Sakiko Kanamori Prize Recipient 2009
Katie Ross, Dramatic Soprano
Katie is from St. Louis Park, Minnesota. At Hope, she was a student of Linda Dykstra and was the recipient of numerous awards and scholarships, including the Joyce M. Morrison Voice Scholarship, the Grace Marguerite Browning Scholarship in Voice, the Robert W. Cavanaugh Scholarship in Voice, and the Distinguished Artist Award. She studied language and vocal repertoire in Milan for one semester and for one summer in Vienna. She was a double major in music and psychology.
After graduation from Hope, Katie entered Michigan State University. She studied voice there with Richard Fracker, was a Graduate Teaching Assistant, and had several of her own private students. She appeared in two operas: in Gounod's "Romeo et Juliette" as Gertrude and in Ricky Ian Gordon's "The Grapes of Wrath" as Ma Joad. In preparation for the latter, Katie was coached by the composer himself who was then in residence at MSU (photo at right). One reviewer called her performance "superb".
In the summer of 2010, Katie returned to Italy to continue work on her Italian language and repertoire. In the fall, she travelled to China with an MSU-China exchange program. And in the spring of 2011, she completed her MSU Master's degree. You can listen to Katie in her Master's recital singing Wagner's "Im Treibhaus" (from the "Wesendonck Lieder") by clicking on the following link.
In the fall of 2011, Katie will enter the University of North Texas, where she has been offered a fellowship to pursue her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Vocal Performance. She will study there with Linda DiFiore.
Updated: June 2011
