VanderLaan Prize

Praised for her “strongly centered, richly textured soprano,” by New York Magazine and her “poignant soprano” for her moving portrayals, by the New York Times the versatile soprano has distinguished herself as a celebrated artist in her field.

A notable interpreter of the role of Bess in Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Opera News wrote, “The incandescent Indira Mahajan as Bess delivered an unforgettable performance. Mahajan’s experience is evident not only in her detailed acting but also in the exquisite way she shapes her vocal lines. It is a wonderful instrument with a sexy lower register and a thrilling top.”

Ms. Mahajan is the recipient of the prestigious Marian Anderson Award, joining the ranks of notable opera singers such as Denyce Graves, Angel Blue, and Lawrence Brownlee. Her most recent highlights include Ricky Ian Gordon’s, The Tibetan Book of the Dead with Opera Grand Rapids, Kamala Sankaram’s, Thumbprint with Portland Opera, She Who Dared, by Jasmine Barnes, and the role of Golde in Alex Weiser’s Tevye’s Daughters with National Lyric Theater in New York.

Recent operatic performances also include Amelia in Un Ballo in Maschera, Elena in I Vespri Siciliani, and Santuzza in Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana. She has also performed the iconic title roles of Aida, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, Suor Angelica and Lucia di Lammermoor.

She can be heard on recording with the Dallas Symphony performing Steven Stucky’s August 4, 1964, conducted by Jaap van Zweden. Recently, she was featured on the EP album Heritage and Harmony: Silver Linings with pianist and creator, Donna Wang, winning two Silver Medals at the 2022 Global Music Awards. In collaboration with the National Women’s History Museum, Ms. Mahajan appeared in Heritage and Harmony: Her Art, Her Voice, featuring celebrated AAPI/BIPOC artists including dancer, Misty Copland.

She has appeared on PBS’s “Live from Lincoln Center,” the Richard Tucker Gala in New York, and has been featured on public television in Madama Butterfly, and classical public radio in performances of La Boheme, I Pagliacci, and Aida throughout the United States.

Indira Mahajan was born in New York City to a South Asian father from Dalhousie, India, and a Black American mother from Raleigh, North Carolina. She began her musical studies at the age of five as a violinist and later continued her studies with her mother and first voice teacher, Juilliard-trained musician, Barbara Mahajan.

Indira has a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College, a Master of Music degree, and an Advanced Professional Studies degree from Mannes College of Music. She also holds a diploma from the Accademia Musicale Ottorino Respighi and graduated from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & the Performing Arts in New York.

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He has performed as a resident in San Francisco Opera’s Merola Opera Program as well as with The Metropolitan Opera Education, The Metropolitan Opera Guild, Opera Philadelphia, The Atlanta Opera, Carnegie Hall, Mannes Opera, Dallas Opera’s The Hart Institute for Women Conductors, Opera Grand Rapids, Sarasota Opera, The Phoenicia International Festival of The Voice, Opera in Williamsburg, Tacoma Opera, First Look Sonoma, Paul Dresher Ensemble, Presidio Theater, Bare Opera, Opera Vezimra, New Rochelle Opera, Teatro Grattacielo, New Amsterdam Opera, Decameron Opera Coalition, Light Opera of New Jersey, Loft Opera, Opera Ithaca, Barn Opera, Teatro Lirico D’Europa, The Palmetto Opera, Amore Opera, Sinfonietta of Riverdale, The New York Concert Opera, New York Grand Opera, New York Lyric Opera, Jamestown Concert Association, Fairfield County Chorale, Lyric Chamber Music Society of New York, Sign & Sing, NYU IMPACT Conference, MidAmerica Productions, National Theater of Korea, Seoul Arts Center and several opera companies in South Korea.

