GRAMMY® Award-winning baritone Daniel Belcher has graced the stages of the world's foremost music capitals. With a repertoire encompassing almost 100 roles, Belcher’s rise to international acclaim occurred in 2004 when he originated the role of Prior Walter in Peter Eötvös' Angels in America at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, prompting London’s The Guardian to declare that he possessed "the kind of powerhouse artistry that signals a star in the making." In the 2023-2024 season, Mr. Belcher portrayed Gabriel von Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus with Pensacola Opera, made a role debut as Benoit/Alcindoro in La bohème at Utah Opera, and returned to Houston Grand Opera as Max Dettweiler in The Sound of Music. In the current season, he portrays Officer Krupke in West Side Story with Houston Grand Opera.

 

Mr. Belcher has made an indelible impact on contemporary opera. Mr. Belcher created the roles of Inspector Kildare in Puts/Campbell’s Elizabeth Cree at Opera Philadelphia, James Addison III in Gordon/Vavrek’s The House Without a Christmas Tree at Houston Grand Opera and released on the Pentatone label; Lord Bellingham in Laitman/Mason’s The Scarlet Letter at Opera Colorado and released on the Naxos label, Brian Castner in Beck/Fleischmann’s The Long Walk with Opera Saratoga, Alfred Stieglitz in Kaminsky/Campbell/Reed’s Today it Rains with Opera Parallèle, and Robert Kennedy in de Raaff’s Waiting for Miss Monroe for his debut at The Netherlands Opera and Holland Festival. World premiere roles with Houston Grand Opera include John Brooke in Adamo’s Little Women released on the Ondine label and recorded by PBS’ Great Performances, Andy Warhol in Daugherty’s Jackie O released by Decca on the Argo label, and multiple roles in Machover's Resurrection released on the Ondine label.

 

Mr. Belcher is similarly celebrated for his talent in bringing Rossini's music to life, with a strong association to the characters of Dandini in La Cenerentola, Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Taddeo in L’italiana in Algeri, with houses including San Francisco Opera, Opera Philadelphia, Arizona Opera, Opera Colorado, Utah Opera, Portland Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Florentine Opera, the New National Theatre, Tokyo, and Houston Grand Opera.

 

In recent years, Mr. Belcher appeared as Lawrence in The Wreckers at Houston Grand Opera and Frank/Fritz in Die tote Stadt with Opera Colorado, William in The Fall of the House of Usher and Street Singer/Tiger Brown in The Threepenny Opera with Boston Lyric Opera; Sharpless in Madama Butterfly at the Lyric Opera of Kansas City; Fredrik Egerman in A Little Night Music at Madison Opera; Melchior in Amahl and the Night Visitors with On Site Opera; Older Thompson in Glory Denied with Berkshire Opera Festival; Beaumarchais in The Ghosts of Versailles and Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia at Chautauqua Opera; and Gabriel von Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus at Utah Opera. Internationally, he portrayed the Captain of the Guard in Henze’s The Bassarids for his first performances in Madrid with the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España. His recording of Bill in Bernstein's A Quiet Place with Kent Nagano and the Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal was released on the Decca label in 2018.

 

Other roles include Ping in Turandot (Opera Philadelphia, Atlanta Opera), Owen Hart in Dead Man Walking (Lyric Opera of Kansas City), Brian Castner in The Long Walk (Utah Opera), Orfeo in the Resphigi version of Monteverdi's L'Orfeo (Chautauqua Opera), and Father Palmer in Silent Night (Michigan Opera Theatre). He also had the honor of debuting at Versailles’ Royal Opera House in Lully's Armide following performances of the same work in Toronto with Opera Atelier.

 

Mr. Belcher made his Carnegie Hall debut as a soloist in Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem with the New York Choral Society. Additional concert highlights include Carmina Burana and Copland’s Old American Songs with the Pacific Symphony, Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with the Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra, and concerts with the Houston Symphony Orchestra, and National Symphony Orchestra. He recorded the world premiere of Saariaho’s Sombre for Rothko Chapel with Da Camera of Houston, as well as the leading role of Jaufré Rudel in her L’amour de loin with Kent Nagano and Harmonia Mundi, for which Opera News writes: “Belcher gives a powerful, convincing portrayal of Jaufré, capturing expertly the troubadour’s mercurial disposition.” This recording won the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording, the Diapason d’Or by Diapason in France, and a nomination for Best Opera Recording by Gramophone.

 

Mr. Belcher made his European debut with the Staatstheater Stuttgart in Reinhard Keiser’s Masaniello Furioso. Other European engagements featured him as Ned Keene in Peter Grimes (Grand Théâtre de Genève), Jaufré Rudel in L’amour de loin (Maerzmusik Festival with the Deutsche Symphonie Orchester), Gunther in Sacré Siegfried (Opéra National de Montpellier), Guglielmo in Così fan tutte (Garsington Opera and London’s Barbican Center), the baritone soloist in staged performances of Carmina Burana (St. Gallen Festspiele), Securo in the world premiere of Cherubini’s Koukourgi (Stadttheater Klagenfurt - released on ArtHaus DVD), and the title role in Imeneo (Opera Ireland).

 

Belcher's contributions to the world of opera continue to earn him prestigious awards and recognition, including the Le Cercle International des Amis et Mécènes du Châtelet Award (International Circle of Friends and Patrons of Théâtre du Châtelet, CIAM) which he received for his acclaimed performance of Prior Walter in Angels in America. He also received a Robert Jacobson Study Grant from the Richard Tucker Foundation, a Richard F. Gold Career Grant from the Shoshana Foundation for his work with Wolf Trap Opera, the Apprentice Artist Award from the Santa Fe Opera, and the Young Artist Award and Outstanding Studio Artist Award from the Central City Opera. Mr. Belcher a proud graduate of the Young Artist program at Houston Grand Opera. He is currently on faculty at the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music as a Professor of Voice.