Renee Macdonald, soprano

Emergent soprano Renee Macdonald’s upcoming performance engagements include the roles of The Witch and Mother in Hansel and Gretel with Opera Montana in May of 2025, after recently completing her run of Donna Anna in Don Giovanni at Seagle Festival in 2024.

A student of some of the most acclaimed performers and pedagogues on the operatic scene (Christine Goerke, Samuel Ramey, and Alan Held), Macdonald’s vocal prowess has earned her recognition in multiple competitions, including Opera Mississippi’s John Alexander National Vocal Competition (semi-finalist, 2023) the Metropolitan Opera National Council competition (winner, Tulsa district, 2018) and the Wichita Symphony Orchestra’s Naftzger Competition (2017), among others.  Past roles include Dying Juana in Crozier’s With Blood, With Ink, Puccini’s eponymous Suor Angelica, Silvia in Mascagni’s Il Zanetto, Handel’s eponymous Alcina, Nella (Gianni Schicchi), Contessa (Le Nozze di Figaro), Vitellia (La Clemenza di Tito), and Margaret (The Light in the Piazza).

Since moving to Philadelphia, Macdonald has become a mainstay in the local music community, finding success among the recently unionized Philadelphia Symphonic Choir, and as a highlight soloist with the Philadelphia Opera Chorus.  Hailing from Kalamazoo, MI, Macdonald completed both her Master’s and Certificate of Opera Performance at Wichita State University and holds a Bachelor’s of Voice Performance from Western Michigan University.  She completed advanced study at the Seagle Festival, the Bel Canto Institute of San Miguel, the American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) in Graz, Austria, and Canta in Italia, a training program based in Lucca, Italy.

Recent Recording Highlights