ABOUT

Mezzo-soprano Julianna Smith is an enthusiastic performer and current Resident Artist at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, PA. This season, she will perform as Siebel in Charles Gounod’s Faust and join the ensemble in performances of Cosi fan tutte and L’amico Fritz. 

Smith was most recently a Studio Artist during the 75th Anniversary Season of the Aspen Music Festival, where she covered the role of Hänsel in Hänsel und Gretel, and performed as Zita in Gianni Schicchi and as Siegrune in Act III of Die Walküre alongside Greer Grimsley and Christine Goerke. 

This past spring, Smith collaborated with composer Jake Heggie for the preview concert of his new opera, Before It All Goes Dark, commissioned and produced by Music of Remembrance. 

Smith is a recent graduate of Northwestern University, where she performed numerous operatic roles, namely Dorabella in Così fan tutte, Hänsel in Hänsel und Gretel, Ruggiero in Alcina, Zweite Dame in Die Zauberflöte, and Leona’s Mother in the midwest premiere of Christopher Cerrone’s In a Grove. In her time at Northwestern, Smith sang in a masterclass for Joyce DiDonato and gave a recital detailing how vocal and human development go hand in hand.

Smith is an avid competitive singer. In the 2023-2024 season, she received an Encouragement Award from the Kansas City District of the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition, was awarded First Place in the Chicago Chapter NATS Auditions, Third Place in the Grand Concours Vocal Competition in Austin, Texas, received the Larry West Award from the student division of the Orpheus Vocal Competition, a Farwell Award from the Musicians Club of Women in Chicago, IL, and an Encouragement Award from the Camille Coloratura Awards in her hometown of Towson, Maryland. 

A Vocal Fellow of the 2023 Manetti Shrem Opera Program at Festival Napa Valley, Smith “channeled the emotional challenge affectingly” (San Francisco Classical Review) as the alto soloist in Lera Auerbach’s Symphony No. 6. Further concert works in which Smith was featured include Mozart’s Coronation Mass with the Philharmonic Society of Arlington, Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater in Lynnfield, MA, the world premiere of The World is Too Much With Us with the Lowell Chamber Orchestra, and Chris Thile’s autobiographical musical work, Attention! at Aspen Music Festival.

Smith was previously a Studio Artist with Opera Neo, an Apprentice Artist with the Miami Beach Classical Music Festival, and spent a semester abroad in Vienna, Austria, as a student of the IES: Music program. 

Smith holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Maryland. (Go Terps!) She is a proud Marylander and enjoys using Old Bay Seasoning to add life to all of her food.