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{{Short description|American countertenor}}
[[File:Orfeo.JPG|thumb|Derek Lee Ragin and Tracey Mitchell in the [[Opera Quotannis]] production of ''Orfeo ed Euridice'', 1991.]]
[[File:Derek Lee Ragin and Tracey Mitchell, 1991.JPG|thumb|Derek Lee Ragin and Tracey Mitchell in the [[Opera Quotannis]] production of ''[[Orfeo ed Euridice]]'', 1991.]]


'''Derek Lee Ragin''' (born June 17, 1958) is an [[United States|American]] [[countertenor]].<ref name="allmusic">[{{Allmusic|class=artist|id=q47581/biography|pure_url=yes}} Derek Lee Ragin > Biography] [[allmusic]]</ref>
'''Derek Lee Ragin''' (born June 17, 1958) is an American [[countertenor]].<ref name="allmusic">[{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=q47581/biography|pure_url=yes}} Derek Lee Ragin > Biography] [[allmusic]]</ref>


==Early life==
==Early life==
Derek Ragin was born in [[West Point, New York]] and grew up in [[Newark, New Jersey]]. He began his formal voice training with the [[Newark Boys Chorus]], and studied as a piano and music education major at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. While at Oberlin, he also took secondary voice lessons with Richard Anderson, and began his operatic career at Oberlin in [[Benjamin Britten]]'s ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream (opera)|A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'' as Oberon.<ref name="allmusic" /> After leaving Oberlin, Ragin worked with singer [[Max van Egmond]] for a summer session at [[British Phonographic Industry|BPI]] and went to Europe to pursue his career in [[Baroque opera]].<ref>Waleson,Heidi (2006) [http://www.oberlin.edu/con/connews/2006/feat_everything_02.html Everything Old is New Again: Historical Performance at Oberlin (continued)] Oberline magazine</ref>
Derek Ragin was born in [[West Point, New York]] and grew up in [[Newark, New Jersey]]. He began his formal voice training with the [[Newark Boys Chorus]], and studied as a piano and music education major at the [[Oberlin Conservatory of Music]]. While at Oberlin, he also took secondary voice lessons with Richard Anderson, and began his operatic career at Oberlin in [[Benjamin Britten]]'s ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream (opera)|A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'' as Oberon.<ref name="allmusic" /> After leaving Oberlin, Ragin worked with singer [[Max van Egmond]] for a summer session at [[British Phonographic Industry|BPI]] and went to Europe to pursue his career in [[Baroque opera]].<ref>Waleson, Heidi (2006) [http://www.oberlin.edu/con/connews/2006/feat_everything_02.html Everything Old is New Again: Historical Performance at Oberlin (continued)] Oberline magazine</ref>


==Career==
==Career==
⚫
Ragin gained fame by winning the 1983 Purcell-Britten Prize for Concert Singers in England, the Prix Spécial du Jury du Grand Prix Lyrique de [[Monte Carlo]] in 1988, and First Prize at the 35th [[ARD International Music Competition]] in Munich in 1986.<ref name="CT" />
⚫
Derek Lee Ragin made his [[London]] recital debut at Wigmore Hall in 1984. This was followed by a debut at the [[Metropolitan Opera]] in 1988 in [[George Frideric Handel]]'s ''[[Giulio Cesare]]'', a recital at the [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] in 1991, and a performance at the Salzburg Festival in [[Christoph Willibald Gluck]]'s ''[[Orfeo]]'' with the [[Monteverdi]] Choir and Orchestra in 1990.


⚫
He had made his [[London]] recital debut at Wigmore Hall in 1984. He also sang Joe in the 1986 [[Crucible Theatre|Crucible Theatre Sheffield]] production of ''[[Carmen Jones]]''.<ref>[[Rodney Milnes|Milnes, Rodney]]. Review of ''Carmen Jones'' at the Old Vic, 12 April 1991. [[Opera Magazine|Opera]], June 1991, p727.</ref> This was followed by a debut at the [[Metropolitan Opera]] in 1988 in [[George Frideric Handel]]'s ''[[Giulio Cesare]]'', a recital at the [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] in 1991, and a performance at the Salzburg Festival in [[Christoph Willibald Gluck]]'s ''[[Orfeo ed Euridice]]'' with the [[Monteverdi]] Choir and Orchestra in 1990.
⚫
For the soundtrack of the [[1994 in film|1994]] film ''[[Farinelli (film)|Farinelli]]'', his voice was electronically blended with that of soprano [[Ewa Malas-Godlewska]] to recreate the famous [[castrato]]'s voice.<ref>Gabrielli, Betty (Summer, 1996) [http://www.oberlin.edu/alummag/oampast/oam_sum96/oamsum96_ragin.html A Friendly Conspiracy] Oberline Alumni magazine</ref>


