John Carlo Pierce is an internationally known lyric tenor, who has spent fourteen years performing opera on the stages of the United States and Europe.
After graduating from the Eastman School of Music with a Master of Music degree in Performance/Literature, he joined the Young Artist Program of the Florida Grand Opera in Miami in 1995. During this time, he made his professional debut as Brighella in Ariadne auf Naxos, sang in Lucia di Lammermoor (Arturo), I pagliacci (Beppe), and participated in the Studio’s outreach programs in schools throughout Dade and Broward Counties.
In 1997, Mr. Pierce made his European debut as Victorin in Die tote Stadt at the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy. As a result of his work in this production, he was invited to join the International Opera Studio of the Cologne Opera in Germany. After one season, he was promoted to principal soloist, and in the next two seasons sang leading roles in Die tote Stadt, Falstaff (Fenton) and Macbeth (Malcolm), among others. John made a return to the United States in 2000 to appear as Ferrando in Cosi fan tutte for the Orlando (FL) Opera.
From 2001-06, Mr. Pierce held the position of resident Lyric Tenor for the State Theater in Mainz, Germany. While there, he was responsible for over 25 roles covering a broad range of repertoire from the Baroque period to contemporary music. Highlights from his tenure in Mainz include Händel’s Saul (Jonathan), which was broadcast live on German television, and the world premiere of an opera based on the life of Johannes Gutenberg, composed by Gavin Bryars. Other roles include Belmonte (Die Entführung aus dem Serail), Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni), Conte Almaviva (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Alfredo (La traviata) and Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi), to name a few.
John joined the Giessen Theater in 2006, and over the next three seasons, added several new roles to his repertoire, including Prince Ramiro in Cenerentola, and Narraboth in Salome. In February 2009, as a part of the yearlong celebration of the music of Joseph Haydn commemorating the 200th anniversary of his death, John sang the role of Medoro in Orlando Paladino, which was broadcast live on German radio.
As a guest artist, Mr. Pierce has sung at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, the Aargau Festival in Switzerland, and in Darmstadt, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Freiburg, Heidelberg, Kassel, Nuremberg and Schwerin.
In the fall of 2009, John began the Doctor of Musical Arts degree program at the University of Connecticut. As a teaching assistant, his duties have included directing the Opera Studio, teaching German and Italian diction for singers, and performing with the Opera Theater. He appeared as Hazim in the world premiere of Sheila Silver’s The Wooden Sword, in the title role of Leonard Bernstein’s Candide, and as Fritz in The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein. He has a keen interest in German Lieder of the 19th century, and presented a Lecture-Recital entitled Wölferl's Own Howl: Musical Characterization in the Rollengedichte of Hugo Wol