Michael Dean, bass

Michael Dean has earned critical acclaim across the globe. He recently performed Beethoven's Mass in C with the Houston Symphony and the Bach Magnificat with the Columbus Symphony. He made his New York Philharmonic debut with world premiere performances of Aaron Kernis' Garden of Light with Kurt Masur and returned for a concert version of Street Scene conducted by Leonard Slatkin.

Distinguished in the Baroque repertoire, Mr. Dean is a regular participant in the Göttingen Handel Festival where his roles have included Melisso in Alcina and Hayman in Esther, both conducted by Nicholas McGegan. Many of his performances at this festival have been recorded and released on the Harmonia Mundi label.  He has also performed Dido and Aeneas with the Mark Morris Dance Company in Berkeley, California and with the Folger Consort in Washington, DC. He made his Boston Baroque debut in Mozart's The Impresario and Cimarosa's The Music Director.

Mr. Dean's diverse repertoire also includes a New York City Opera debut in the title role of Le nozze di Figaro that was acclaimed by The New York Times as "virile and robust." At NYCO, he also portrayed George in Of Mice and Men, Papageno in The Magic Flute, and Captain Jason MacFarline in Lizzie Borden, which was telecast on Live from Lincoln Center. Other United States performances include Il Barbiere di Siviglia at the Dallas Opera and Eugene Onegin and La Traviata at the Opera Company of Philadelphia.

He was a company member at the Landestheater in Austria and has appeared with opera companies in Europe such as the Komische Oper in Berlin, Opéra du Rhin in Strasbourg, and De Vlaamse Opera in Belgium.

A native of San Diego, Mr. Dean is an alumnus of the Curtis Institute of Music and the Merola Opera Program of the San Francisco Opera. He made his New York recital debut under the auspices of the Marilyn Horne Foundation.