Biography
During the 1990s Jane Eaglen rose to prominence as the leading dramatic soprano of her generation, the first major voice of that stature to appear since Birgit Nilsson’s retirement. She also displayed striking versatility across the operas of Mozart, Bellini, Puccini, Verdi, and Strauss.
A neighbor in her native Lincoln, England, in the north Midlands, noticed the child’s musical interest and urged piano lessons at age five. Instruction continued until she turned sixteen. Her tastes ran chiefly to pop and rock rather than classical music, and she entertained no thoughts of an operatic career. Her developing instrument, however, revealed a pure, sweet timbre unsuited to popular styles, prompting her piano teacher to recommend vocal study instead.
Between the ages of sixteen and seventeen she worked with a local teacher. When that instructor predicted she would one day sing Norma and Brünnhilde, Jane replied ingenuously, “Are they good?”
An application to the Guildhall School in London was declined. She then auditioned for Joseph Ward, voice professor at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, who discerned her latent ability and accepted her as a student. Eaglen has recalled that “four or five notes in the middle of my voice that sounded like something” must have caught his attention. Ward began acquainting her with the music and stylistic conventions of Bellini and Wagner so she would be prepared when the moment arrived, yet he advised patience, noting that sizable voices usually require extended development.
At twenty-two she became a member of the English National Opera. Overnight success did not follow. She spent several seasons in modest assignments such as Berta, the maid in The Barber of Seville, and one of the trio of Ladies in Mozart’s The Magic Flute. The role of Leonora in Verdi’s Il Trovatore came next, after which she created a sensation as Santuzza in Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana.
Her first international recognition arrived with Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni. She performed the part at the Vienna State Opera, in Munich and Bologna, and at her Metropolitan Opera debut in New York. Further roles included Amelia in Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera, Turandot, Tosca, La Gioconda, and Strauss’s Ariadne. Fulfilling her earliest teacher’s forecast, she became especially identified with Bellini’s Norma; The London Sunday Times dubbed her “The Norma of the 1990’s.”
Entering Wagner’s repertory, she gave a thrilling account of Isolde in Seattle. She notes strong affinities between Norma and Isolde, particularly in the character of the melodic line, since Wagner admired Bellini’s writing. Completing the second part of her first teacher’s prediction, she sang her initial Ring cycle as Brünnhilde at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. In spring 2000 she was scheduled to perform the complete role in the Metropolitan Opera’s internationally broadcast radio series.
Jane Eaglen records exclusively for the Sony Music label.
A neighbor in her native Lincoln, England, in the north Midlands, noticed the child’s musical interest and urged piano lessons at age five. Instruction continued until she turned sixteen. Her tastes ran chiefly to pop and rock rather than classical music, and she entertained no thoughts of an operatic career. Her developing instrument, however, revealed a pure, sweet timbre unsuited to popular styles, prompting her piano teacher to recommend vocal study instead.
Between the ages of sixteen and seventeen she worked with a local teacher. When that instructor predicted she would one day sing Norma and Brünnhilde, Jane replied ingenuously, “Are they good?”
An application to the Guildhall School in London was declined. She then auditioned for Joseph Ward, voice professor at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, who discerned her latent ability and accepted her as a student. Eaglen has recalled that “four or five notes in the middle of my voice that sounded like something” must have caught his attention. Ward began acquainting her with the music and stylistic conventions of Bellini and Wagner so she would be prepared when the moment arrived, yet he advised patience, noting that sizable voices usually require extended development.
At twenty-two she became a member of the English National Opera. Overnight success did not follow. She spent several seasons in modest assignments such as Berta, the maid in The Barber of Seville, and one of the trio of Ladies in Mozart’s The Magic Flute. The role of Leonora in Verdi’s Il Trovatore came next, after which she created a sensation as Santuzza in Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana.
Her first international recognition arrived with Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni. She performed the part at the Vienna State Opera, in Munich and Bologna, and at her Metropolitan Opera debut in New York. Further roles included Amelia in Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera, Turandot, Tosca, La Gioconda, and Strauss’s Ariadne. Fulfilling her earliest teacher’s forecast, she became especially identified with Bellini’s Norma; The London Sunday Times dubbed her “The Norma of the 1990’s.”
Entering Wagner’s repertory, she gave a thrilling account of Isolde in Seattle. She notes strong affinities between Norma and Isolde, particularly in the character of the melodic line, since Wagner admired Bellini’s writing. Completing the second part of her first teacher’s prediction, she sang her initial Ring cycle as Brünnhilde at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. In spring 2000 she was scheduled to perform the complete role in the Metropolitan Opera’s internationally broadcast radio series.
Jane Eaglen records exclusively for the Sony Music label.
Albums
Strauss & Mozart: Soprano Arias
2019
Puccini: Turandot
2002
Verdi: Aida
2002
Italian Opera Arias
2001
Jane Eaglen Sings Mozart & Strauss
1998
Jane Eaglen Sings Italian Opera Arias
1998
Jane Eaglen Sings Vincenzo Bellini & Wagner
1996
Puccini: Tosca
1996
Jane Eaglen Sings Tosca
1996
Mayr: Medea in Corinto
1994
Mayr: Medea in Corinto (Highlights)
1994
Live
