“Kristin Gornstein’s portrayal of Piramo was masterful. She sang the difficult role with a truly flawless lyric mezzo, finding opportunities to show both the character’s humor and heartbreak in a melismatic turn or with a glance.”
- Steven Jude Tietjen, Opera News, Piramo e Tisbe
photos by Scott McCormick
English Bio
Russ Rowland, above and home page
Praised as “a fine actress with a deep, spacious sound” [Parterre], American mezzo-soprano Kristin Gornstein brings her “rich-voiced mezzo-soprano” and “lines of an uncannily silky legato” [New York Times] to her work, ranging from the traditional to the edgy and imaginative. She performs baroque and contemporary works in equal measure, and was lauded for her portrayal of Piramo in Johan Hasse’s baroque gem Piramo e Tisbe with The Little Opera Theatre of New York, with Opera News calling her performance, “...masterful. She sang the difficult role with a truly flawless lyric mezzo”. In October 2022 she enjoyed her Lincoln Center debut in the role of Wang Sheng in the China Now Music Festival’s production of Painted Skin, and most recently she has sung the title role in Dido and Aeneas with Opera Fort Collins, as well as Antonio in Hasse’s Antonio e Cleopatra with the Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado. Upcoming performances include the role of Shtumer Alef in the world premiere of Weiser/Kaplan’s The Great Dictionary of the Yiddish Language with American Opera Projects, and the world premiere of Tonia Ko’s Year of the Orchid song cycle at the Brooklyn Art Song Society’s New Music Festival with her duo, Vertex.
In previous seasons she has been praised for her portrayal of Ramiro in Mozart’s La finta giardiniera in a co-production by On Site Opera and Atlanta Opera, a role she reprised in at Caramoor. She performed in the ensemble of Michael Gordon and Deborah Artman’s groundbreaking opera Acquanetta, both in the world premiere through the Prototype Festival, and in its reprisal at the Bard Summerscape Festival. In addition, the past seasons have included several role debuts: Angelina in Rossini’s La cenerentola with Salt Marsh Opera, Lady-in-Waiting in Verdi’s Macbeth with Opera Company of Middlebury, and Paul in the world premiere of Kurt Vonnegut and Richard Clark’s Happy Birthday, Wanda June with Indianapolis Opera. The 2020-2021 season included a return to the Little Opera Theatre of New York for a digital release of scenes from Mozart’s Il Re Pastore.
Kristin’s work as an oratorio and concert soloist includes, most frequently, the alto solos in Handel’s Messiah. She won third place in the Lyndon Woodside Oratorio Competition at Carnegie Hall in 2018, and has since joined Sacred Music in a Sacred Space as alto soloist for Vivaldi’s Gloria, the NY Wind Symphony for de Meij’s 4th Symphony, Crescendo Baroque for Hasse’s oratorio Laudate Pueri, and the American University of Beirut as the soprano II soloist in Mozart’s Mass in C Minor, among many other performances. Kristin toured with Mark Morris Dance Company’s acclaimed production of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas as an ensemble member, appeared at Lincoln Center with the New York Philharmonic for Honegger’s Jean D’Arc au Bûcher, and has appeared with Grammy winning choral groups Seraphic Fire and Lorilei. Kristin is a regular soloist with the Brooklyn Art Song Society and the Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado, and is a core member of both the Philharmonia Baroque chorus in San Francisco and the St. Martin’s Chamber Choir in Denver.
Robert Altman for the NY Times
In 2020, Kristin established the duo Vertex with pianist Jeremy Chan, with whom she has enjoyed an active performing relationship since 2015. They have released two recordings; a self-produced EP Still, in 2020, followed by a full-length album entitled Joy, Too, with Navona Records in 2024. Vertex premiered five songs by composer Tonia Ko in the New Voices Festival at Roulette with the Brooklyn Art Song Society in June 2025.
Ms. Gornstein was a Fellow with Tanglewood Music Center, where she was featured as Federico Lorca in excerpts from Osvaldo Golijov’s opera Ainadamar. She attended the Opera College of Stockholm for a post-graduate certificate in extended opera practices, through which she performed at the Royal Opera (Stockholm), premiering as the mezzo-soprano soloist in Carl Unander-Scharin’s Opera Mecatronica, and reprising that performance in Operadagen Rotterdam Festival’s production of Distant Voices. She began her career as a young artist with Opera New Jersey, Caramoor Bel Canto, and Indianapolis Opera. She holds a Master of Music in Voice Performance from the University of Colorado, and a Bachelor of Music in Performance from Butler University. She credits her love of opera to the unique opportunity given to Butler voice students; singing in the professional chorus with Indianapolis Opera. In fact she made her professional solo debut there, singing the small role of Kaetchen in Massenet’s Werther. It is an experience she would recommend to any singer looking to learn about all that goes into making opera happen.
Steven Pisano
Biographie
Die amerikanische Mezzosopranistin Kristin Gornstein wird als „großartige Schauspielerin mit tiefem, raumgreifendem Klang“ [Parterre] gepriesen und bringt ihren „vollen Mezzosopran“ und „Linien eines unheimlich seidigen Legato“ [New York Times] in ihre Arbeit ein. Sie singt sowohl barockes als auch zeitgenössisches Repertoire und erhält gleichermaßen Beifall. Kürzlich gab sie ihr Debüt im Lincoln Center in der Roll der Wang Sheng in der Produktion der Oper Painted Skin beim China Now Music Festival und sang zuletzt die Titelrolle in Dido and Aeneas mit Opera Fort Collins sowie Antonio in Hasses Antonio e Cleopatra mit dem Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado. Zu ihren bevorstehenden Auftritten gehören die Rolle der Shtumer Alef in der Weltpremiere von Weiser/Kaplans The Great Dictionary of the Yiddish Language und die Weltpremiere von Tonia Kos Liederzyklus Year of the Orchid beim New Music Festival der Brooklyn Art Song Society mit ihrem Duo Vertex.
Kristins Arbeit als Oratorien- und Konzertsolistin umfasst vor allem die Alt-Soli in Händels Messias. Sie gewann 2018 den dritten Platz beim Lyndon Woodside Oratorio Competition in der Carnegie Hall und ist seitdem Solistin bei Sacred Music in a Sacred Space für Vivaldis Gloria, beim NY Wind Symphony für de Meijs 4. Symphonie, bei Crescendo Baroque für Hasses Oratorien Laudate Pueri und Miserere und an der American University of Beirut als Sopran-II-Solistin in Mozarts c-Moll-Messe, neben vielen anderen Oratorienaufführungen. Sie tourte als Ensemblemitglied mit der gefeierten Produktion von Purcells Dido and Aeneas der Mark Morris Dance Company, trat im Lincoln Center mit dem New York Philharmonic für Honeggers Jean D’Arc au Bûcher auf und hatte zahlreiche Konzertauftritte in Caramoor mit Vertex. Kristin ist ein festes Mitglied der Brooklyn Art Song Society, des Philharmonia Baroque Chorale (San Francisco) und des St. Martin’s Chamber Choir (Denver).
Im Jahr 2020 gründete Kristin das Duo Vertex mit dem Pianisten Jeremy Chan, mit dem sie seit 2015 aktiv auftritt. Das Duo veröffentlichte zwei Aufnahmen: die selbstproduzierte EP „Still“, gefolgt von einem Album mit dem Titel „Joy, Too“ (2024 bei Navona Records), das Werke zeitgenössischer Komponisten enthält, die sich mit Themen wie Freude und Trauer auseinandersetzen.