Willsonia Boyer
VICE PRESIDENT
Willsonia Boyer, soprano, performs both as an opera singer and as a concert artist. Presented by the Hans and Rosy Epstein Memorial Committee, Ms. Boyer made her New York recital debut at Merkin Concert Hall to critical acclaim.
Operatic appearances include engagements with New York City Opera, Bregenzer Festspiele, Virginia Opera, The Bronx Opera and New Jersey Concert Opera, and
performance venues include Europe and South America, as well as the United States.
Operatic roles include the title role of Aida, Serena in Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Helen in Schubert’s The Conspirators, the Countess and Sandrina in Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro and La Finta Giardiniera, respectively. In addition, Ms. Boyer has appeared with the New Jersey Concert Opera in the title role of Tosca and as Helmwige in Die Walküre, in New York City Opera’s premier of Margaret Garner and in Sherry Boone’s and Sean Jeremy Palmer’s Ellen Craft.
Concert engagements include the inaugural concert of the Harrison Opera House in Norfolk, Virginia, the Petersburg (VA) Symphony Orchestra, Ars Musica Chorale of New Jersey and the Hodie Ensemble of New York.
An active recitalist, Ms. Boyer has made appearances throughout the eastern United States. Recitals include a series of all-Mozart recitals given under the auspices of the Friends of Mozart Society and recitals at Merkin Concert Hall honoring Dorothy Maynor and featuring women composers.
Ms. Boyer, a native Virginian, holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Hollins University, a Master’s degree from Virginia State University, where she studied with Dr. Richard Edwards. She also studied in France at the Conservatoire de Neuilly, specializing in contemporary music under the tutelage of Francois Bernard Mâche, a pupil of Olivier Messiaen and voice with Ginette Guillamat.
Ms. Boyer is currently regular soloist for Seventh Church of Christ, Scientist in New York City and currently studies with retired Metropolitan Opera baritone, John Fiorito. She is also a member of David I. Martin Music Guild of the National Association of Negro Musicians, Inc. (NANM).