Mary Anne Spangler Scott, soprano
A native of Warsaw, Illinois, Mary Anne Spangler Scott began her
professional career in Chicago after graduating from the Wheaton
College Conservatory of Music. Her debut operatic role was Monica
in The Medium, which toured the Chicago area. With a
scholarship from the Chicago Musicians Club of Women, she was able
to study with such vocal coaches as Giulio Favario of the Lyric
Opera of Chicago and Julius Berger of the Metropolitan Opera.
During this time, she was a regional finalist in the Metropolitan
Opera Auditions and a winner in the Merola Opera Auditions. She was
an apprentice artist for two summers at the Wolf Trap Farm Park for
the Performing Arts working with such renowned artists as Beverly
Sills, John Reardon, Sarah Caldwell, John Moriarty and others.
Afterwards she began a three-year engagement with the Stadttheater
in Berne, Switzerland, performing twelve leading roles, including
Mimi in La Boheme, Constanza in The Abduction from the
Seraglio, Pamina in The Magic Flute, Marzelline in
Fidelio, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, Euridice in
Orfeo ed Euridice, and others. Upon returning to the U.S.,
she has performed such roles as Hannah in The Merry Widow
and Violetta in La Traviata with regional opera companies
and has been guest soloist with regional orchestras, including the
Richmond (Virginia) Symphony in collaboration with the Hartford
Ballet in performances of Carmina Burana. She has
performed extensively as oratorio soloist and as a guest
recitalist, including several appearances at the Cultural Center of
Chicago on its "Award Winners in Concert" series.
In 1989, she co-founded the Muddy River Opera Company in Quincy,
Illinois, and was its Artistic Director until 1998. While there she
was recognized with an individual artist award from the city of
Quincy. Since moving to Indianapolis, she has given recitals at
Butler University, Indiana State University, Earlham College and in
Oxford, Ohio and has appeared as guest soloist with the Richmond
(Indiana) Symphony, the Columbus Symphony and the Indianapolis
Philharmonic Orchestra. Other performances include appearances as
guest soloist in the Brahms Requiem at St. Paul's
Episcopal Church and in Ralph Vaughan Williams's Hodie at
Christ Church Cathedral. She has performed on promotional programs
for the Indianapolis Opera Company and sang the role of Adina in
The Elixir of Love with the Whitewater Opera Company of
Richmond and the Sorg Opera Company of Middletown, Ohio.
Before joining the faculty at Butler University, Ms. Spangler
Scott taught at Earlham College, Millikin University, Western
Illinois University, Quincy University and Virginia Commonwealth
University. She has been a guest clinician for the Illinois Music
Educators Association on the topic of teaching young singers and
has given master classes at high schools, colleges and universities
throughout the Midwest. Students of hers have gone on to programs
at Juilliard, Westminster Choir College, the Universities of
Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and Connecticut, as well as Indiana
University and Southern Methodist University. Others have appeared
on Broadway or have toured with Broadway musicals and have won
competitions, including the Metropolitan Opera National Auditions
and the George London and Mario Lanza competitions. For the past
several years, Ms. Scott has been on the teaching faculty of La
Musica Lirica, a summer opera program in Italy. Each summer Butler
students have accompanied her to this prestigious program.
E-mail: mascott@butler.edu or mngscott@comcast.net
(317) 940-9635