Sharon Sweet

Sharon Sweet (born August 16, 1951 in New York City) is an American dramatic soprano. Sharon Sweet has appeared in leading roles in several major venues in Europe and the United States and has made notable contributions to several recordings, in particular Lohengrin, Der Freischütz, Don Giovanni, and Il Trovatore. In 1999, she accepted a full-time teaching position at Westminster Choir College of Rider University. In a column in Opera News, Sweet stated that she made the move out of frustration with the current operatic scene which emphasized physical appearance over voice. She cited her struggles with Hashimoto's syndrome, a thyroid condition.

The family of the artist came from a small town in the American state of New York. Her father had started a career as a lyric tenor, but he abandoned his career after serving in World War II. At age five, she began studying the piano, which she had to give up after an accident. As a minor, she studied singing, but then taught during one year as a music teacher at a public school. After winning the New York Metropolitan Opera auditions, she was educated at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia by Margaret Harshaw, then in New York by Marinka Gurewich. During her studies she worked as a teacher of singing and music theory at the University of New York and conducted the University Choir. At 24, she married a Presbyterian minister who came from her hometown.

She lived in Philadelphia, giving private evening of songs and arias, but 1985 finally went to West Germany. There, she attracted a sensation when she stepped in a concert in Munich's "Aida" performance in the title role. From 1986–88 she was engaged at the Opera House in Dortmund, where she sang the role as the inaugural Elizabeth in Tannhauser. The same role she sang as a guest in Zurich and with the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the latter of which she became a member of in 1987. She toured to Japan with the Deutsche Oper in 1987 for performance of "The Ring Cycle". That same year she performed at the Paris Grand Opera as Elisabetta in Don Carlos.

...
Wikipedia