American soprano Maria Valdes has been praised by the New York Times as a “first-rate singing actress.” She is lauded for her interpretations of Mozart and the leading heroines of the operatic canon, and has made her mark on the classics of symphonic repertoire and new works. In 2025-2026, she returns to Symphony San Jose for Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem, Spanish River Concerts for “Broadway to Opera”, and The Metropolitan Opera to cover Frida Image #1 in El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego. Also this season, Valdes will sing Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 with the Valdosta Symphony and the Bellingham Festival of Music, marking her sixth performance of the work amongst companies including the Greensboro Symphony, Symphony San Jose and the California Symphony. In the spring, she makes her Carnegie Hall debut as the soprano soloist in Terre Johnson’s Te Deum with MidAmerica Productions. Next season, Ms. Valdes returns to the Hawaii Opera Theater to sing Wendy Torrance in The Shining, joins Omaha Symphony Choral Collaborative as the soprano soloist in Carmina Burana, and sings the role of Violetta in La traviata with Charlottesville Opera.