Melanie Ashkar

Lebanese-American mezzo-soprano Melanie Ashkar is known for the “rich texture” of her voice and her “delightfully expressive” stage presence. A frequent interpreter of opera, she has performed across the United States with companies such as Utah Opera, Central City Opera, New York City Opera, OperaDelaware, Opera Southwest, and Virginia Opera. On the concert stage, she has appeared as the alto soloist in Messiah with the Utah Symphony, in Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle with the Oratorio Society of Virginia, and in Beethoven’s Mass in C Major with the Chesapeake Chorale. This season, she makes role and company debuts with Opera Western Reserve as Mercédès (Carmen), with Winter Opera St. Louis as Adah (Naughty Marietta), and with L’Opéra Comique de Washington as Metella (La Vie Parisienne) and returns to New York City Opera as Gertrude (Roméo et Juliette). Later this spring, she joins the Canton Symphony Orchestra for a program of Gustav and Alma Mahler songs and Bel Cantanti Opera for a program of Offenbach. Melanie has been recognized by the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Opera Piccola, the Schuyler Foundation for Career Bridges Grant Awards, and the Gerda Lissner Foundation. An Arlington, VA native, she holds degrees from the University of Virginia, Georgetown University, and Mannes College. Please visit her website at www.melaniashkar.com