Soprano Laurinda Nikkel, hailed by Opera News for her “consummate singing and acting technique”, has excelled in a wide range of operatic roles with leading companies throughout the U.S. and holds the distinction of having sung professionally in every state of the Union with the exception of Alaska.
Ms. Nikkel’s 2006-2007 season includes a return to the state as Micaela in East Texas Symphony’s Carmen and her debut in the role of Despina (Cosi fan tutte) with the Rising Star Summer Festival in Cincinnati Ohio. For the past several seasons she has maintained a busy teaching and performing schedule concertizing throughout Southern California and giving critically acclaimed performances of the Countess in Opera Longview’s Le Nozze di Figaro, Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with Shreveport Opera and Mimi in La bohème with Opera Idaho. Ms. Nikkel's operatic credits include Micaela in Carmen, Musetta in La bohème, and Yum-Yum in The Mikado with New York City Opera; the Countess in Le nozze di Figaro with the New York City Opera and the New York City Opera National Touring Company, the New Israeli Opera, Knoxville Opera, and Opera Grand Rapids; Mimi in La bohème with Lake George Opera Festival, Western Opera Theater, Shreveport Opera, El Paso Opera and The New Israeli Opera; Micaela in Carmen with Opera Pacific, Pennsylvania Opera Theater and the San Diego Symphony; Musetta in La bohème with Opera Delaware, Norina in Don Pasquale with Western Opera Theater; Marguerite in Faust with Marin Opera; and Anezka in Smetana's Two Widows with Chicago Opera Theatre. She has also sung Giannetta in L'Elisir d'Amore with both the Washington Opera and Los Angeles Opera. Ms. Nikkel's orchestral performances include Messiah, the Brahms Requiem, the Mozart Requiem, Mendelssohn's Elijah, and Handel's Laudate Pueri Dominum.
Ms. Nikkel is a former participant in San Francisco’s prestigious Adler Fellowship and Merola Opera program, the Cincinnati Opera’s Young Artist Program and is a past winner of the District and Regional Metropolitan Opera Auditions. Other awards include both the Richard Gold Career Grant and the Leonardo da Vinci Award Grant from the San Francisco Opera, the Norman Treigle Scholarship from the New York City Opera, The Shoshana Foundation Award, and the Schubert Foundation Award for Excellence in Art Song.
In 2005 Ms. Nikkel was appointed Coordinator of the Voice Department at San Diego State University where she oversees vocal programs in both the School of Music and Dance and the prestigious MFA program in the SDSU School of Drama, Film and Television. Her students have been award winners in the Metropolitan Opera Auditions, The National Association of Teachers of Singing Young Artist Competition, The Virginia Hawk Young Artist Competition and the Carlsbad to Karlove Vary Vocal Competition. Ms Nikkel is a recognized Masterclass technician in both classical and musical theater techniques and has performed art song recitals throughout the United States and Canada. She is Vice President of the San Diego Chapter of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) and past Chair of the NATS Young Artist Competition. Ms. Nikkel is very proud to have been named the 2004 Honorary Survivor by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. |
