ABOUT

Soprano Sara LeMesh, hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle for her “powerhouse performance of vocal majesty and expressive translucency,” is a dramatic presence on the opera stage, an avid chamber musician, and an advocate of contemporary music. Garnering praise in international vocal competitions, the "mesmerizing" and "affectingly plangent" soprano (Opera News) recently won First Prize in The Lyndon Woodside Oratorio-Solo Competition at Carnegie Hall and First Prize in the Federation of the Art Song Fellowship Competition. She also won the Third Prize and Audience Choice Award in the Josep Palet International Singing Competition in Martorell, Spain. 

​

Captivating audiences with her "lush tone, exceptional high-register clarity, dramatic breadth, and fearless command" (San Francisco Classical Voice), the rising soprano’s 2023-24 season includes numerous role and company debuts. In February 2024, she performed the role of Isabel Perón in Carlos Franzetti’s Corpus Evita with West Bay Opera to critical acclaim. Her performance was praised for its “vocal fervor and dramatic power” (San Francisco Chronicle) and “superb example of vocal acting” (The Almanac). Upcoming debuts include the titular role of Marie in Donzetti’s La fille du régiment with the Opera Company of Middlebury as well as Narcissa in Haydn’s Jupiter’s Journey to the Earth with The Little Opera Theatre of New York. In September 2024, Ms. LeMesh joins Florentine Opera as a Resident Artist where she will perform the roles of Galatea in Handel’s Acis and Galatea, Kate Pinkerton in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, and Luigia in Donizetti’s Viva la mamma!.

​

Passionate about new works, Ms. LeMesh joined Opera Philadelphia in the fall of 2023 for the role of Nellie/The Madwoman (cover) in the world premiere of Rene Orth’s 10 Days in a Madhouse. In the spring of 2023, Ms. LeMesh was a Resident Artist with Opera Naples where she performed the role of Josephine in Gilbert & Sullivan’s H.M.S. Pinafore as well as Frasquita in Bizet’s Carmen and Woman #1 in Robert Xavier Rodriguez’s Frida under the baton of Ramon Tébar. Additional opera credits include Bess McNeill in Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking The Waves with West Edge Opera, Lisa/Young Leah in Lori Laitman’s Uncovered with City Lyric Opera, Zerlina in Mozart’s Don Giovanni with Pocket Opera, and Norina in Donizetti’s Don Pasquale with the Mendocino Music Festival.

​

A devoted recitalist and interpreter of concert works, Ms. LeMesh attended the Marlboro Music Festival during the summers of 2022 and 2023 where she performed with pianist Jonathan Biss and tenor Mark Padmore, among other esteemed artists. Recent concert appearances include her Carnegie Hall debut as the soprano soloist in Poulenc’s Gloria with the New England Symphonic Ensemble (March 2024). She also debuted her concert, Voices of Identity: Songs of the Jewish Diaspora, at the Zimmerli Museum of Rutgers University with her collaborative partner, pianist Allegra Chapman. Upcoming appearances include the Greenwich Choral Society as the soprano soloist in Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass and Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music. Notable past concert engagements include the Brooklyn Art Song Society, Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players, and Southwest Florida Symphony Orchestra. She looks forward to attending YellowBarn in Vermont as a vocal fellow in the summer of 2024.

​

Ms. LeMesh has performed throughout the United States and Europe at venues and festivals including The Morgan Library & Museum, Aspen Music Festival, Tanglewood Music Center, Music Academy of the West, Fall Island Vocal Arts Seminar, American Bach Soloists Academy, and International Summer Academy of the Mozarteum Salzburg where she worked closely with Italian bass-baritone Ruggero Raimondi. While at Tanglewood, she was a soloist in Berlioz’s Les nuits d'été under the baton of Stéphane Denève and co-premiered Folk Songs by Bernard Rands. With pianist Allegra Chapman, Ms. LeMesh performs in the piano-vocal duo Chordless, creating unique spaces to explore and appreciate music that has historically been ignored or is brand new. 

​

The Californian soprano received her Master of Music Degree from the Bard College-Conservatory of Music and a Bachelor of Music Degree from Rice University. She resides in New York City with her husband and rescue dog, Coco.