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Houston Grand Opera
Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is an American opera company located in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1955 by German-born impresario Walter Herbert and three local Houstonians, the company is resident at the Wortham Theater Center. This theatre is also home to the Houston Ballet. In its history, the company has received a Tony Award, two Grammy Awards, and three Emmy Awards, the only opera company in the world to win these three honours. Houston Grand Opera is supported by an active auxiliary organization, the Houston Grand Opera Guild, established in October 1955.
In 1955, the German-born impresario Walter Herbert and Houstonians Elva Lobit, Edward Bing, and Charles Cockrell founded the company. Its inaugural season featured two performances of two operas, Salome (starring Brenda Lewis in the title role) and Madama Butterfly. David Gockley succeeded Walter Herbert as general director in 1972. During Gockley's tenure, the company began regularly commissioning and producing new works, primarily from American composers. Gockley remained as general director until 2005.
Anthony Freud succeeded Gockley as general director in 2005, and held the post until 2011. Following Freud's departure, joint leadership was shared between Patrick Summers, who had been music director at HGO since 1998, and Perryn Leech, who joined the company in 2006 and became chief operating officer in 2010. Summers took the titles of artistic director and music director, and Leech became managing director. For the 2017–2018 season, HGO performed at the 'HGO Resilience Theater', a temporary space created in an exhibit hall at the George R. Brown Convention Center, after the Wortham Theater Center was closed due to flooding from Hurricane Harvey in August 2017. Leech stood down as managing director of the company in December 2020.
In June 2021, the company announced the appointment of Khori Dastoor as its next general director and CEO, effective January 2022. Dastoor is the first woman ever named to the posts.
The Houston Grand Opera Orchestra consists of 49 part time professional musicians and plays all Houston Grand Opera performances. The orchestra is a member of the Regional Orchestra Players Association and is a per service orchestra.
No music director was appointed during the Walter Herbert years (1955–72) until 1971, when longtime assistant conductor and chorus master Charles Rosekrans was named. Later music directors/principal conductors include Chris Nance (1974–1977), John DeMain (1977–1994), and Vjekoslav Šutej (1994–1997). Patrick Summers has been the music director since 1998. With the 2019–2020 season, Eun Sun Kim became principal guest conductor, the first female conductor ever to hold the post. In October 2024, the company announced that Summers is to conclude his tenure with Houston Grand Opera in 2026, and subsequently to take the title of music director emeritus. In November 2025, the company announced the appointment of James Gaffigan as its next music director, effective with the 2027-2028 season, with an initial contract of five seasons. Gaffigan is scheduled to take the title of music director-designate for the 2026-2027 season.
The Houston Grand Opera Chorus has been led since 1988 by chorus master Richard Bado, an alumnus of HGO's young artist training program, the Houston Grand Opera Studio.
Houston Grand Opera's young artist development program, The Sarah and Ernest Butler Houston Grand Opera Studio, was founded in 1977 to help young artists make the transition between their academic training and professional careers. The Butler Studio primarily trains young singers and pianist/coaches but has also trained aspiring conductors in a residency program of up to three years. An annual competition, now called the Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers, was inaugurated in 1989 to help identify a pool of potential international artists for the Studio. Studio alumni include sopranos Jan Grissom, Marquita Lister, Ana María Martínez, Edrie Means, Erie Mills, Albina Shagimuratova, Heidi Stober, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, and Tamara Wilson; mezzo-sopranos Jamie Barton, Joyce DiDonato, Denyce Graves, Susanne Mentzer, and Marietta Simpson Archived 2017-11-01 at the Wayback Machine; tenors Bruce Ford, Carroll Freeman and Norman Reinhardt; baritones Richard Paul Fink, and Scott Hendricks; bass-baritones Greer Grimsley, Ryan McKinny Archived 2018-06-28 at the Wayback Machine, and Eric Owens; and bass Eric Halfvarson. Other alumni include HGO Chorus Master Richard Bado, composer/conductor David Hanlon, former Lyric Opera of Kansas City Artistic Director Ward Holmquist, conductor/arranger/composer James Lowe, conductor/pianist Eric Melear, conductor Evan Rogister, and conductor/pianist Craig Terry.
