Latonia Moore - Bio

Latonia Moore Born in Houston and raised in Texas, began her studies at the University of North Texas, where she originally planned to study Jazz. Fortunately for opera lovers, one of her teachers convinced her to study classical music. She continued as a student of Bill Schuman at the Academy of Vocal Arts, Philadelphia where she graduated in 2005.

Of African-American ancestry, she grew up with Black music, and at age 8 began to sing in the church choir of the New Sunrise Baptist Church, where her grandfather, Cranford Moore, was a pastor. In her youth, she sang in the Texas All-State Choir.[3] Moore first studied gospel and jazz, until Pattye Johnstone, one of her teachers at the University of North Texas, convinced her to study classical music.

Moore made her opera debut in 1998 at the Palm Beach Opera in West Palm Beach, and was engaged, as a student, in the same year, at the Houston Opera Ebony.

In 2000, she won the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.

In New York City, Moore attracted critical praise for her 2008 performance with the Opera Orchestra of New York in Puccini's Edgar.

In March 2012, she made a worldwide sensation Metropolitan Opera debut as a late replacement for Violeta Urmana as Aïda, in a live broadcast.

Moore is featured on commercial recordings of the Mahler Symphony No 2 (Deutsche Grammophon 0289 474 5942 2) and of Verdi's Macbeth (sung in English, Chandos CHAN 3180(2)).

In January 2016, Moore performed for the newly revived New York City Opera in Puccini's Tosca, at the Rose Theater, in Lincoln Center.

In April 2016, she sang the lead role of Cio-Cio San in the San Diego Opera's performance of Puccini's Madama Butterfly, garnering critical recognition for her acting, her "rich, supple and multi-octave soprano voice" and vocal interpretation.

Moore appeared in 2018 with Opera Australia in the title role of Giacomo Puccini's Tosca, delivering a critically acclaimed "complex performance" with a voice of "luxurious colour and brilliance at the top.”

Currently, Latonia is singing Serena in the opening night of the MET’s 2019 season’s Porgy and Bess.

Here is some of Latonia’s press: About her Amelia in Un Ballo in Maschera at Hamburgische Staatsoper, Hamburg“The first time I heard Latonia Moore was as Amelia in Un Ballo in Maschera. I was deeply impressed right from the beginning, but when she started her duet with Riccardo in the second Act it left me breathless. Since then, I try not to miss any of her performances.”……………… Nico Tillmann This was written about her Liu at The Royal Opera, Covent Garden:“Moore’s creamy, lyric soprano could take her to the top of her profession.”………Hugh Canning Opera