Mark Whatley
Coordinator of Vocal Studies and Associate Professor of Voice
College of Music & Performing Arts
Biography
Mark Whatley, baritone, saw his professional singing career gain national prominence in 2002, when he won first place in the Metropolitan Opera mid-south regional auditions. He was later named one of nine national finalists, and performed in concert with the Metropolitan Opera orchestra with Julius Rudel conducting. Since that time he has sung over forty operatic roles, including Count Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Belcore in L’elisir d’amore, Marcello in La bohème, Escamillo in Carmen, Harlekin in Ariadne auf Naxos, and both Frank and Fritz in Die tote Stadt. His concert repertoire is equally extensive and varied, including Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Haydn’s The Creation, Handel’s Messiah, Saint-Saën’s Christmas Oratorio, Orff’s Carmina Burana, and requiems by Brahms, Fauré, Duruflé and Mozart. He has performed with many professional companies, including Glimmerglass Opera, Nashville Opera, Opera North, Opera Birmingham, Augusta Opera, Chattanooga Opera, Aspen Opera Theatre, Opera Company of Brooklyn, Cincinnati May Festival, Lexington Philharmonic, Woodlands Symphony, Paducah Symphony, Nashville Ballet, Sacramento Ballet, and Houston Choral Society.
Mark Whatley is Coordinator of Vocal Studies and Associate Professor of Voice at Belmont University. He holds degrees in voice performance from Belmont and the University of Kentucky. He received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Rice University in May of 2014, and his doctoral document is entitled “A Singer’s Guide to the Songs of Ildebrando Pizzetti.”
Dr. Whatley lives in Nashville, TN, with his wife, Amanda, and two sons, Andrew and Matthew.