Feature: Jean del Santo
This year, the School of Music community honors the trailblazing career of Professor and lyric soprano Jean del Santo as she announces retirement. Professor del Santo joined the vocal faculty on September 16, 1989, paving the way for 31 years of successful studio alumni who are deeply enmeshed in the global vocal community.
In addition to her position as associate professor of voice and vocal division chair at the University of Minnesota, Jean del Santo served on the faculties of Michigan State University and University of Missouri Conservatory of Music in Kansas City. She earned her undergraduate degree from Lawrence University, Appleton WI (vocal performance and music education) and her MM from Indiana University School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana (voice and opera). Her major teachers and coaches include Eileen Farrell, Lorna Haywood, Eva Likova, David Agler, Andrew Meltzer, Martin Smith, Martha Gerhardt and Susan Caldwell.
del Santo’s concert work includes performances with numerous national and regional orchestras. She performed as soloist with the late Maestro Robert Shaw in Beethoven’s 9th Symphony (Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and National Symphony Orchestra at Kennedy Center in Washington DC), the Verdi Requiem (San Francisco Festival of Masses), and Britten’s War Requiem which was aired on Nebraska Public Television. As soloist in Rossini’s Stabat Mater with Perform America, Ms. del Santo sang a two-week concert tour in the country of Spain. She also appeared with Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional in Mexico City as soloist in Bach’s Mass in B Minor. She had numerous other orchestral engagements across the country. Ms. del Santo has performed as soloist with noted conductors Semyon Bychkov, Edo de Waart, Hugh Wolff, Gustav Meier, James DePriest, Lionel Friend, Leo Dreyhuis, Murray Sidlin, Paul Polivnick and Robert Fountain. She can be heard as soloist on the Moravian Music Foundation bicentennial recording Psalm of Joy.
Her operatic credits include performances in San Francisco Opera’s Das Ring des Nibelungen (Wellgunde and Ortlinde), a four-month tour with Western Opera Theater in the title role of Madama Butterfly, an apprenticeship with San Diego Opera Center and performances in the leading roles of Fiordiligi in Cosi fan Tutte, Mimi and Musetta in La Boheme, Carlisle Floyd’s Susannah (televised and aired on Indiana Public Television), and Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with regional companies.
Professor del Santo’s lessons had a profound impact on all of the students who went through her studio. Her alumni have gone on to a variety of careers throughout the country, including music therapy, performance and teaching. Many went on to earn their master’s degrees, hoping to leave the same legacy with their students as she had with them.
Her unique teaching style is praised among her former students. Alumnus Michael Hoffman noted, “Jean, as a teacher, is someone who figures out your interests and passions, and relates her Pedagogy to images that you can relate to. She always strove to make students work their hardest, and keep practicing, while also being hugely supportive when it came time for performances.”
Alumna Angela Mitchell (Schmidt) reflected that “you rarely meet a teacher who is so intensely invested in the personal growth of her students.” Mitchell shared “I am very grateful that, as a young singer, I had a teacher who was so focused on building up a healthy technique.” Alumna Nancy King told us "Jean has truly one of the most beautiful soprano voices I have ever heard. It was worth it to just hear her demonstrate on a regular basis, and it has created a lasting imprint on my brain. Because of her artistry, and deep understanding of vocal technique, pedagogy, diction, and love of the stage, Jean was the ideal role model. More importantly, she has handled her academic career and her performing life, with passion, grace, and love. I simply wouldn't be the singer and teacher I am today without her, and for her guidance, mentorship and friendship, I am deeply grateful."
One common thread throughout her studio experience was exposing students to a deep historical context of the pieces they studied. Alumna Alanah Forstner mentioned how del Santo encouraged all of her students to heavily research the songs they performed. “It was never ‘just a song’ with Professor del Santo, it was a story and there was a reason. Someone composed that song so we had to convince our audience to listen to the story and feel it. If I did not do my research, I may have not been able to connect with my residents at work so much.” School of Music vocal professor John De Haan reminisces about first encountering del Santo in the 1980’s in Lincoln, Nebraska, where she was soprano soloist for Robert Shaw’s conducting of the Benjamin Britten War Requiem, which he remembers as “THE event of the concert season.”
“In a word, the young soprano from Michigan was SPECTACULAR! Jean del Santo tossed off this famously difficult part as if she were just vocalizing in her studio...When she came out for her final bow I thought the choir risers were going to collapse because the entire chorus was jumping up and down as they showed their appreciation for a person who was, unbeknownst to me, one day to become one of my dearest friends and colleagues.”
Across her tenure with the School of Music Professor del Santo displayed an unparalleled dedication to advancing the careers of her students in all fields. Her service to the University has left an incredible impact on multiple generations of students, fellow faculty and the world of music. Please join us in celebrating her decades-long career.
Tutti. (Italian) all. every musician to take part.
Tutti is the annual publication of the University of Minnesota School of Music.
