Voice Instruction in Binghamton, NY
At Muratori Voice Studio in Binghamton, NY, instructor Mary Lou Muratori teaches two famous bel canto vocal methods to her students:
Lamperti Method
Mary Lou learned the great Francesco Lamperti vocal tradition from renowned instructor Mae Graves Atkins, who studied under internationally acclaimed Metropolitan Opera and Royal Opera House coloratura soprano Marcella Sembrich.
This vocal method emphasizes purity of tone, perfectly accurate intonation, the production of a quality sound, “keeping the voice upon the breath,” and natural breathing from the diaphragm.
Marchesi Method
Mary Lou studied with Signora Nerina Poggi Baldesseri, who sang opera in Italy and taught voice at the University of Florence. Signora Poggi’s mother, who had studied with the most famous voice teacher in the world, soprano Mathilde Marchesi, had passed on Marchesi’s methods to her daughter. Mary Lou now brings the techniques of the Marchesi tradition to her students.
The Marchesi method stresses a naturalistic style of singing, with instinctive breathing and a particular focus on vocal registration.
About Our Instructor, Mary Lou Muratori
Experience:
Lyric coloratura soprano Mary Lou Muratori has sung many major roles with Tri-Cities Opera, including Olympia in Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffman, Lucia in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, Lakme in Delibes’ Lakme, Musetta in Puccini’s La Boheme, Adele in Strauss’s Die Fledermaus, Fiordiligi in Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte, and the Queen of the Night in Mozart’s Die Zauberflote. She sang the role of Mozart’s Despina at the Aspen Music Festival with James Levine, conductor and artistic director of the Metropolitan Opera, and sang the role of Rapunzel in the 1971 premiere performance of Richard Brooks’ opera Rapunzel. Carmen Savoca and Peyton Hibbitt opened the world of opera to the 16-year-old from Deposit, New York, thus creating a whole new exciting world that influenced her for the rest of her life.
Her Teachers:
Mary Lou’s two most influential vocal teachers were Signora Nerina Poggi Baldesseri of Florence, Italy, and Mae Graves Atkins of New York and Chicago (see above).
Pianist and Music Director:
The other love of her life is playing the piano. Mary Lou studied with Mary Wade (the Leschetizky tradition), and Bruce Simmons, dean and piano professor at Yale University. She is in constant demand as an accompanist for numerous professional and amateur singers. Mary Lou has played the piano for Tri-Cities Opera, Robert Driver of Syracuse Opera, and Thomas Mahalik of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. She also accompanies local groups such as Endicott Cabaret and Downtown singers.
As the founder and music director of A Company for Chamber Opera for 20 years, Mary Lou was the pianist and coach for all its productions and used many of her students in performances of the Chamber Opera. Productions included Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors, Puccini’s Suor Angelica, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Pergolesi’s La Serva Padrona, Menotti’s Old Maid and the Thief, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Besoyan’s Little Mary Sunshine, and Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel. She also gave the premiere performance of Owego composer Charles Knauf’s operetta, The Glen.
Mary Lou created and directs a young girls’ chorus called “The Singing Angels,” a group known for producing a clear, beautiful tone that amazes their audiences. They have performed in recitals, church concerts, and at the Phelps Mansion.
Her Students:
Mary Lou is a vocal teacher and coach of the highest caliber who teaches singers in opera, operetta, art songs, oratorio, musical theater and pop from her Binghamton, New York, studio.
Among many others, she has taught voice to tenors Alan Crabb, Jan De Angelo, and Steven Nanni; baroque soprano Veronica Franyutti of Oxford, England; and concert singers Miriam Wright of Chicago, and Katrina Cox of Alabama. Many of her students have gone on to teach voice privately, in public schools, and at the college level. Other pupils have become music therapists, musical theater performers, and pop singers such as Annie Burns of “The Burns Sisters” from Ithaca.
Affiliations:
- Member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing
- Member of the Southern Tier Music Teachers Association
- Harmony Club
- Voice teacher SUNY Binghamton, NY
“Dear Mary Lou,
I remember conducting “Cosi” that summer in Aspen. Tatiana Troyanos sang the role of Dorabella and you sang Despina. Thank you for devoting your life to classical music and to young up and coming artists. Congratulations to you and your teaching.”
-- James Levine, Conductor and Artistic Director of the Metropolitan Opera
