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The American bass, Daniel B. Cole, played the piano as a child, then, demonstrating his trademark flexibility, joined a hard core punk band in high school. As a student at Emory University in Atlanta, after his run-in with biology, earned a D in biology, he decided to major in music. During his studies at the University, Cole worked closely with Alfred Calabrese, a music professor who is now teaching at Brevard College. At Calabrese’s suggestion, Cole went from Emory to the renowned Indiana University School of Music, where he earned a master’s degree in conducting and began working toward a Ph.D. He was assisting the conductor on a production of Tosca at Opera Illinois when he met Robert McFarland, an internationally recognized operatic performer. Cole took a few singing lessons with McFarland, and a light came, and he decided to pursue a career as a professional singer. After studying under McFarland at Temple University for just five months, Cole advanced to the semifinals of the Metropolitan Opera National Council of Auditions competition, having placed first in the Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions in the New Jersey district and first again in the New York regional finals. His success opened doors at small opera companies, landed him some singing roles, and led him to seek a manager in New York.
Daniel Cole brings to the stage an attractive basso cantante voice, an elegant stage presence, and an astute musical intelligence. He has appeared in theatres in Lisbon (Il Re in Aida, 2002), Cologne (Colline in La Bohème, 2002), Taiwan (Colline), Amsterdam (Voice of God in Igor Stravinsky's The Flood), Opera Illinois (Sparafucile in Rigoletto, 2002), New York (Marco in L'Arlesiana at Alice Tully Hall) and throughout the USA. He has also established a respectable concert career, including performances of Penderecki’s St. Luke Passion with the Mendelssohn Club Chorus of Philadelphia, W.A. Mozart's Mass in C minor with the Canton (Ohio) Symphony, and the W.A. Mozart’s Requiem in his debut at Carnegie Hall with Mid-America Productions.
In 2004, Daniel Cole made his debut with the Dayton and Kentucky Opera Companies, as Colline with the former, and as the First Soldier (Salome) with the latter, followed by a debut with Opera Boston as Wurm in Verdi’s Luisa Miller. In May, he made his debut with the Cincinnati May Festival, James Conlon conducting, in excerpts from Die Meistersinger, and in the summer, he returned to Utah Festival Opera for Alidoro in La Cenerentola and Sparafucile in Rigoletto. Cole also made his debut with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project in performances of Bernard Rands’s Canti dell'Eclissi, returned to the Cincinnati Symphony for Haydn’s Mass in Time of War, and was the bass soloist for L.v. Beethoven’s Mass in C under the baton of Jane Glover.
In 2005, Daniel Cole again appeared with Utah Festival Opera to sing the roles of Timur in Turandot and Reverend Hale in The Crucible. Following a recital with Martin Katz he then returned to Opera Boston to sing the Secret Police Agent in Menotti’s The Consul and made his debut with Fargo-Moorhead Civic Opera as Sarastro in The Magic Flute. Cole also performed his first Die Winterreise with pianist William Ransom at the Highlands-Cashiers Chamber Music Festival.
In 2006 and 2007, Daniel Cole was seen as Alidoro in Opera Carolina's produduction of La Cenerentola, and as Lucius in a revival of Seymour Barab's Phillip Marshall with Western Plains Opera. Other engagements included a performances of George Frideric Handel's Messiah in Philadelphia, and a return to Fargo-Moorhead as Sparafucile.
Daniel Cole served on the voice faculty at the University of Delaware from 2004 to 2007. He is currently the Director of Music at First Presbyterian Church in Columbia, South Carolina. He maintains an active performing career, including 2009 performances and a recording of Dominic Argento’s Jonah and the Whale, with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project and the Providence Singers.
Daniel Cole and his wife Holly have two boys, Nathanael and Benjamin. They reside in Columbia, South Carolina. |
