, a Messiah with Kansas City Symphony, and multiple performances with Choir of Trinity Wall Street and Clarion. In the 2022-2023 season, he makes his IN Series debut, appears again with The 13, the Folger Concert, and tours Europe with Clarion Music Society . He divides his time between the USA and England with his wife, Adrienne Starr. |