In 1991, he released a disc of spirituals entitled ''Ev'ry Time I Feel the Spirit'' (recorded with [[Moses Hogan]] and his [[New World Ensemble]]).
==Discography==
⚫
Derek Lee Ragin has recorded extensively for the Telarc, Philips, EMI, Erato and Capriccio labels, including Italian lute songs, G.F. Handel cantatas, and a disc of spirituals entitled ''Ev'ry Time I Feel the Spirit''. His recording of [[Leonard Bernstein]]'s ''[[Chichester Psalms]]'' and the world premiere of the composer's ''[[Missa Brevis]]'' with the [[Atlanta Symphony Orchestra]] and [[Robert Shaw (conductor)|Robert Shaw]] won a [[Grammy Award]], and his recording of ''Giulio Cesare'' with Concerto Köln received a [[Gramophone Award]] in 1992. ''Farinelli'', the film about the 18th century castrato won the [[Golden Globe]] Award for Best Foreign Film in 1995, and the soundtrack won the Golden Record award the following year in [[Cannes]].<ref name=CT>{{cite web |url=http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Bio/Ragin-Derek-Lee.htm|title=Derek Lee Ragin (Countertenor)|accessdate=23 December 2011}}</ref>


His recording of [[Leonard Bernstein]]'s ''[[Chichester Psalms]]'' and the world premiere of the composer's ''[[Missa Brevis]]'' with the [[Atlanta Symphony Orchestra]] and [[Robert Shaw (conductor)|Robert Shaw]] won a [[Grammy Award]], and his recording of ''Giulio Cesare'' with Concerto Köln received a [[Gramophone Award]] in 1992.
==Awards==

⚫
Ragin won the 1983 Purcell-Britten Prize for Concert Singers in England, the Prix Spécial du Jury du Grand Prix Lyrique de [[Monte Carlo]] in 1988, and First Prize at the 35th International Music Competition in [[Munich]] in 1986.<ref name=CT />
⚫
For the soundtrack of the [[1994 in film|1994]] film ''[[Farinelli (film)|Farinelli]]'', his voice was electronically blended with that of soprano [[Ewa Malas-Godlewska]] to recreate the famous [[castrato]]'s voice.<ref>Gabrielli, Betty (Summer, 1996) [http://www.oberlin.edu/alummag/oampast/oam_sum96/oamsum96_ragin.html A Friendly Conspiracy] Oberline Alumni magazine</ref> He also recorded extensively for the Telarc, Philips, EMI, Erato and Capriccio labels, including Italian lute songs, G.F. Handel cantatas.

⚫
Shortly after his Salzburg performance of ''Orfeo ed Euridice'', he sang the role of Orfeo on the Philips recording of the opera with [[Sylvia McNair]] as Euridice and [[Sir John Eliot Gardiner]] conducting the English Baroque Soloists and the Monteverdi Choir. ''Farinelli'', the film about the 18th century castrato won the [[Golden Globe]] Award for Best Foreign Film in 1995, and the soundtrack won the [[Cannes Soundtrack Award|Golden Record]] award the following year in [[Cannes]].<ref name="CT">{{cite web |url=http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Bio/Ragin-Derek-Lee.htm|title=Derek Lee Ragin (Countertenor)|accessdate=23 December 2011}}</ref>


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
*{{Official website|https://web.archive.org/web/20170912091725/http://derekleeragin.com/}} archived on September 12, 2017
*[http://www.derekleeragin.net/ The official site]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJIlzh_Auc4 Derek Lee Ragin sings "A dispetto d'un volto ingrato," from Handel's Tamerlano]
*{{YouTube|NJIlzh_Auc4|Derek Lee Ragin sings "A dispetto d'un volto ingrato," from Handel's Tamerlano}}
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWMOmBohlTE Excerpt from ''Farinelli'']
*{{YouTube|NWMOmBohlTE|Excerpt from ''Farinelli''}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20160302072720/http://www.colbertartists.com/derek-lee-ragin Colbert Artists Management Inc.]
*[http://www.bruceduffie.com/ragin.html Interview with Derek Lee Ragin], February, 1995
⚫
{{Authority control}}


