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The American tenor and voice teacher, obtained his Bachelor of Music degree in Voice Performance from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York (Class of 1999); his Master of Music degree from Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (Class of 2001); and his DMA degree in oice Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music (Class of 2015).
Eric Rieger is actve as an opera singer since January 2000. He has enjoyed success performing opera throughout Europe, where he has sung under such conductors as John Eliot Gardiner, Stefano Ranzani, and Franz Welser-Möst. His career has led him to the opera companies of Zürich, Luzern, Basel, Trier, Regensburg, Kaiserslautern, Bremerhaven, Osnabrück, Nordhausen, Konstanz, Novara, Treviso, as well as Zomeropera Alden Biesen in Belgium, Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Citizens Theatre in Scotland, and Everyman Palace Theatre in Ireland. Known for his interpretations of Rossini, Donizetti, and W.A. Mozart, he has excelled in such roles as Almaviva in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Don Ramiro in La Cenerentola, Lindoro in L’Italiana in Algeri, Nemorino in L’Elisir d’Amore, Ernesto in Don Pasquale, Tonio in La Fille du Régiment, Tamino in W.A. Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, Belmonte in W.A. Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Don Ottavio in W.A. Mozart's Don Giovanni, and Ferrando in W.A. Mozart's Cosí fan tutte. His large repertoire spans from the Baroque (George Frideric Handel's Alcina, Dardanus), to the 20th century (Igor Stravinsky's The Rake’s Progress, Benjamin Britten's Albert Herring).
Equally at home on the concert platform, Eric Rieger has been featured at the Claudio Monteverdi Festival (Italy), the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center, and Carnegie Hall. He has appeared with many notable orchestras including the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Basel Sinfonietta, Trier Philharmonic Orchestra, Luxembourg Chamber Orchestra, and St. John’s Orchestra in London. Frequent performances have included G.F. Handel's Messiah; J.S. Bach’s St. Matthew Passion (BWV 244), St. John Passion (BWV 245), Magnificat (BWV 243) and many Cantatas; W.A. Mozart's Requiem, Felix Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Rossini’s Messe Solennelle, Orff’s Carmina Burana, and B/ Britten’s Serenade, among others. A passionate recitalist, he has performed with Lyric Fest in Philadelphia, Market Square Concerts in Harrisburg, St. John’s Smith Square in London, and many other venues across the USA and Europe. He is featured on the Naxos International recording James Whitbourn: Carolae with the Grammy nominated Westminster Williamson Voices and recently released his solo debut album "Poet’s Journey: Song Cycles of Benjamin Britten" on the Affetto record label.
In addition to his performance career, Eric Rieger is in demand as a voice teacher, opera director, and lyric diction coach. He has served as Lecturer in Voice at Nazareth College (August 2009-June 2011); Visiting Assistant Professor of Voice at Texas Tech University (August 2011-June 2012); Assistant Professor of Voice at Westminster Choir College (2012-June 2018); Coordinator of Vocal Studies and Director of Opera at Western Washington University (September 2018-June 2020). Additionally, he served for several years as Assistant Director and Diction Coach of the CoOPERAtive Program (June 2015-April 2018). His frequent master-class engagements have included appearances at the University of Memphis, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Missouri State University, Texas Tech University, Colorado State University, Buffalo State College (SUNY), and Carnegie Mellon University. He has presented research nationally and regionally at conferences for the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) and American Choral Directors Association (ACDA).
Eric Rieger currently lives in Bellingham, Washington. |