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Houston Grand Opera
Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is an American opera company located in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1955 by German-born impresario Walter Herbert and three local Houstonians, the company is resident at the Wortham Theater Center. This theatre is also home to the Houston Ballet. In its history, the company has received a Tony Award, two Grammy Awards, and three Emmy Awards, the only opera company in the world to win these three honours. Houston Grand Opera is supported by an active auxiliary organization, the Houston Grand Opera Guild, established in October 1955.
In 1955, the German-born impresario Walter Herbert and Houstonians Elva Lobit, Edward Bing, and Charles Cockrell founded the company. Its inaugural season featured two performances of two operas, Salome (starring Brenda Lewis in the title role) and Madama Butterfly. David Gockley succeeded Walter Herbert as general director in 1972. During Gockley's tenure, the company began regularly commissioning and producing new works, primarily from American composers. Gockley remained as general director until 2005.
Anthony Freud succeeded Gockley as general director in 2005, and held the post until 2011. Following Freud's departure, joint leadership was shared between Patrick Summers, who had been music director at HGO since 1998, and Perryn Leech, who joined the company in 2006 and became chief operating officer in 2010. Summers took the titles of artistic director and music director, and Leech became managing director. For the 2017–2018 season, HGO performed at the 'HGO Resilience Theater', a temporary space created in an exhibit hall at the George R. Brown Convention Center, after the Wortham Theater Center was closed due to flooding from Hurricane Harvey in August 2017. Leech stood down as managing director of the company in December 2020.
In June 2021, the company announced the appointment of Khori Dastoor as its next general director and CEO, effective January 2022. Dastoor is the first woman ever named to the posts.
The Houston Grand Opera Orchestra consists of 49 part time professional musicians and plays all Houston Grand Opera performances. The orchestra is a member of the Regional Orchestra Players Association and is a per service orchestra.
No music director was appointed during the Walter Herbert years (1955–72) until 1971, when longtime assistant conductor and chorus master Charles Rosekrans was named. Later music directors/principal conductors include Chris Nance (1974–1977), John DeMain (1977–1994), and Vjekoslav Šutej (1994–1997). Patrick Summers has been the music director since 1998. With the 2019–2020 season, Eun Sun Kim became principal guest conductor, the first female conductor ever to hold the post. In October 2024, the company announced that Summers is to conclude his tenure with Houston Grand Opera in 2026, and subsequently to take the title of music director emeritus. In November 2025, the company announced the appointment of James Gaffigan as its next music director, effective with the 2027-2028 season, with an initial contract of five seasons. Gaffigan is scheduled to take the title of music director-designate for the 2026-2027 season.
The Houston Grand Opera Chorus has been led since 1988 by chorus master Richard Bado, an alumnus of HGO's young artist training program, the Houston Grand Opera Studio.
Houston Grand Opera's young artist development program, The Sarah and Ernest Butler Houston Grand Opera Studio, was founded in 1977 to help young artists make the transition between their academic training and professional careers. The Butler Studio primarily trains young singers and pianist/coaches but has also trained aspiring conductors in a residency program of up to three years. An annual competition, now called the Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers, was inaugurated in 1989 to help identify a pool of potential international artists for the Studio. Studio alumni include sopranos Jan Grissom, Marquita Lister, Ana María Martínez, Edrie Means, Erie Mills, Albina Shagimuratova, Heidi Stober, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, and Tamara Wilson; mezzo-sopranos Jamie Barton, Joyce DiDonato, Denyce Graves, Susanne Mentzer, and Marietta Simpson Archived 2017-11-01 at the Wayback Machine; tenors Bruce Ford, Carroll Freeman and Norman Reinhardt; baritones Richard Paul Fink, and Scott Hendricks; bass-baritones Greer Grimsley, Ryan McKinny Archived 2018-06-28 at the Wayback Machine, and Eric Owens; and bass Eric Halfvarson. Other alumni include HGO Chorus Master Richard Bado, composer/conductor David Hanlon, former Lyric Opera of Kansas City Artistic Director Ward Holmquist, conductor/arranger/composer James Lowe, conductor/pianist Eric Melear, conductor Evan Rogister, and conductor/pianist Craig Terry.
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