Soloists

J’Nai Bridges - Puck

American mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges is one of the pre-eminent vocal talents of her generation, renowned for her rich voice and commanding stage presence. She has won two Grammy Awards for Best Opera Recording, as Nefertiti in Philip Glass’ Akhnaten, and as Lucinda in Jake Heggie’s Intelligence, and was named a Kennedy Center NEXT50 cultural leader in 2022.

Bridges has performed leading roles at many of the world’s major opera houses including John Adams’ El Niño, conducted by Marin Alsop, at the Metropolitan Opera and Carmen at San Francisco Opera, Arena di Verona, Hamburg Staatsoper, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Wiener Staatsoper and Teatro Real, Madrid. She recently made three critically acclaimed role debuts, as Didon in concert performances of Les Troyens at Seattle Opera under Ludovic Morlot, as Dalila in Samson et Dalila at Washington National Opera under John Fiore and as Erika in Barber’s Vanessa with National Symphony Orchestra under Gianandrea Noseda.

Bridges recently premiered Carlos Simon’s Songs of Separation alongside Berio’s Folk Songs with the National Symphony Orchestra under Noseda and debuted with the London Symphony Orchestra under Sir Antonio Pappano in a programme of Tippett and Beethoven. Highlights of the upcoming season include Önaç’s Atlantic Requiem with London Symphony Orchestra under Anthony Parnther, Mozart’s Requiem with Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin under Jeannette Sorrell, and Berlioz’s Roméo et Juliette with Seattle Symphony under Hugh Wolff.