⚫
{{Authority control|VIAF=19869823}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
| NAME = Ragin, Derek Lee
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = American opera singer
| DATE OF BIRTH = June 17, 1958
| PLACE OF BIRTH =
| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ragin, Derek Lee}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ragin, Derek Lee}}
[[Category:1958 births]]
[[Category:1958 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Operatic countertenors]]
[[Category:Operatic countertenors]]
[[Category:American opera singers]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American male singers]]
[[Category:African-American singers]]
[[Category:20th-century American male opera singers]]
[[Category:People from Newark, New Jersey]]
[[Category:African-American male opera singers]]
[[Category:Musicians from Newark, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Oberlin Conservatory of Music alumni]]
[[Category:Classical musicians from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Classical musicians from New Jersey]]
[[Category:Prize-winners of the ARD International Music Competition]]
[[Category:American performers of early music]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American male singers]]
[[Category:21st-century American male singers]]

Latest revision as of 00:08, 20 October 2024

Derek Lee Ragin and Tracey Mitchell in the Opera Quotannis production of Orfeo ed Euridice, 1991.

Derek Lee Ragin (born June 17, 1958) is an American countertenor.[1]

Early life

[edit]

Derek Ragin was born in West Point, New York and grew up in Newark, New Jersey. He began his formal voice training with the Newark Boys Chorus, and studied as a piano and music education major at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. While at Oberlin, he also took secondary voice lessons with Richard Anderson, and began his operatic career at Oberlin in Benjamin Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream as Oberon.[1] After leaving Oberlin, Ragin worked with singer Max van Egmond for a summer session at BPI and went to Europe to pursue his career in Baroque opera.[2]

Career

[edit]

Ragin gained fame by winning the 1983 Purcell-Britten Prize for Concert Singers in England, the Prix Spécial du Jury du Grand Prix Lyrique de Monte Carlo in 1988, and First Prize at the 35th ARD International Music Competition in Munich in 1986.[3]

He had made his London recital debut at Wigmore Hall in 1984. He also sang Joe in the 1986 Crucible Theatre Sheffield production of Carmen Jones.[4] This was followed by a debut at the Metropolitan Opera in 1988 in George Frideric Handel's Giulio Cesare, a recital at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1991, and a performance at the Salzburg Festival in Christoph Willibald Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice with the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra in 1990.

In 1991, he released a disc of spirituals entitled Ev'ry Time I Feel the Spirit (recorded with Moses Hogan and his New World Ensemble).

His recording of Leonard Bernstein's Chichester Psalms and the world premiere of the composer's Missa Brevis with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Robert Shaw won a Grammy Award, and his recording of Giulio Cesare with Concerto Köln received a Gramophone Award in 1992.

For the soundtrack of the 1994 film Farinelli, his voice was electronically blended with that of soprano Ewa Malas-Godlewska to recreate the famous castrato's voice.[5] He also recorded extensively for the Telarc, Philips, EMI, Erato and Capriccio labels, including Italian lute songs, G.F. Handel cantatas.

Shortly after his Salzburg performance of Orfeo ed Euridice, he sang the role of Orfeo on the Philips recording of the opera with Sylvia McNair as Euridice and Sir John Eliot Gardiner conducting the English Baroque Soloists and the Monteverdi Choir. Farinelli, the film about the 18th century castrato won the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Film in 1995, and the soundtrack won the Golden Record award the following year in Cannes.[3]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Derek Lee Ragin > Biography allmusic
  2. ^ Waleson, Heidi (2006) Everything Old is New Again: Historical Performance at Oberlin (continued) Oberline magazine
  3. ^ a b "Derek Lee Ragin (Countertenor)". Retrieved 23 December 2011.
  4. ^ Milnes, Rodney. Review of Carmen Jones at the Old Vic, 12 April 1991. Opera, June 1991, p727.
  5. ^ Gabrielli, Betty (Summer, 1996) A Friendly Conspiracy Oberline Alumni magazine
[edit]
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