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| Gene Scheer | |
|---|---|
| Name | Gene Scheer |
| Occupations | Librettist, lyricist, composer, poet |
Gene Scheer is an American librettist, lyricist, composer, and poet known for collaborations with leading composers and for creating texts for contemporary opera, art song, and concert works. Scheer has worked with figures and institutions across the global performing arts landscape, contributing to premieres at major houses and orchestras. His work bridges collaborations with composers, conductors, singers, and cultural organizations while engaging with literary and historical subjects.
Scheer was born and raised in the United States and pursued musical and literary studies that led him to connections with conservatories and universities. During formative years he engaged with conservatory programs, poetry workshops, and musical theater circles that connected him to institutions such as Juilliard School, Curtis Institute of Music, Yale School of Music, Harvard University, and Columbia University. Early mentors and peers included figures associated with Metropolitan Opera, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Opera, and regional companies such as San Diego Opera and Seattle Opera. His education brought him into contact with poets and composers affiliated with Poets & Writers, Guggenheim Fellowship networks, and arts foundations in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and Philadelphia.
Scheer’s career spans collaborations with contemporary composers as librettist and lyricist for operas, song cycles, theater pieces, and oratorios premiered by ensembles, festivals, and opera houses. He has worked with composers who are associated with institutions like Metropolitan Opera, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, and Santa Fe Opera. Conductors and directors in his orbit include artists from New York Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Chicago Lyric Opera, and Royal Opera House. Scheer’s texts have been set for performances at festivals and venues such as Tanglewood Music Festival, Avery Fisher Hall, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, BBC Proms, Edinburgh Festival, Aix-en-Provence Festival, and the Wigmore Hall.
He has written libretti and lyrics for stage works commissioned by opera companies and orchestras and contributed translations and adaptive texts for revivals and recordings involving labels and producers like Deutsche Grammophon, Sony Classical, Warner Classics, Naxos, and Pentatone. His collaborators include composers, singers, and directors tied to institutions such as Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Opéra National de Paris, La Scala, Teatro Real, Bayerische Staatsoper, and regional companies including Lyric Opera of Chicago and Dallas Opera.
Scheer’s notable collaborations include song cycles, operas, and concert works created with composers whose activities intersect with major performers and festivals. He provided the libretto for operatic projects with composers who have worked with Yo-Yo Ma, Renée Fleming, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Plácido Domingo, and Jessye Norman. His texts have been performed by soloists associated with Metropolitan Opera, Royal Opera House, Vienna State Opera, and recitalists who appear at Carnegie Hall and Wigmore Hall. Scheer collaborated on premieres presented by ensembles such as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Opera, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and at festivals including Tanglewood Music Festival, BBC Proms, and Aix-en-Provence Festival.
He has worked with composers who have affiliations with labels and institutions like Deutsche Grammophon, Sony Classical, Naxos, Warner Classics, and presenters such as Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Kennedy Center, and Avery Fisher Hall. Collaborators include conductors and directors known from Metropolitan Opera, Royal Opera House, San Francisco Opera, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, and Santa Fe Opera.
Scheer’s texts reflect influences from poets, dramatists, and librettists linked to literary and musical institutions. His lyricism shows affinities with poets and writers associated with Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, Columbia University, and literary figures connected to Poets & Writers and the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Musically, his collaborators come from traditions represented by Verdi, Puccini, Mozart, Richard Strauss, and modern composers active at Tanglewood Music Festival and Glyndebourne Festival Opera. His stylistic range engages dramatic narrative, historical subjects, and intimate songcraft suitable for solo recitalists and full-scale opera productions at venues like Metropolitan Opera and Royal Opera House.
Scheer’s work has been recognized by cultural organizations and awarding bodies tied to the performing arts ecosystem, including fellowships, commissions, and awards associated with institutions such as the Guggenheim Fellowship, MacArthur Fellows Program, National Endowment for the Arts, American Academy of Arts and Letters, and foundations supporting opera and song. His premieres and recordings have been honored in contexts involving Grammy Awards, critical prizes from publications linked to The New York Times, The Guardian, and arts organizations connected to Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center.
Scheer’s personal and professional life intersects with the operatic, orchestral, and recital communities centered in cities such as New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. He collaborates regularly with singers, composers, conductors, and institutions present in the networks of Metropolitan Opera, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Opera, and festival circuits including Tanglewood Music Festival and BBC Proms.
Category:American librettists Category:American lyricists