|
The American contralto, choral conductor and voice teacher, Denise Mary Stookesberry, obtained her Bachelor's degree from St. Louis University; and her Master’s degree in Vocal Performance from Washington University in St. Louis, where she also served as a faculty member. She was a semi-finalist in the International Opera Singers Competition, sponsored by the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York, and a finalist for the Frederick Schorr Memorial Performance Prize at Opera Lenawee in Michigan.
For over 30 years Denise Stookesberry has been and continues to be an active singer, choral director, and private voice teacher. She was featured in a solo recital at the Tavern of Fine Arts in St. Louis, the Peak to Peak Concert Series in Estes Park, and the Estes Park Performance Park Concert series. Highlights on the operatic stage include roles with Opera Theater of St. Louis, Pensacola Opera in Florida, Opera Unlimited, Ohio Light Opera in Wooster, Ohio, Union Avenue Opera in St. Louis, St. Louis’s MUNY, the oldest outdoor musical theater in the country, and solos with the Oratorio Society of Estes Park in Colorado. In addition, she has been a vital member of the St. Louis Symphony Chorus for many years as a section leader and soloist in performances with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra under the batons of world-renowned conductors Leonard Slatkin and David Robertson.
Denise Stookesberry was voted Best Actress in a community theater production by the Hawthorne Players in St. Louis. Under her direction and leadership, her choirs have performed at the famous Carnegie Hall in New York City, in concert halls throughout Austria, they have received superior ratings in country-wide competitions, and have been recognized by the Governor of Missouri for their contribution to the arts.
Denise Stookesberry's vocal students have sung in touring Broadway companies, community theaters, professional choruses, and have earned vocal scholarships to Pennsylvania State University, Indiana University, AMDA,and New York University, among others. Former students include businessmen, doctors, engineers, housewives, high school students, and community chorus and church choir singers. She has helped many singers from all levels of experience attain better singing technique. She is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing and the American Choral Directors Association. She currently lives in Estes Park, Colorado. |
