OPERA:
A founding member of the groundbreaking and innovative Center Opera
(which later became Minnesota Opera), LeRoy’s early career
included new and improvisational opera with that group, as well as
traditional operatic and orchestral work throughout the U.S.,
Canada, Mexico, Germany and the U.K. -- even Moscow, USSR in 1991
with a US State Department sponsored tour of The Balcony, an American
contemporary opera.
LeRoy Lehr is familiar to live Metropolitan Opera broadcast
audiences as Doctor Grenvil in La Traviata, Hans Schwartz in
Die
Meistersinger von Nurnberg, and the Jailer in Tosca, roles which he
has repeated over several broadcast seasons. Other Met appearances
in recent seasons include War and Peace, Werther, Andrea Chenier,
Salome, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Sly, The Gambler, The Queen of
Spades, The Rake’s Progress, The Bartered Bride, The Great Gatsby,
Susannah, Le Nozze di Figaro, La Boheme, Nabucco, Pelleas et
Melisande and Romeo et Juliette. Mr. Lehr has also performed at New
York City Opera as the King of Clubs in The Love for Three Oranges,
as Horace Giddens in Regina, and as Sarastro in The Magic Flute.
Mr. Lehr has participated in a variety of summer Festivals: Lake
George, Blossom Festival, Meadowbrook, Aldeburgh, (England),
Minnesota Orchestra Summerfest, Wildwood, Wolftrap, and New
Hampshire Music Festival. The summer of 2005 saw LeRoy in the
Charleston Piccolo Spoleto Festival as Osmin in The Abduction from
the Seraglio, the Bard Festival as Grandpa Moss in The Tender Land,
and at the Marlboro Festival. The summer of 2006 took him on tour
with the Met Opera in Japan, and to St. Louis in 2007 as the Mikado
for OTSL’s The Mikado.
PREMIERES AND ORCHESTRA APPEARANCES:
Mr. Lehr has performed world premieres of Alan Stout’s Passion with the Chicago Symphony, Dominick Argento’s Masque of Angels and Jonah and theWhale, Dave Brubeck’s Beloved Son,Conrad Susa’s Black River, and Paula Kimper’s Patience and Sarah,at the 2000 Lincoln Center Festival, American premieres of King Erik’s Crown by Eskil Hemberg, Gorecki’s Copernicus (Minnesota Orchestra), and Penderecki’s Magnificat (Detroit Symphony), conducted by the composer. The spectrum of Mr. Lehr’s repertoire ranges from Mozart and Monteverdi to Britten and Berlioz. He has appeared as soloist with many of the world’s major orchestras and conductors, including the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Gothenberg Symphony, the National Symphony, the symphony orchestras of Boston, Cleveland, Detroit and Minnesota; and under the batons of Alcantara, Armiliato, Badea, Buchhalter, de Burgos, Colaneri, Conlon, Coppola, de Billy, de Waart, vonDohnanyi, Dorati, Ferden, Fiore, Gergiev, Guadagno, Henze, Illick, Inouye, Jarvi, Levine, Marin, Nagano, Noseda, Oren, Osgood, Otvos, Ozawa, Rizzi, Rostropovich, Rudel, Runnicles, Salemno, Shaw, Skrowaczewski, Slatkin, and Summers.
RECORDINGS:
Recordings on which LeRoy Lehr is featured include the recently released VAI DVD of PDQ Bach’s Abduction of Figaro, Virgin Classics complete CD recording of Copland’s The Tender Land, Argento’s Jonah and the Whale On CRI, Stephen Paulus’ So Hallow’d is the Time, Gerald Finzi’s In Terra Pax and Rutter Christmas Carols on the Pro Arte label. Mr. Lehr is Pa on the 1998 Lincoln Center Festival premiere Legato Classics recording of Patience and Sarah by Paula Kimper and Wende Persons. He also appears on the televised Broadcast DVDs from the Metropolitan Opera of Die Meistersinger Von Nurnberg and The Queen of Spades.
Inquiries
To inquire about Mr. Lehr’s availability as soloist, recitalist, Artist in Residence, or for educational Master Classes please use the Contact tab at this website.