SOLO
BIO
The Brazilian baritone Samuel Ferreira is from Sete Lagoas city (Seven Lakes), in Minas Gerais State, southwest of Brazil. Amid lakes, mountains, fresh coffee, and warm cheese bread, he began his musical journey at the age of 12 when joined the Coral Dom Silvério. The youth choir was where he began his piano studies and was introduced to the classic choral repertoire that included sacred works and Brazilian repertoire, which later would be part of his artistic identity.
His first major professional challenge was to become the choir conductor at the age of 15 experiencing an intense and close relationship of being and making music from a young age. He made several tours throughout Brazil choir festivals.
At the age of 17, Samuel Ferreira joined the piano bachelor’s degree at the Federal University of Minas Gerais where he studied under the guidance of Adalmário Pacheco and Maurício Veloso. The piano was a fundamental part of the regency-piano-singing tripod that supported the young musician in his artistic functions.
At the beginning of the course, familiar with singing, he was a pianist with Professors Mônica Pedrosa and Luciana Monteiro in their studios, in addition to becoming a pianist in the UFMG Chamber Choir and UFMG Opera Studio. As Samuel was exposed to so many voices, he felt a call from one voice and at an important moment decided to listen to his own voice. Finally, Professor Mônica Pedrosa would receive Samuel Ferreira in singing Bachelor at UFMG.
While in Minas Gerais, Samuel Ferreira was a member of the Lyric Choir of Minas Gerais, Coro Madrigale, and Ars Nova Choir. He studied in several courses in Brazil where he worked with important professionals in the music field, such as baritones Paulo Szot, Francisco Campos, and conductor Carlos Aransay. He premiered shows on important concert halls in Brazil such as Palácio das Artes, Minas Gerais Hall, São Paulo Hall, among others maintaining an intense performance in the singing scene.
He co-founded Octaplus - a vocal octet that performed music and theater together with staging direction by Andre Cavazotti. He worked as a music teacher in the community at CENEX -UFMG and in his music studio in Sete Lagoas.
At the Singing Academy in Trancoso in Bahia conducted by Rolf Beck and Chorakademie Lübeck - he was awarded a scholarship to study in the next summer in Krakow - Poland. A trip that would introduce him to a very important country in his life a few years later.
He performed Apollo in Mozart’s Apollo et Hyacinthus, Slook in Rossini’s Il Cambiale di Matrimonio and as assistant conductor a production of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas with UFMG Opera Studio, under the guidance of maestro Charles Roussin.
Samuel Ferreira was a soloist in several pieces of the choral repertoire with UFMG Chamber Choir and Ars Nova Choir, being highlighted in Brahms’s Requiem. He received the 3rd place at the 34th Cantonigrós Music and Dance Festival in Catalonia being a member of Ars Nova Choir. He performed solo recitals and was frequently invited to projects related to vocal music in Brazil. He was a winner of the IV Young Soloists Contest of the Minas Gerais Symphony Orchestra and BDMG Young Musicians Series.
After receiving his bachelor’s degree at UFMG, he was invited to pursue his master's degree at Georgia State University in Kathryn Hartgrove’s voice studio in Atlanta in the United States.
Under an intense program in opera performance, he had masterclasses with important names of the international music field such as Stephanie Blythe, Rolando Salazar, Rolando Sanz, and starred in the title role in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Carl-Magnus in Sondheim’s A Little Night Music, Vicar Egde in Britten’s Albert Herring, and Pish-Tush in Sullivan’s The Mikado.
At The Atlanta Opera, he played the roles of Fígaro in Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Vater in Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel, Un Commissionario in Verdi’s La Traviata and Inmate in Heggie’s Dead Man Walking. With Capitol City Opera he was Marcello in Puccini’s La Boheme.
He performed as a soloist with the Atlanta Musicians Orchestra, with conductor Dahlan Foah with repertoires of Puccini and Bernstein. In the opera company Teatro Nuovo of New York, he was Giorgio in Rossini’s La Gazza Ladra where he made his debut at Lincoln Center.
During his studies in the USA, he was invited by the Chorakademie Lübeck for projects in Austria and Germany, and Slovakia, and Poland (yes, again!), where he had his European debut in a concert dedicated to Mozart's Opera Scenes and was a soloist in Rossini’s Petite Messe Solenelle. He had masterclasses with Margreet Honig, Marcel Boone, and Lucia Duchonova.
He was the winner of the Atlanta Opera Guild Voice Competition, Atlanta Opera Music Club Competition and received 2nd prize in the Georgia NATS Competition and was a finalist in Honor's Recital Georgia State University Competition. His most relevant award was the encouragement award by the Metropolitan Opera in New York.
After receiving the title of Master of Arts at Georgia State University Samuel Ferreira moved to Europe. He continues his studies in music, languages, spirituality, arts and keeps his career alive. He currently lives in Warsaw, Poland, where teaches voice at Cantores Minores - Warsaw's Cathedral's Male Choir, and is happily married to Diana Kuls-Ferreira.
Last updated March 2022
