About
Ray Calderon has been hailed by Opera News as, "terrific!", the New York Times praised, "Ray Calderon was effectively cast...a solid professional with vocal elegance." The Taconic Press acclaims him as, “an exceptional voice…leaving audiences cheering…” with his performances being, “ardent and utterly convincing.” The New York Sun said of his stage craft: “Ray Calderon makes the most of it, combining savvy stage business with a warm voice…expertly straddling that razor thin line between parody and poignancy…scored a direct hit.” While the Berkshire Review simply calls him, "...Perfect!" His travels have led him to make appearances with Grandview Opera (General & Co – Artistic Director), the Light Opera Company Of Salisbury (General & Artistic Director), Prelude to Performance (Associate Conductor), Amore Opera (Principal Conductor), the Opera Orchestra of New York, New York Grand Opera, Connecticut Opera, Connecticut Concert Opera, Greater New Britain Opera, Berkshire Opera, Bardavon Opera, Jacksonville Lyric Opera, Opera Ischia (Italy), Bronx Opera, New Rochelle Opera, Amato Opera, Bleecker Street Opera (Associate Conductor), Regina Opera, Long Island Opera, the New Britain Symphony Orchestra, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, the Staten Island Philharmonic, the Belleayre Music Festival, American Opera Preview, in collaboration with artists and staff of the Metropolitan Opera, at Carnegie Hall, Bechstein Hall, Merkin Hall, Symphony Space, and Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center. |
"Ray Calderon was effectively cast...a solid professional with vocal elegance."
- The New York Times
- The New York Times
Ray is a regular soloist with numerous chorales in the U.S. and Europe, including Crescendo, the Berkshire Chorale Festival, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, and St. Ignatius Loyola in New York, where in 2001 he made his conducting debut, First Church of Christ in historic Wethersfield, Connecticut (site of the Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival), where he made his Connecticut organ debut and returns regularly as a soloist, the New York Choral Society, and the Greater Middletown Chorale, where he served as vocal coach and in December of 2008, conducted the Chorale’s New York debut. Having served on the faculty of Martina Arroyo’s Prelude to Performance, he has also appeared as a guest accompanist at the Hartt School of Music and was personally selected by Mignon Dunn to conduct her Opera Scenes Performance Concert at Manhattan School of Music. He has made several well – received guest appearances throughout the United States, Europe and Australia, has been featured as a concert opener for Celia Cruz, Johnny Pacheco and Ray Barretto, and has served as Andrea Bocelli's rehearsal tenor during the Passione tour.
Ray's musical theatre repertoire includes numerous Broadway and Off-Broadway credits including: Les Misérables (Jean Valjean/Marius), The Phantom of the Opera (Phantom/Raoul), Jekyll & Hyde (Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde), Sunset Boulevard (Joe Gillis), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Joseph), and Sweeney Todd (Anthony). |
"Ray Calderon was terrific!"
- Opera News
As a recording artists, his catalogue numbers over two hundred in several genres with numerous orchestras including the Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra, Kostelanetz Orchestra, the New York City Opera Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic. His solo performances have also been broadcast on Channel 15 (Hartford) and WJMJ FM (New Haven).
A graduate with honors from Fordham and the Music Conservatory of Westchester, Mr. Calderon is the proud recipient of such awards as the Hartt performance arts scholarship, the Fordham Excellence Award in music, the Berkshire Chorale Festival performing arts scholarship and is a twice recipient of the Tito Puente Performing Arts Award. He was presented the Decades of Achievers Award in its inaugural year from his alma mater, Villa Maria Academy honored as the representative of his graduating decade and was awarded The Servant In Christ Award from Trinity Lutheran Church in his native Bronx, New York where he served as Director of Music and the Arts for twelve years.
Mr. Calderon holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance and a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from the Hartt School of Music. He earned his Master of Music degree from Manhattan School of Music, and Certificates of Achievement in Music from Harvard University, Yale University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
A graduate with honors from Fordham and the Music Conservatory of Westchester, Mr. Calderon is the proud recipient of such awards as the Hartt performance arts scholarship, the Fordham Excellence Award in music, the Berkshire Chorale Festival performing arts scholarship and is a twice recipient of the Tito Puente Performing Arts Award. He was presented the Decades of Achievers Award in its inaugural year from his alma mater, Villa Maria Academy honored as the representative of his graduating decade and was awarded The Servant In Christ Award from Trinity Lutheran Church in his native Bronx, New York where he served as Director of Music and the Arts for twelve years.
Mr. Calderon holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance and a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from the Hartt School of Music. He earned his Master of Music degree from Manhattan School of Music, and Certificates of Achievement in Music from Harvard University, Yale University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.