Elizabeth Parcells
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Parcells
was an American coloratura soprano
. In the USA, she sang at the Michigan Opera Theater, the Boston Lyric Opera and The Washington (D.C.) Opera, among others.
Aged 16 she began her voice lessons and went on to study at the Interlochen Arts Academy. She earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees with honors from the New England Conservatory of Music
(Boston).
Parcells was a winner of the 1977 Metropolitan Opera Council National Finals in New York City
and was awarded a Pro Musicis Foundation sponsorship which helped launch her professional singing career. She moved to Switzerland Operastudio Zurich then moved to Germany where she sang at Augsburg
, Wiesbaden
, Frankfurt am Main, West Berlin
, Basel, Switzerland and Stuttgart
. During her concert career, Elizabeth Parcells sang at international festivals such as Tanglewood
, Salzburg
, Touraine, Bologne, Colorado, Luxembourg, Melk, Lisbon, Rheingau
, Huddersfield and Torino. She recorded with the BBC, National Public Radio, Radio France, WDR Cologne and the Radio Luxembourg Orchestra.
Her roles included: "Olympia" in Tales of Hoffmann, "Norina"
in Don Pasquale
, "Zerbinetta" in Ariadne auf Naxos
,
"Queen of the Night" in The Magic Flute
, and the title characters in Lucia di Lammermoor
and Maria Stuarda
.
Parcells' farewell recital was given at the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall
in February 2005 under the sponsorship of the Pro Musicis Foundation, whose award so many years earlier had helped launch her career.
After living and working in Europe for over twenty years, where she was married in Germany since 1985 to Dierk-Eckhard Becker, Hamburg
, Parcells returned home to Grosse Pointe, Michigan in 1997 to coach voice students at Oakland University in Rochester Hills and at Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Michigan. In Germany Parcells worked as voice instructor at Bremen University until 1997.
She battled cancer for two and a half years and died the day after her 54th birthday.
was an American coloratura soprano
Coloratura soprano
A coloratura soprano is a type of operatic soprano who specializes in music that is distinguished by agile runs and leaps. The term coloratura refers to the elaborate ornamentation of a melody, which is a typical component of the music written for this voice...
. In the USA, she sang at the Michigan Opera Theater, the Boston Lyric Opera and The Washington (D.C.) Opera, among others.
Aged 16 she began her voice lessons and went on to study at the Interlochen Arts Academy. She earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees with honors from the New England Conservatory of Music
New England Conservatory of Music
The New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, is the oldest independent school of music in the United States.The conservatory is home each year to 750 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate studies along with 1400 more in its Preparatory School as well as the School of...
(Boston).
Parcells was a winner of the 1977 Metropolitan Opera Council National Finals in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and was awarded a Pro Musicis Foundation sponsorship which helped launch her professional singing career. She moved to Switzerland Operastudio Zurich then moved to Germany where she sang at Augsburg
Augsburg
Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a...
, Wiesbaden
Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden
The Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden is the State Theatre of the German state Hesse in the capital Wiesbaden, producing operas, plays, ballets, musicals and concerts on four stages. It is also known as Staatstheater Wiesbaden or Theater Wiesbaden...
, Frankfurt am Main, West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
, Basel, Switzerland and Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
. During her concert career, Elizabeth Parcells sang at international festivals such as Tanglewood
Tanglewood
Tanglewood is an estate and music venue in Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts. It is the home of the annual summer Tanglewood Music Festival and the Tanglewood Jazz Festival, and has been the Boston Symphony Orchestra's summer home since 1937. It was the venue of the Berkshire Festival.- History...
, Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Touraine, Bologne, Colorado, Luxembourg, Melk, Lisbon, Rheingau
Rheingau Musik Festival
The Rheingau Musik Festival is an international summer music festival in Germany, founded in 1987. It is mostly for classical music, but includes other genres...
, Huddersfield and Torino. She recorded with the BBC, National Public Radio, Radio France, WDR Cologne and the Radio Luxembourg Orchestra.
Her roles included: "Olympia" in Tales of Hoffmann, "Norina"
in Don Pasquale
Don Pasquale
Don Pasquale is an opera buffa, or comic opera, in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. The librettist Giovanni Ruffini wrote the Italian language libretto after Angelo Anelli's libretto for Stefano Pavesi's Ser Marcantonio ....
, "Zerbinetta" in Ariadne auf Naxos
Ariadne auf Naxos
Ariadne auf Naxos is an opera by Richard Strauss with a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Bringing together slapstick comedy and consuming beautiful music, the opera's theme is the competition between high and low art for the public's attention.- First version :The opera was originally...
,
"Queen of the Night" in The Magic Flute
The Magic Flute
The Magic Flute is an opera in two acts composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a Singspiel, a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue....
, and the title characters in Lucia di Lammermoor
Lucia di Lammermoor
Lucia di Lammermoor is a dramma tragico in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's historical novel The Bride of Lammermoor....
and Maria Stuarda
Maria Stuarda
Maria Stuarda is a tragic opera, , in two acts, by Gaetano Donizetti, to a libretto by Giuseppe Bardari, based on Friedrich Schiller's 1800 play Maria Stuart....
.
Parcells' farewell recital was given at the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
in February 2005 under the sponsorship of the Pro Musicis Foundation, whose award so many years earlier had helped launch her career.
After living and working in Europe for over twenty years, where she was married in Germany since 1985 to Dierk-Eckhard Becker, Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Parcells returned home to Grosse Pointe, Michigan in 1997 to coach voice students at Oakland University in Rochester Hills and at Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Michigan. In Germany Parcells worked as voice instructor at Bremen University until 1997.
She battled cancer for two and a half years and died the day after her 54th birthday.