Deborah Raymond
Voice
Deborah.Raymond@nau.edu
(928)
523-2312
Building 37, Room 126
Soprano Deborah Raymond has sung extensively in Europe. A graduate of the University of Iowa, she made her critically acclaimed debut as Salome at the Semper Opera in Dresden/Germany in Joachim Herz's production which was televised throughout Europe.
Of her performance OpernWelt wrote: "Deborah Raymond's voice culminates in a rapturous top. One has seldom experienced such a sensitive princess since Cebotari". Subsequently Ms. Raymond has performed the role of Salome in other German theaters, with Utah Opera, Opera Carolina, Arizona Opera, Des Moines Opera, and covered Catherine Malfitano in the Luc Bondy production in Chicago, as well as Maria Ewing in the Peter Hall production in San Francisco.
Other roles performed include Marie in Wozzeck, Tatiana in Eugene Onegin (in German and in Russian) and Gerhilde in Die Walküre singing in theaters such as Deutsche Oper, Berlin, Stadttheater Aachen, Opera Forum of Enschede/NL, the Netherlands Opera, and Theatre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels.
She recorded the role of die Frau in Erwartung for Netherlands Radio with the Radio Symphony Orchestra, and performed it in 1994 in Indianapolis as well as at NAU in 2003. She was featured as Zoe in Stephen Climax by Hans Zender and as Eine Dirne in the world premiere of Reigen by Philippe Boesmans at the Theatre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels directed by Luc Bondy. Later Reigen was revived in Strasbourg and the Théatre du Chatelet in Paris and is available on Compact Disc. The filmed version was seen in 1995 on television throughout Europe. In 1997 she participated in the Chicago Lyric Opera's production of Luciano Berio's Un Re in Ascolto as La Protagonista.
In 1994 she sang Tatiana in Russian in Minsk, Belorus with Alexander
Anissimov conducting. That year she covered the role of Marie
in Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Wozzeck. Added to her repertoire
in the USA are Nedda in I Pagiacci with Virginia Opera and Florentine
Opera, Cio-Cio-San in Madama Butterfly with Mobile Opera,and Nevada
Opera; Mimi in La Boheme with Indianapolis Opera, Opera North Carolina,
Nevada Opera, and Midland Symphony; Tosca with Sacramento Opera, Nevada
Opera, Pamiro Opera, and Midland Symphony. Of her Tosca one critic
wrote, “Though Raymond’s voice is more rounded, less reedy,
she often reminded me of the legendary Madga Oliviero.” Her
Wozzeck Marie with Spoleto USA Festival in 1997 was a personal triumph.
Ms. Raymond is Assistant Professor at NAU and has taught there since
2001. She performs regularly on Faculty Chamber Concerts, with
the Flagstaff Symphony (Verdi Requiem, Mendelssohn’s Elijah,
Barber “Knoxville: Summer of 1915”, Mozart C Minor Mass)
as well as the NAU Symphony (Wagner Liebestod, Bruce Reiprich’s “The
River empties into…”), and the Sedona Chamber Music Festival
(Schoenberg’s Second String Quartet with the Chicago String Quartet).
This spring she will perform Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem with
the Flagstaff Symphony, and 2009 marks her debut as Donna Elvira in
Mozart’s Don Giovanni with Arizona Opera.
After teaching for four summers at Seagle Colony, the oldest summer
opera training program in the US, she and her husband, Nando Schellen,
founded a program in Italy, “Flagstaff in Fidenza”, giving
young singers from all over the world the opportunity to receive training
and perform entire opera roles.