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Nicholas Brownlee

About this Artist

Bass-baritone NICHOLAS BROWNLEE (Physician) recently joined the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program at the Los Angeles Opera and is a winner of the 2015 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.

Brownlee makes role debuts as Sprecher in Die Zauberflöte, the Bonze in Madama Butterfly, and Captain Gardiner in Moby-Dick, all conducted by James Conlon in the 2015/2016 season. He also sings Colline in La bohème conducted by Gustavo Dudamel at LA Opera, as well as debuting at Atlanta Opera as Colline. With the LA Phil, he will be seen as the Physician in Pelléas et Mélisande with Esa-Pekka Salonen conducting. Next season, he will return to LA Opera and also make his Metropolitan Opera debut.

In the 2014/2015 season, Brownlee made his Los Angeles Philharmonic debut under Dudamel in Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy and returned for performances of a new multimedia staging by Netia Jones of Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland under Susanna Mälkki. As part of the LA Opera Young Artist Program, he covered Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro under James Conlon and Bluebeard in Barrie Kosky’s production of Bluebeard’s Castle. In the summer of 2015, he returned to Santa Fe Opera to sing the 1st Soldier in Salome, as well as cover Monterone in Rigoletto, Sulpice in La fille du régiment, and Stobrod/Blind in the world premiere of Cold Mountain. Brownlee spent the summer of 2014 as an Apprentice Artist with the Santa Fe Opera, where he made his debut as Don Fernando in a new Stephen Wadsworth production of Fidelio under the baton of Harry Bicket.

Brownlee received his Master of Music degree from Rice University, where he studied with Dr. Stephen King. He received his Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the University of South Alabama.