June Anderson (born December 30, 1952) is a Grammy Award-winning American coloratura soprano. Originally known for bel canto performances of Rossini, Donizetti, and Vincenzo Bellini, she was the first non-Italian ever to win the prestigious Bellini d'Oro prize. Subsequently, she has extended her repertoire to include a wide variety of other roles, including those from the Russian repertoire and works by Richard Strauss. In 2008, Anderson was elevated to "Commandeur" of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government and in 2007 received a "Victoire d'honneur" at the "Victoires de la Musique Classique" in Paris.Anderson has performed in noted opera houses including La Scala, Covent Garden, La Fenice, Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago and Colón Theater. She has collaborated with conductors Leonard Bernstein, James Levine, Charles Dutoit, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Seiji Ozawa, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Kent Nagano and Michael Tilson Thomas, and has sung opposite Luciano Pavarotti, Alfredo Kraus, Plácido Domingo, José Carreras, Carlo Bergonzi, Roberto Alagna, Rockwell Blake, Jerry Hadley and Salvatore Fisichella. Anderson has had an extensive recording career, dating from the 1980s to the present.
Candide, Rigoletto [Highlights], Mosè in Egitto, Carmina Burana, Le Postillon de Lonjumeau
Movies
Leonard Bernstein
Star Sign
Capricorn
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Quote
1
[on switching from light coloratura roles:] It's the same direction, it's just getting into deeper water. I wanted to put it off as long as possible. I kept saying, and it's been quoted so many times, I didn't want to do "Normina. I wanted to do Norma. And Leonora. I didn't want to sound like a soubrette trying to do these things. I've done things like Il Corsaro and La Battaglia di Legnano very early in my career, so Verdi's always been a presence. I did mostly Rigolettos and Traviatas, and then I added Desdemona a few years ago. ... So I suppose Leonora would be next in line. [Opera News, 14 February 1998)]
2
I had had it. I went back to school, and that was that. 'No great loss,' I said to myself. 'I have half a brain. It's a total waste of a brain to be a singer.'" [But after graduating cum laude with a B.A. degree in French literature from Yale University in 1974, she determined to be a professional singer after all:] No one wanted to know my name. I was down to my last $50. That's when I decided I was going to be a singer if it killed me! [interview for Opera News, August 1986]
3
[on joining the New York City Opera, from 1977 to 1982:] "It was certainly not a happy experience, but it may have been a necessary one, because I now feel that if I survived that, I can survive anything."
4
Now that I've become fluent in the [Italian] language, a whole world has opened up to me. Subtleties of speech become yours, allowing your projection of the words to color the music. It's had a big effect on my interpretations.
5
People who should be singing in church choirs are singing major roles. In some ways, success is harder to deal with than not being successful. A Verdi soprano? Grab her! Opera has become like instant soup; just add boiling water and people think it's there. [1990]
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Fact
1
Her opera-season training regimen is to drink three litres of water a day, watch her salt intake, and abstain from wine.
She said in an interview that her hobbies include clothes shopping, antiques collecting, and art.
4
Luciano Pavarotti insisted that she sing the role of Gilda in "Rigoletto," in its November, 1989, Metropolitan Opera performance, while he sang as the Duke of Mantua. June Anderson said in a 1989 New York Times interview, "You have small-voiced sopranos chirp 'Caro nome' and then they can't be heard. Besides, how many times can you say no to the Met? Their past offers have been either for unsuitable roles or ones in the second cast."
5
Opera singer (soprano).
Actress
Title
Year
Status
Character
Daphne
2005
Video
Daphne
Norma
2001
TV Movie
Norma
La donna del lago
1992
TV Movie
Elena
Candide
1991
TV Movie
Cunegonde
Rigoletto
1991
TV Movie
Gilda
The Metropolitan Opera Presents
1990
TV Series
Semiramide
Ricciardo e Zoraide
1990
TV Movie
Zoraide
Luisa Miller
1988
TV Movie
Luisa Miller
Amadeus
1984
Queen of the Night in 'The Magic Flute' (singing voice, uncredited)
Lucia di Lammermoor
1983/II
TV Movie
Lucia (soprano)
Soundtrack
Title
Year
Status
Character
The Metropolitan Opera Presents
1991
TV Series performer - 1 episode
Amadeus
1984
performer: "Die Zauberflöte The Magic Flute, K620, Aria No. 14, Der Holle Rache Kocht" 1791 - uncredited
Thanks
Title
Year
Status
Character
God Bless the Child
2015
thank you: and family
Self
Title
Year
Status
Character
Oh My Father
2016
Documentary short
June
Helmut by June
2007
TV Movie documentary
Herself
The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts
2001
TV Special
Herself
The Metropolitan Opera Presents
1991-1996
TV Series
Herself / Surprise Guest at Prince Orlofsky's party
$250,000
