Gregory Stapp

Gregory Stapp is an American bass who has performed actively in concerts and operas internationally for more than 35 years. He has had a particularly fruitful partnership with the San Francisco Opera, portraying more than 30 roles with the company since 1980. He has also worked actively as a private voice teacher and as a teacher of master classes at a number of universities. He is the current Second Vice President of the American Guild of Musical Artists.

Born and raised in Colorado, Stapp attended Doull Elementary School, Kunsmiller Junior High School, and Cherry Creek High School in Denver. He earned a Bachelor of Music from Loretto Heights College in 1976 where was a pupil of George Lynn, the former music director of Westminster Choir College. He pursued further studies in opera at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia from 1976-1980. He studied with Dorothy DiScala at the school and earned an Artist’s Diploma in 1980. In the summer of 1979 he pursued graduate work at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University where he was a student of longtime Metropolitan Opera star Margaret Harshaw and also worked as a Graduate Assistant in voice. He also studied singing with Janet Parlova, Jerome Hines and Judith Natalucci.

While at the AVA, Stapp appeared in 15 student opera productions, including portraying the part of Charlemagne in the United States premiere of Franz Schubert's Fierrabras at the Walnut Street Theatre on May 11, 1980. He was also active with professional musical organizations in Philadelphia. He made his first appearance with the Philadelphia Orchestra in July 1978 as Il Tio Sarvaor in Manuel de Falla's La vida breve with Enriqueta Tarrés as Salud and Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos conducting. That summer, he made his concert debut with the Opera Company of Philadelphia; and that November, he made his OCP stage debut as Il conte di Ceprano in Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto with Sherrill Milnes in the title role, June Anderson as Gilda, and conductor Gerhard Samuel.

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