Isaac Bray

Biography

Isaac Bray has performed with musical organizations throughout the United States. Recent performances include the bass soloist for the Mozart Mass in C Minor with the Abilene Christian University A Cappella Chorus, the role of Marcello in La Bohème with the Bar Harbor Music Festival, and the role of Uncle Henry in a studio recording of The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County with Boston Modern Orchestra Project. In the past few seasons, he has performed the role of Jesus in Bach’s Matthäus-Passion with the Bagaduce Chorale, as the bass soloist in the Bach Magnificat with the Acadia Choral Society, as the baritone soloist in the Rutter Gloria with The Bagaduce Chorale, the bass soloist in Handel’s Messiah with the University of Maine Singers, the baritone soloist in Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs with the University of Maine Orchestra, and as the baritone soloist in Belshazzar’s Feast with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra.

On the opera stage, Bray has performed the roles of roles of Dancairo in Carmen with Opera San Antonio, Fiorello in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Opera Grand Rapids, Will Parker in Oklahoma with Charlottesville Opera, Morales/Dancairo in Carmen with Venture Opera, and Gregorio in Romèo et Juliette with Opera Grand Rapids. For the 2014/15 season, Bray was a member of the Florida Grand Opera Young Artist Studio where he performed the roles of Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, Assan in The Consul, and The Official Registrar in Madama Butterfly. 

Mr. Bray is a graduate of the prestigious Boston University Opera Institute. Roles performed with B.U. include the title role in Don Giovanni, Riolobo in Florencia en el Amazonas, the title role in Owen Wingrave, Barone Douphol in La Traviata and Des Grieux in Le portrait de Manon. For consecutive summers in 2013 and 2014, Bray was a Bonfils-Stanton apprentice artist with Central City Opera where he sang the role of Sam in Trouble in Tahiti and Sam in Ned Rorem’s Our Town, as well as covering the roles of Joseph De Rocher in Dead Man Walking, Fiorello in Il barbiere di Siviglia and Ravenal in Show Boat. In 2013, Mr. Bray made his Boston Lyric Opera debut singing the roles of the 2nd Priest and 2nd Man in Armor in a new English translation of The Magic Flute. Mr. Bray received his Masters’ degree from The Boston Conservatory where he sang the title role in Don Giovanni, Ramiro in L’heure espagnole, L’horloge comtoise in L’enfant et les sortilèges, the Father in Hansel and Gretel, and Ko-Ko in The Mikado. He received his Bachelors’ degree in Music Education from Abilene Christian University. While at A.C.U., he performed the roles of Pandolfe in Cendrillon, Guglielmo in Così fan tutte, and Betto in Gianni Schicchi. 

In 2011, Bray was chosen to help represent The Boston Conservatory in a new opera works sampler performance at the National Opera America Conference, and in the summer of 2011 he performed the role of Rambaldo in La Rondine for the Martina Arroyo Prelude to Performance Program in New York City. Bray was also an apprentice artist at the Natchez Festival of Music in 2010. Professional awards include the McGlone Opera Guild Award, and the Central City Opera Young Artist overall award. In addition to his performing schedule, Mr. Bray is on the music faculty at the University of Maine, where he teaches voice. He also serves as the treasurer for the Maine Chapter of the National Association of Teachers of Singing.