His role credits include Don Giovanni and Leporello in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Count and Figaro in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro, Guglielmo in Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte, Papageno in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, Hoël in Meyerbeer’s Dinorah, Enrico in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, Belcore in Donizetti’s L’Elisir D’amore, Marcello and Schaunard in Puccini’s La Bohéme, Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff, Alfonso in Donizetti’s La Favorita, Silvio in Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci, David in Mascagni’s L’Amico Fritz, Roberto in Verdi’s I vespri siciliani, Marullo in Verdi’s Rigoletto, Giorgio Germont and Barone Douphol in Verdi’s La Traviata, Tarquinius in Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, Dandini in Rossini’s La Cenerentola, Germano in Rossini’s La Scala di Seta, Tobia Mill in Rossini’s La cambiale di matrimonio, Yamadori and Bonzo in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, Escamillo and Dancaïre in Bizet’s Carmen, Le Marquis de la Force and Jailer in Poulenc’s Dialogues of the Carmelites, Hermann and Schlemil in Offenbach’s Les contes d’Hoffmann, Salieri in Rimsky-Korsakov’s Mozart and Salieri, Paquiro in Granados’ Goyescas, Fiorello and L’Ufficiale in Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Le chat and L’horlage comtoise in Ravel’s L’Enfant et Les Sortilèges, Simeon from Debussy’s L’Enfant Prodigue, Payador from Piazzolla’s María de Buenos Aires, Father in Kamala Sankaram’s Thumbprint, Bass in Ricky Ian Gordon’s The Tibetan Book of the Dead, King Solomon in Dina Pruzhansky’s Hebrew opera ‘Shulamit’, Jinzo Matsumoto in Max Giteck Duykers and Philip Kan Gotanda’s Both Eyes Open, Lum May in Gregory Youtz and Zhang Er’s Tacoma Method. The Critic in John Gilbert’s multimedia opera ‘Rotation’, Strange Man in Faye Chiao’s ‘Island of the Moon’ and Leonitis in 5^th Grader of St. David’s School and Thomas Cabaniss’ ‘A Hero’s Journey’.

He was an Eastern District Winner in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in 2011 and he received the Opera Award from Mannes Opera in 2013. Mr. Kim holds a Bachelor of Music from Korea National University of Arts and a Master’s Degree and a Professional Studies Diploma from Mannes College, the New School for Music. He studies with Arthur Levy.

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With his musical roots firmly planted in the traditions of the standard operatic repertoire from the Baroque Era to Puccini and beyond, his affinity for contemporary works is also acclaimed by audiences and critics.

Deaton is frequently entrusted with the development and premieres of new works as a musical authority, specifically with vocal and orchestral writing. He led workshops for The Falling and the Rising, by Zach Redler and Jerre Dye, co-commissioned by the United States Army Soldiers’ Chorus and Field Band, and conducted the premiere of this work along with subsequent performances in New York City earlier this season. He has also worked on Matthew Peterson’s Voir Dire and Libby Larsen’s technologically innovative operatic version of Madeline L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time. Other recent premieres include The Companion and Safe Word from Robert Paterson and David Cote’s opera triptych, Three Way, and Tarik O’Regan and Anna Rabinowitz’s The Wanton Sublime, both with American Opera Projects at Roulette in New York City.

Additional highlights include Hal Prince’s production of Candide with New York City Opera, American Modern Ensemble’s productions of Robert Paterson and Mark Campbell’s The Whole Truth, and Stewart Copeland and David Bamberger’s version of The Cask of Amontillado. Deaton has opened the Anchorage Opera season conducting Lucia di Lammermoor with the Anchorage Symphony while two other pinnacles of the Bel Canto canon, Norma, and Guillaume Tell, rounded out his season.

He joined San Francisco Opera for their production of Sweeney Todd, soon followed by his debut at Opera Birmingham with L’elixir d’amore. As guest conductor, he also played continuo for Le Nozze di Figaro at The Janiec Opera Company at the Brevard Music Center. He reprised this opera for his Kentucky Opera debut in 2020, following soon after the initial workshop of The Snowy Day for Houston Grand Opera.

Tyson Deaton made his Fort Worth Opera debut in the inaugural production of the “Opera Unbound” series with Tom Cipullo’s Glory Denied, and is heard conducting the premiere recording of this work on the Albany label. Lauded as “Best of 2013” in the Washington Post, it was also rated among the “12 Best Full-Length Opera Recordings of 2014” by OperaNews. Other digital releases include the Offenbach rarity L’île de Tulipatan (Albany), and with Julia Kogan, “In Jest,” (First Hand Records – UK) recorded at Champs Hill.

