B i o g r a p h y
Tenor Randolph Lacy is noted for the lyrical beauty of his voice and his ability to interpret musical texts with intelligence and sensitivity. His repertoire is large and diverse, ranging from the seventeenth century to the present.
Recently, Randy has sung as a soloist in the world premiere of Four Haikus by Aleksander Stemfeld-Dunn with the Ad Astra Singers in the Kurt Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall in a contemporary choral music festival presented by Distinguished Concerts International New York (DCINY); with Opera Kansas in Comedy on the Bridge by Bohuslav Martinů; with the Fresno Philharmonic in the Mozart Requiem; as soloist in a Christmas concert with the Wichita Symphony; with the Lone Star Lyric Theatre Festival in the world-premiere of the Simply Grimm Prologue; with Ars Lyrica, Houston in “Heaven and Hell,” a concert of Monteverdi’s Madrigali Guerrieri et Amorosi (in combination with the New York Baroque Dance Company), and in Bach’s Johannespassion; with the Bayou City Performing Arts company in the Saint-Saëns Oratorio de Noël; with the Bach Society, Houston in Bach’s cantata # 201, Der Streit zwischen Phoebus und Pan; with the Houston Chamber Choir as tenor soloist in Handel’s Messiah; and with the Hope Stone Dance Company in Village of Waltz. In the summer of 2008, Randolph co-starred with Neale Donald Walsch (the author of Conversations with God) in a tour of a new musical entitled Onebody by James Coventry. Also in 2008, Randolph was featured as the tenor soloist in Bach cantatas # 19 & 131 on the first commercial recording made by the Bach Society, Houston. In 2007, he sang with the Austin-based group Conspirare on their Grammy-nominated CD of music by the living British composer Tarik O’Regan entitled Threshold of Night, released in 2008 by Harmonia Mundi.
On stage, Randolph has appeared with the Houston Grand Opera, Chamber Opera Chicago, Opera Memphis, Anchorage Opera, Kentucky Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Houston, and Houston’s Theatre Under the Stars. His operatic roles include: Tamino in The Magic Flute; Tito in La Clemenza di Tito, Ernesto in Don Pasquale, Fenton in Falstaff, Count Almaviva in The Ghosts of Versailles; the Conte di Libenskof in Il Viaggio a Reims, Beppe/Arlecchino in I Pagliacci; Don Basilio in Le Nozze di Figaro; Luiz in The Gondoliers; Toni in Elegy for Young Lovers; and Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi. In the realm of musical theatre, Randolph has performed as Pirelli in Sweeney Todd; Jake in The Most Happy Fella; and The Artist in Onebody.
Randolph’s concert work includes performances with the Austin Symphony, Anchorage Symphony, Baton Rouge Symphony, Boulder Philharmonic, Chicago String Ensemble, Da Camera, Fresno Philharmonic, Houston Chamber Choir, Houston Symphony, Michigan Bach Festival, Orpheus Ensemble (Fresno), Orquesta Sinfónica de Minería (Mexico City), Sacramento Ballet, and at the Festival at Roundtop. His solo performances with orchestra have included: the Evangelist roles in J. S. Bach’s Johannespassion, Matthäuspassion, Weihnachtsoratorium; in the newly rediscovered St. Matthew Passion by C.P.E. Bach; in the Berlioz Requiem; Britten’s Saint Nicolas and Les Illuminations; in Corigliano’s Poem in October; in the Dubois Seven Last Words of Christ; in Handel’s Acis & Galatea, Israel in Egypt, Messiah, La Resurrezione, Il Trionfo del Tempo e della Verità; in Haydn’s The Creation and Harmoniemesse; in Monteverdi’s Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda; in Mozart’s Requiem and Vesperae Solennes de Confessore; in Orff’s Carmina Burana; in Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle; and in the Saint-Saëns Oratorio de Noël, among others. In the world-premiere of Wrestling with my God by jazz pianist and composer Paul English, Randolph performed solos composed specifically for his voice.
As a narrator, Randolph has performed with the Houston Symphony (in the role of Hector Berlioz) in a series of young persons’ concerts entitled, Symphony? Fantastic!; with the Orpheus Ensemble in William Walton’s Façade; and in the world-premiere of Parizade and the Singing Tree, by Rice University composer Karim Al-Zand.
Randolph holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston, and Master and Bachelor Degrees in Music (Vocal Performance) from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University. His education included Fellowships to the Tanglewood Music Center and the Aspen Music Festival, an apprenticeship with the Glimmerglass Opera, and Italian language study at the Università per Stranieri in Siena, Italy.
Dr. Lacy formerly taught at California State University, Fresno as an Assitant Professor of Voice and the Director of its opera program. He has also worked as a Lecturer at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas, where he taught Vocal Pedagogy,
Song History & Literature, Singing Diction, and private voice lessons.