Lauren Edwards Biography

Mezzo-soprano Lauren Edwards has recently received her Masters in Music from UCLA after completing her Bachelor of Music at Arizona State University. In her first year at UCLA, Lauren performed as soloist with UCLA Philharmonia in its annual All-Star concert, and appeared in two UCLA Opera West Coast premieres: as the title role in Francesco Cavalli’s Giasone, and as the Stewardess in Jonathan Dove’s Flight. During her second year, Lauren became a finalist in the Classical Singer Competition, performed as second soprano soloist with UCLA Philharmonia in Mozart’s C minor Mass, and alto soloist with The Angeles Chorale in Vivaldi’s Gloria and Bach’sMagnificat. In 2007, she studied Italian opera in Florence, Italy, and the following summer participated in the art-song festivalSong Fest held in Malibu, California. In the summer of 2011, Lauren traveled to Austria for two months to study German Lieder at the Franz-Schubert-Institut, performing in masterclasses held by Elly Ameling, Barbara Bonney and Julius Drake.

Current opera roles include L’enfant in Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges, Nireno in Handel’s Giulio Cesare in Egitto, Ottone in Handel’s Agrippina, Soeur Mathilde in Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites, and Gertrude Stein in Blood on the Dining Room Floor. Lauren also appears as the is the alto soloist and section leader at Westwood Presbyterian Church, and teaches voice at the Lee Strasberg Institute in Hollywood.