Lester Lynch

Lester Lynch (baritone) has become recognized for his charismatic portrayals and commanding voice with rave reviews as some of opera’s most important characters. In contemporary repertoire, he is known for his portrayals in pieces such as Dallapiccola’s Il Prigioniero, Busoni’s Doktor Faust, and Nico Muhly’s The Glitch, for which he has garnered many accolades.

Lynch made his debut at the renowned Teatro alla Scala singing the role of Crown in Porgy and Bess and at the Royal Opera House as Shylock in The Merchant of Venice. Other appearances on major stages include Berliner Philharmoniker, Vienna Volksoper, English National Opera, Norway’s Bergen National Opera, Semperoper Dresden, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, LA Opera, Seattle Opera, Santa Fe Opera, and San Francisco Opera.

Recent performances include Zemlinsky’s Symphonische Gesänge under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle in Munich and Frankfurt,and at Carnegie Hall with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. Lynch also appeared as Escamillo in Carmen with Edmonton Opera and Bluebeard in a new production of Bluebeard’s Castle with both the Edinburgh Festival and New Zealand Opera. He made his film debut in November 2021 as Merrivale in Gordon Getty’s opera Goodbye, Mr. Chips, based on the popular 1934 novella by James Hilton.

Lynch’s recording work is featured on Pentatone, and includes performances as Iago in Verdi’s Otello, Michele in Puccini’s Il Tabarro, Germont in La Traviata, and his 2017 debut solo album, On My Journey Now. His just-released Full Circle features Mussorgsky’s Songs and Dances of Death and Brahms’ Vier ernste Gesänge.

Lynch recently joined the faculty as Professor of Voice of at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.