Wendy Bryn Harmer (B.M. ’03, vocal performance)
TITLE: Soprano at the Metropolitan Opera
When Wendy Bryn Harmer graduated from The Boston Conservatory in 2003, she was offered a position with the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. She made her debut at the Met as the First Bridesmaid in The Marriage of Figaro and has since performed in their productions of Die Walküre, War and Peace, The Magic Flute, Parsifal, Die Ägyptische Helena and Jenůfa. Other past opera engagements have included Vitellia in La Clemenza di Tito with Opera Boston and Mimi in La Bohème at the Utah Opera Festival. She was born in Roseville, CA.
My first introduction to music was … in our house and in our cars when I was growing up. Classical music was always on. We had an intercom system in our house—I am the youngest of 10 kids, so it doesn’t work to yell up the stairs—and Mom would keep it tuned to a classical station. I’m not sure how opera snuck in there. I played the flute for close to 10 years so my mom made me see The Magic Flute any time she could find it.
I decided to pursue a career in music … in high school. My flute teacher made me do it.
The Boston Conservatory is unique because … of its class size and personal interaction. My teachers all knew how I was doing overall. My voice teacher knew what concerns my ear training teacher had. My theory teacher knew what I was working on in my voice lessons. For me, I was in the perfect place at the perfect time. I was in a small school. They were excited to give me personal, private attention. I was very lucky.
The Boston Conservatory prepared me for my career by … making me grow up. I had to take responsibility for my work. If I fell behind, it was obvious. I don’t think my path would have led straight from the Conservatory’s door to the Met’s door had I gone somewhere else. I needed very personal guidance, and I could not have gotten that elsewhere.
The best thing about Boston is … the history. I walked the Freedom Trail all the time. And the literary trails in Concord can’t be missed!
My favorite Boston Conservatory memory is … impossible to pick. My time in the Chorale was memorable. I loved the music we were given. I missed graduation because I was in St. Louis with Opera Theater of St. Louis, but I imagine it was wonderful!
My advice to aspiring artists is … sleep now.
Next I plan to … continue performing at the Metropolitan Opera. I have roles in Don Giovanni, The Queen of Spades, The Magic Flute, Das Rheingold, Die Walküre and Götterdämmerung. I will sing Adalgisa in the new production of Norma at Palm Beach Opera. I have two solo recitals planned and a concert with The Marilyn Horne Foundation.
Pictured: Wendy Bryn Harmer (B.M. ’03, vocal performance) in Christoph Willibald Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice at The Boston Conservatory. Photo: Liz Linder Photography.