Biography
Hailed as “nothing short of sensational” (Opera Magazine) and “a real creature of the stage,” (Opera News) soprano Sari Gruber has become a prized artist on U.S. and International stages alike.
She garners praise for her revered performances as some of opera’s most beloved characters such as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, which she performed with New York City Opera, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Boston Lyric Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Opera Pacific, Kentucky Opera, Austin Lyric Opera, and the Ongaku-Juku Opera Project under the baton of Seiji Ozawa. Also known for her portrayal of Puccini’s quintessential diva, Musetta in La bohème, Gruber has performed the role with Opera Colorado, Opera Company of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh Opera, and Austin Lyric Opera.
In the 2017-2018 season, Ms. Gruber appears as the soloist in Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 with Symphoria in Syracuse, Handel’s Messiah with Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra and Bach Society of St. Louis, Susanna in Victory Hall Opera’s innovative staging of Le nozze di Figaro in coordination with the Garden Club of Chicago, her fourth annual fundraising concert with Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and Bach’s Cantata 140 “Wachet auf” and Haydn’s Creation, both with Glacier Symphony. Recent engagements include the Soprano solos in Handel’s Messiah with Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Winston-Salem Symphony and Richmond Symphony, Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 with the Erie Philharmonic and Oklahoma City Philharmonic, recitals of Schubert/Beatles with New York Festival of Song at Lincoln Center, the Moab Music Festival and in Kansas City, Schubert’s “Auf dem Strom” with the noted Schubert on the Bluff series, and Musetta in La bohème with Pittsburgh Opera and the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra, Ms. Gruber’s return to Pittsburgh Opera to sing Despina in Così fan tutte and Zerlina in a new production of Don Giovanni, recitals for Boston Symphony Orchestra and LiveARTS series, a return to Arizona Opera to sing Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro; Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with Opera Tampa, her role début as Leïla in Les pêcheurs de perles with Hawaii Opera Theater, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with Omaha Symphony, a Christmas concert with Tallahassee Symphony, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Buffalo Symphony, and a role début as Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte with Florida Grand Opera.
Noted international performances include Händel’s Samson staged for De Nederlandse Opera, and First Niece in Peter Grimes at both the Saito Kinen Festival (Japan) and Maggio Musicale di Firenze. Further career highlights include her Lyric Opera of Chicago début as Alexandra in Regina; Lisette in La rondine and Miss Hedgehog in the world-première of Tobias Picker’s The Fantastic Mr. Fox with Los Angeles Opera; Carolina in Il matrimonio segreto, Aricie in Hippolyte et Aricie, and Varvara in Kát’a Kabanová with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis; Vixen in Janácek’s The Cunning Little Vixen at the Chautauqua Institution; Anne Trulove in The Rake’s Progress and Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Lyric Opera of Kansas City.
Other notable engagements include Despina in Così fan tutte with Pittsburgh Opera, Berkshire Opera and Anchorage Opera; Norina in Don Pasquale with Opera Company of Philadelphia and Boston Lyric Opera; Gilda in Rigoletto with Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Connecticut Opera and Toledo Opera; Juliette in Roméo et Juliette with Opera Carolina and Chautauqua Opera; Gretel in Hänsel und Gretel with New York City Opera, Opera Columbus, Omaha Symphony, and for PBS Great Performances telecast from the Juilliard Opera Center.
An extremely sought-after and distinguished concert artist, Ms. Gruber has appeared with several esteemed symphony orchestras throughout her career, such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony Orchestra, Händel and Haydn Society, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, ProMusica Chamber Society, Boston Baroque, New York’s Collegiate Chorale, Pacific Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Omaha Symphony, Winston-Salem Symphony, Buffalo Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, San Jose Symphony, Jacksonville Symphony, and the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra. With these organizations and many more, she has performed as a soloist in such works as Messiah, Mahler’s Symphony No. 4, Bach’s Mass in B Minor, Handel’s Israel in Egypt, Haydn’s The Creation, Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915, Mozart’s Requiem, Telemann‘s dramatic cantata, Ino, Schubert’s Shepherd on the Rock, Villa-Lobos’ Bachianas Brasileiras #5, Vaughan Williams’s Serenade to Music, Handel’s Silete Venti, and with the New York City Ballet in Stravinsky’s Les noces. The winner of the 2005 Naumburg Competition, Ms. Gruber is in demand as a recitalist with appearances at New York’s Alice Tully Hall, Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie, the 92nd Street Y, Miller Theater, Caramoor Festival, San Francisco Performances, Skaneateles Festival, New York Festival of Song, as well in recital at Palm Springs, Carmel, Pensacola, Pittsburgh and Kansas. She has given recitals across the country under the auspices of the Marilyn Horne Foundation. Other credits include a pre-concert recital of Copland’s Poems of Emily Dickinson with the New York Philharmonic, solo recitals in Salt Lake City and Daytona Beach, at Skidmore College, and on San Francisco Opera’s Schwabacher Début Recital Series.