Adept on the concert stage as well as in the orchestra pit, Tyson Deaton has worked with musical forces ranging from intimate to those including the Louisville Orchestra, Fort Worth Symphony, Alabama Symphony, Anchorage Symphony, and The American Modern Orchestra. He has partnered with artists including Denyce Graves, Michael Norsworthy, Talise Trevigne, Linda Wang, Judith Kellock, Julie Landsman, Victoria Livengood, Craig Mumm, Othalie Graham, and Sherrill Milnes, among many others. Along with Steven LaBrie, he collaborated with the Jessica Lang Dance Company on a staged version of Die Schöne Müllerin at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, “render[ing] the score with compelling artistry,” according to the New York Times.

Deaton has been presented in recital alongside Matthew Grills at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which included Benjamin Britten’s Canticle I, one of the featured events celebrating that composer’s centenary. He performs regularly with baritone Matthew Worth: their most recent program touches three centuries of the American musical heritage. A fervent advocate for the music of our time, Deaton has commissioned a number of works including David T. Little’s setting of To a Stranger, co-commissioned by The Walt Whitman Project of New York.

Deaton’s academic appointments have included those at the University of the Pacific and Lawrence Conservatory, and as an Artist-in-Residence at McGill University in Montreal. He has been a guest at Yale, Rice, and Carnegie-Mellon Universities, and others. The singers he has coached occupy the rosters of The Metropolitan Opera, Bayerische Staatsoper, San Francisco Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Houston Grand Opera, Liceu-Barcelona, Paris Opera, The Barbican, Oper Frankfurt, La Scala and other major venues throughout the world.

As a clinician for both pianists and singers, he is often invited to give masterclasses and lectures on collaborative and operatic literature. For Opera America he has served as a panelist for Making Connections and Career Blueprints workshops, commissioning grants, and is a featured contributor to their ArtistLink publication. Included among Deaton’s adjudication activity, are the ASCAP Plus Composer Awards, the HGO Bauer Family Competition, Opera at Florham, and Sam Houston State Song Festival. He was a primary interviewee for an article centered around post-secondary classical vocal music education for ClassicalSinger magazine in the September 2013 issue.

Deaton’s extensive experience as a pianist, coach, recitalist, chamber musician, and his training and work as a singer, give him a unique perspective in understanding the demands of the whole performance as a conductor: above all, encouraging individual artistry at the highest level.

Tyson Deaton maintains his primary residence in New York City.

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Serving as a collaborative pianist at Michigan State University, Mira plays for the MSU Opera under Prof. Helton, showcasing her talent in productions like Mozart’s La finta giardiniera, and Don Giovanni, Verdi’s Falstaff, and Sondheim’s A Little Night Music. She also provides accompaniment for the Singing Spartans (the former MSU Men’s Glee Choir), directed by Dr. Reed, and supports vocal students in Prof. Fracker’s studio. Her participation in numerous master classes, including those led by Helmut Deutsch and Cameron Stowe, highlights her commitment to continual learning and growth.

Mira’s accompaniment repertoire extends to various music classes, instrumental and vocal recitals, and ensemble performances within MSU. Her previous engagements include facilitating master classes at the Centro Studi Carlo Della Giacoma in Todi, Italy, collaborating with Viridis (the former MSU Women’s Glee Choir), and participating at the Interlochen Arts Summer Camp. Currently, she serves as the choir pianist at the First Presbyterian Church in Holt, continuing her dedicated involvement in both educational and community music settings.

Mira Choi is currently a DMA student in Collaborative Piano at Michigan State University, studying with Zhihua Tang. She holds a master’s degree from Michigan State University under Zhihua Tang, maters’s degree from Sungshin Women’s University in Korea under Jinhye Lee and Gyeongju Jang, and her bachelor’s degree from Kyungnam University in Korea, studying with Soohyun Cho.

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