Willard White

Sir Willard Wentworth White (born October 10, 1946 in Kingston , Jamaica ) is a British-Jamaican opera singer ( bass baritone ). He is considered the most important British bass baritone of the generation between John Shirley-Quirk (1931–2014) and Bryn Terfel (* 1965).

Life

White studied singing at the Jamaican School of Music , then at the Juilliard School in New York City and made his debut at the New York City Opera as Colline in La Bohème . He later took lessons from Otakar Kraus . He was also taught in the master class by Maria Callas .

White sang Polyphemus in Acis and Galatea , Nekrotzar in Le Grand Macabre , Mephistopheles in La damnation de Faust , Porgy in Porgy and Bess , Blaubart in Duke Bluebeard's Castle and Wotan in Rheingold and in Die Walküre . In spring 2010 he sang the role of Ned in Scott Joplin's seldom performed opera Treemonisha at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris alongside Grace Bumbry .

In 1990 he played the title role in the film adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello (directed by Trevor Nunn) on the side of Ian McKellen as Iago.

In 2004 Willard White was knighted ( Knight Bachelor ).

personal data
SURNAME	White, Willard
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	White, Willard Wentworth (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	British-Jamaican opera singer (bass baritone)
DATE OF BIRTH	October 10, 1946
PLACE OF BIRTH	Kingston , Jamaica